October 1, 2026
GAME 6 AT A GLANCE
FRONTIER CONFERENCE EAST DIVISION OPENER
Date: Saturday, October 3 vs. (6) Montana Tech
Location: Brian Kern Family Stadium on Blankley Field |
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| Start Time: 1 p.m. |
| Game Day Sponsor: Madison Regional Health System |
THIS WEEK
Dakota State (S.D.) (4-1 overall record, 0-0 Frontier East, No. 22 in NAIA Football Coaches' Top 25 Poll) returns home to kick off their two-game home stand at Brian Kern Family Stadium on Blankley Field. The Trojans host Montana Tech (4-1 overall record, 0-0 Frontier East, No. 6 in NAIA Football Coaches' Top 25 Poll) in the battle of NAIA's Top 25 teams.
Saturday's game is also the Frontier East divisional opener for both teams. Madison Regional Health System will be the game day sponsor.
THE SERIES
Series Overall: Montana Tech leads all-time series 1-0.
Series Notes: The all-time series began last season in Butte, Mont., where Montana Tech jumped to a 21-0 lead after the first quarter and never trailed. The Orediggers rolled past the Trojans 49-21 in the first-ever Frontier East Division opener. Saturday's contest will mark the second straight year that both teams will open their six-game divisional schedule against one another.
Top two teams in Frontier East: Montana Tech and Dakota State were the top two teams in the Frontier East Division last season. The Orediggers went undefeated with a 6-0 record, while the Trojans closed the divisional schedule with five consecutive victories to finish second in the East Division standings (5-1).
2026 STATS COMPARISON
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| 36.6 |
Scoring Offense |
37.8 |
| 222.2 |
Rushing Offense |
124.4 |
| 206.0 |
Passing Offense |
362.8 |
| 428.2 |
Total Offense |
487.2 |
| 13.2 |
Scoring Defense |
22.6 |
| 72.0 |
Rushing Defense |
115.0 |
| 150.4 |
Passing Defense |
220.4 |
| 222.4 |
Total Defense |
335.4 |
| 8 |
Interceptions |
6 |
| 11/35.6 |
Punts/Avg. |
20/38.0 |
| 13.5-98 |
Sacks-Yards Lost |
11-62 |
SATURDAY'S FRONTIER DIVISIONAL OPENER
The Frontier Conference shifts into divisional play Saturday with five games on the schedule as teams begin the six-game conference portion of the 2026 season. The East and West Division champions will each earn an automatic berth to the NAIA Football Championship Series.
In the East Division, a matchup of nationally ranked teams highlights the opening weekend as No. 22 Dakota State hosts No. 6 Montana Tech. Mayville State travels to Dickinson State, while Rocky Mountain welcomes Valley City State. MSU-Northern has the divisional bye.
The West Division opens with top-ranked College of Idaho hosting to Simpson. (RV) Montana Western hosts Southern Oregon. No. 13 Carroll welcomes Arizona Christian in the nightcap, while Eastern Oregon is idle.
Saturday begins a 7-week stretch of divisional competition, with each team playing six division games and receiving one bye before the regular season concludes Nov. 14.
ABOUT MONTANA TECH
No. 6 Montana Tech, located in Butte, enters Saturday's Frontier Conference East Division opener with a 4-1 overall record. The Orediggers are the defending Frontier East champions after putting together a historic 2025 season, finishing 12-1 and advancing to the quarterfinal round of the NAIA Football Championship Series.
The 2026 season is Kyle Samson's seventh as head coach at Montana Tech. Samson took over the program in January 2020 after serving one season as the Orediggers' offensive coordinator and quarterbacks' coach. He has guided Montana Tech to three consecutive NAIA playoff appearances from 2023-25, highlighted by last season's program-record 12 victories.
Montana Tech opened the season with four straight victories, defeating Ottawa (Ariz.) 48-0, No. 13 Carroll (Mont.) 24-14, Montana Western 34-7 and Southern Oregon 58-10. The Orediggers outscored their first four opponents 164-31 before suffering their first loss of the season Saturday at current No. 1 ranked College of Idaho.
