Photo by Cameron Carlson
Whether you’re from Devils Lake, or from one of the surrounding communities north, south or west of the lake, you probably have a football team to root for on Friday.
In a remarkable showing for the Lake Region, three area teams advanced to this week’s Dakota Bowl XXXII in the Fargodome. It’s the first time that three teams from this area have made it to the state championship in the same year. The last time that two of these teams made the Dakota Bowl was 2009, when Devils Lake and Langdon Area/Munich each lost in the title game.
This Friday’s slate will start with the nine-man game at 9:10 a.m. It’ll be a rematch of last year, with defending champion New Rockford-Sheyenne/Maddock against LaMoure-Litchville/Marion. Then Langdon Area/Munich faces Bottineau in the Division A championship, roughly 20 minutes after the conclusion of the nine-man game.
Twenty minutes later, it’ll be time for Devils Lake to compete for the first state football title in school history.
Division AA: West No. 2 seed Devils Lake vs. West No. 1 seed Minot North
The Firebirds will see a rematch with the only opponent they haven’t beaten this year.
Like they were against Kindred last week, they’ll be considered the underdog by most neutral observers. But that doesn’t mean you can just count them out.
Devils Lake’s improvement throughout the season was exemplified in Friday’s win over Kindred. After losing 42-12 to the Vikings in August, the Firebirds never trailed in Friday’s game and pulled out a 28-27 thriller in overtime.
While Devils Lake is known for its offense, its defense is what fueled the victory. Unlike in the season opener, the Firebirds managed to limit big plays from Kindred’s high-powered offense. The Vikings leaned on the run game with Sawyer Hesse and Myles Thielges, and they started to gain some traction in the second half. But Devils Lake still held Kindred’s playmakers to a minimum — especially supreme talent Brooks Bakko, outside of a 33-yard touchdown catch.
With Bryar Exner continuing his huge senior year at running back, Devils Lake avenged its early-season loss in the biggest game of the year.
While the Firebirds were blown out by Kindred in their first matchup, their initial go-round with Minot North was tighter. They didn’t score until the middle of the third quarter, but they nearly pulled off a fourth-quarter comeback. They were four yards away from at least tying the game, with the potential to win it with an extra point.
Instead, they lost 26-20. At the time, it ended Devils Lake’s five-game winning streak. But it was the closest game Minot North had played this season. Since then, Minot North has played one closer game: a 21-17 win over Central Cass in the semifinals. The Sentinels are 11-0, while the Firebirds are 9-2.
While Kindred is more known for offense than defense, Minot North is more known for defense. The Sentinels have allowed just 92 total points in 11 games. Devils Lake, led by Mason Palmer and Exner, will need to score earlier and set the tone like it did against Kindred on Friday.
Minot North is a relatively new varsity program. The teams’ only other matchup was in last year’s first round, when the Sentinels beat Devils Lake 35-20.
The Firebirds have been in the Dakota Bowl four other times in their history. They lost 28-11 in 1989, 28-0 in 2007, 31-30 in 2009 and 24-21 in 2010.
Fifteen years after heartbreak, they’ll look to bring something the school has never seen.
Nine-man: No. 1 seed New Rockford-Sheyenne/Maddock vs. No. 2 seed LaMoure-Litchville/Marion
If you glance at this game on TV, you might think you’re watching a replay of last year’s contest.
Two of the most dominant talents in the state will fight again in their senior years: Rockets quarterback Easton Simon against Loboes running back Gunner Thielges. In last year’s 62-26 win for the Rockets, Simon threw for 276 yards, while Thielges totaled over 200 yards of offense between rushing and receiving.
Thielges has since committed to North Dakota State. Simon, meanwhile, has continued to lead a bulldozer of a Rockets football team, captaining 24 consecutive wins entering Friday.
NR-S/M acknowledged that stopping Thielges is impossible. But if the Rockets can at least limit his big plays, they’ll have a fighting chance to repeat.
Senior tight end Easton Benz has remained one of the biggest playmakers on offense for the Rockets. Guys like Thomas Allmaras, Jackson Schumacher, Koy Zieman and Grant Engebretson have filled in to replace the weapons that graduated. NR-S/M has won each of its last 24 games by at least 22 points (outside of a forfeit win over North Star).
The squad is coming off a 72-50 win over Hankinson in the semifinals. It was the most points NR-S/M has allowed since September 2022, but Simon threw for more than 500 yards on offense.
The Rockets have won two state championships: 2012 and 2024, both led by head coach Elliott Belquist. They would be the fourth team to repeat as state champions in the history of nine-man football in North Dakota. The most recent was Cavalier, which won it all in 2013 and 2014. Linton/HMB won in 2002 and 2003, while New England/Regent won three straight from 1995 to 1997.
Last year, NR-S/M outscored opponents 727-130 in a 12-0 season. This year, that margin is 702-182 with another 12-0 record (although only 11 officially played games). The 62 points it put up in last year’s championship game was the most for any team in Dakota Bowl history.
The Rockets are 3-1 all-time against L-L/M, including a 24-18 win in the 2023 quarterfinals. The Loboes have won two state championships: 1991 and 2021. They enter Friday with a 12-0 record.
Division A: No. 1 seed Langdon Area/Munich vs. No. 6 seed Bottineau
The LA/M Cardinals are back in the Dakota Bowl for the first time since 2020’s state championship.
That victory capped a string of three state titles in a row, and four consecutive title appearances.
LA/M lost in the semifinals each of the last two years. The Cardinals, who are 12-0 this year, enter Friday with a record of 105-13 since the start of the 2016 season.
The Cardinals are led by a dual running threat in Jax Johnson and Sam Davis. They beat defending state champion Velva-Drake-Anamoose-Garrison in the semifinals, 36-26. They’ll match up with Bottineau, a team they beat 34-7 in last year’s regular season. LA/M is 19-10 all-time against Bottineau.
Before 2018, the Cardinals had never won a football state title. They had made it to the Dakota Bowl three times: a 27-6 loss in 2000, a 20-0 loss in 2009 and a 16-14 loss in 2017.
They’re facing a Bottineau team that has never even been in a Dakota Bowl before, let alone won one. The Braves have an all-time winning percentage of .353, averaging just over three wins a year. But Bottineau is 11-1 this season and 39-13 since 2021. The 11 wins is already the most in program history for Bottineau.
After the first three championship games, the Division AA title will round out the day in the Fargodome.
Regardless of Friday’s results, the local representation in the biggest day of the year for high school football in North Dakota is something to behold.
