FRONTIER PREVIEW
In the Frontier Conference Preseason Poll, Dakota State was selected to finish second in the East Division. The Frontier football conference features 14 teams split into two divisions - East and West.

The Trojans play six division games against teams in the East - Dickinson State (N.D.), Mayville State (N.D.), Montana Tech, Rocky Mountain (Mont.), and Valley City State (N.D.).

The Frontier Conference will have two weeks of crossover games (East vs. West), where the Trojans will host Arizona Christian on Sept. 19 and travel to Southern Oregon on Sept. 26.

The league has six teams listed in the NAIA Football Coaches' Top 25 poll, with five inside the Top 25. The East division has three teams in the preseason rankings, Montana Tech (No. 5), Dakota State (No. 25), and Dickinson State (RV).

ABOUT DAKOTA WESLEYAN (S.D.)
The Tigers open their NAIA football season at the same time as the Trojans. DWU, who finished with a 4-7 overall record last season, was picked to finish ninth in the Great Plains Athletic Conference.  The Tigers finished 3-7 in the GPAC conference games last season, where they finished in a two-way tie for eighth in the standings.

Dakota Wesleyan is scheduled to play 11 games this season, with five games being played on their home field (Joe Quintal Field) in Mitchell, S.D.

Alex Kretzschmar is entering his third season as the Dakota Wesleyan football head coach.  He also had coaching experiences at Valley City State (N.D.), Dakota State (S.D.), Colby College (Maine), St. Ambrose (Iowa), and North Park University (Ill.).

2026 SCHEDULE OUTLOOK
Dakota State opens their 10-game schedule Saturday evening, with four games on the road and six games at Brian Kern Family Stadium on Blankley Field. The Trojans play their home opener on Aug. 29 versus Dakota Wesleyan (S.D.) in the Chamber of Commerce Traveling Trophy Game.

The Trojans take on Black Hills State (S.D.) on Sept. 5 before heading back home to face Nebraska Wesleyan in the 11th annual Ag Bowl contest. Kick-off for Ag Bowl is set for 6 p.m. on Sep. 12.

DSU then begins their two-week cross-over contests with the Frontier Conference's West Division. The Trojans host Arizona Christian on Sep. 19 at 1 p.m. before heading to Southern Oregon on Sep. 26 to finish out cross-divisional play.

Dakota State kicks off Frontier Conference East Division action against preseason favorite Montana Tech on Oct. 3. The Trojans finish their home stand against Dickinson State (N.D.) in the annual Homecoming/Senior Day contest on Oct. 10.

DSU then travels to take on Valley City State (N.D.) on Oct. 17 before returning home for the last time in 2026 against Mayville State (N.D.). The final home contest is set for Oct. 31 at 1 p.m.

The Trojans finish their 2026 regular season campaign on the road against Rocky Mountain (Mont.) on Nov. 7 and MSU-Northern on Nov. 14.

2025 TROJAN FOOTBALL SEASON IN REVIEW
Dakota State opened a new era with a successful first season in the Frontier Conference, finishing in second place in the East Division. Their eight wins marked the most wins in a season since 2017.

After opening the season with a loss to Dakota Wesleyan (S.D.), the Trojans won three straight contests, including the Ag Bowl victory against Nebraska Wesleyan and two crossover matchups, on the road at Arizona Christian and home against Southern Oregon in a thrilling game-winning field goal with an ironic 11-10 score.

DSU then opened Frontier Conference East play with a loss to No. 5 ranked Montana Tech, then won their next five divisional contests, capping off the season with a 50-3 win against MSU-Northern.

Dakota State finished the year with an 8-2 overall record and a 5-1 record in the FC East, good for second place in the conference and No. 25 in the final NAIA Football Coaches' Top 25 national poll.

CHAMBER OF COMMERCE TRAVELING TROPHY SERIES
The Chamber of Commerce Traveling Trophy rivalry between Dakota State and Dakota Wesleyan was established by the Madison and Mitchell Chambers of Commerce in 2017. The first trophy game was played on Aug. 24, 2017, when DSU upset No. 17 DWU 56-39 before an attendance record packed crowd at Trojan Field.

Dakota State has controlled the trophy series, posting a 6-2 record in the eight meetings played since 2017. The Trojans won the first five trophy contests before the Tigers captured the trophy for the first time with a 23-13 victory in Mitchell in 2023. DSU reclaimed it with a series-record 31-point margin in a 34-3 victory in 2024 in the Brian Kern Family Stadium on Blankley Field debut, before DWU took it back with a 16-14 victory in Mitchell in 2025. The teams did not meet in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The trophy series has featured everything from the 56-39 shootout in 2017 to DSU's 6-0 defensive victory in 2021 and a 33-30 double-overtime thriller in 2019.

Through the eight trophy meetings, Dakota State has outscored Dakota Wesleyan 212-148, averaging 26.5 points per game, while the Tigers have averaged 18.5 points per game. The two teams have combined to average 45.0 points per trophy meeting.

2026 DAKOTA STATE FOOTBALL RETURNING TEAM LEADERS

• Rushing:  Preston Iverson - 134 rushes, 672 yards, 6 touchdowns
• Passing:  Tray Hettick - 147-of-246 (57.4 completion rate), 2,053 yards, 20 touchdowns
• Receiving:  Melek Ford - 46 catches, 658 yards, 6 touchdowns
• Scoring:  Preston Iverson - 54 points - 9 touchdowns
• Punting:  N/A
• Field Goals:  N/A
• Kick-offs:  N/A
• Returns:  Jovi Wolf - 24 returns, 288 yards
• Tackles:  Tamareon 'Frosty' Foster - 53 tackles (26 solos, 27 assists)
• Tackles-for-loss:  Jordan Cooper - 12.5 tackles-for-loss, 67.0 yards loss
• Sacks:  Jordan Cooper - 8.0 sacks, 59.0 yards loss
• Interceptions:  Michael Foster - 3 interceptions, 20 yards return