The Orediggers fell 35-19 to Yotes in a match-up of top three teams. Montana Tech was held scoreless in the second half after trailing 28-19 at halftime. Quarterback Jarrett Wilson threw for 236 yards, while Levi Torgerson recorded 107 receiving yards. Linebacker Kellan Beller led the defense with 18 tackles. The loss dropped Montana Tech from No. 2 to No. 6 in Monday's NAIA Coaches' Top 25 poll.
TROJANS IN THE NAIA NATIONAL RANKS
According to the NAIA-PrestoStats as of Wednesday, Dakota State's
Tray Hettick leads the NAIA with 1,720 passing yards and ranks second with 19 passing touchdowns.
Maddox Kihne also ranks inside the top 10 with 450 receiving yards for the Trojans. Dakota State is second in the NAIA in passing yards as a team, averaging 344.0 yards per game.
DSU's
Kaden Van Otterloo also ranks inside the NAIA Top 10 with 47 total tackles, averaging 9.4 tackles per game.
Tamareon 'Frosty' Foster ranks Top 10 in the nation with three interceptions for the Trojans.
Malte Hamann is in the top 10 with 31 points scored in kicking for Dakota State.
LAST TIME OUT
No. 22 Dakota State escaped Ashland, Ore., with a 27-25 victory over Southern Oregon Saturday, improving to 4-1 overall and completing Frontier Conference crossover play with a perfect 2-0 record. The Trojans rallied from an early 11-0 deficit and held on after Southern Oregon missed a potential game-winning 31-yard field goal as time expired.
Dakota State scored 21 points in the second quarter, highlighted by three Southern Oregon turnovers.
Tamareon 'Frosty' Foster intercepted two passes, including a 17-yard return for a touchdown, while
Aidan Jahns added another interception.
Tray Hettick connected with
Trajan Davis and
Maddox Kihne for touchdown passes as DSU took a 21-18 advantage into halftime.
Southern Oregon regained a 25-24 lead with 6:05 remaining in the fourth quarter before the Trojans responded with a nine-play, 65-yard drive.
Malte Hamann connected on a 22-yard field goal with 2:42 remaining to give Dakota State the 27-25 advantage. Hamann was perfect on the afternoon, converting field goals from 24 and 22 yards along with all three extra-point attempts.
Hettick completed 27-of-42 passes for 290 yards and two touchdowns. Kihne led the Trojans with eight receptions for 103 yards and a touchdown, while Davis finished with six catches for 64 yards and a score.
Kaden Van Otterloo recorded a game-high 13 tackles and a sack. Southern Oregon outgained Dakota State 446-355, but the Trojans won the turnover battle 3-0 and converted all four of their trips inside the red zone.
FOSTER EARNS FC WEEKLY AWARD
Tamareon 'Frosty' Foster became the second Dakota State athlete to earn the Erck Hotels/Frontier Conference Football Player-of-the-Week award after a game-changing performance in the Trojans' 27-25 road victory over Southern Oregon on Sept. 26.
Foster intercepted two passes in the second quarter, helping DSU erase an early 11-0 deficit. His first interception helped set up the Trojans' first touchdown drive before he struck again later in the quarter, returning an interception 17 yards for a touchdown to give DSU its first lead at 14-11.
He finished the contest with two interceptions for 21 return yards and two solo tackles for the Trojans.
2026 DAKOTA STATE FOOTBALL TEAM LEADERS
- Rushing: Trajan Davis - 42 rushes, 266 yards
- Passing: Tray Hettick - 103-of-172 (59.9 completion rate), 1,729 yards, 19 touchdowns
- Receiving: Melek Ford - 27 catches, 580 yards, 9 touchdowns
- Scoring: Melek Ford - 54 points - 9 touchdowns
- Punting: Sam Marcus - 20 punts, 760 yards - 38.0 yards per punt
- Field Goals: Malte Hamann - 3 field goals
- Kick-offs: Malte Hamann - 28 kickoffs, 1,499 yards - 53.5 yards per kickoff
- Returns: Jovi Wolf - 14 returns, 181 yards
- Tackles: Kaden Van Otterloo - 47 tackles (20 solos, 27 assists)
- Tackles-for-loss: Josiah Perez - 5.0 tackles-for-loss of 16 yards
- Sacks: Elliott Devries - 2.5 sacks, 20.0 yards loss
- Interceptions: Tamareon 'Frosty' Foster - 3 interceptions, 28 yards return, 1 pick six (return for touchdown), 7 pass break-ups
