2025 Valley City State Vikings football team

Last updated

2025 Valley City State Vikings football
Valley City State Vikings logo.png
Conference Frontier Conference
Record6–4 (3–3 Frontier)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorDustin Yorek (5th season)
Defensive coordinator Gregg Horner (29th season)
Captains
  • TaQuez Chatman
  • Trent Finney
  • Gavin Gerhardt
  • Taylor Jones
Home stadium Lokken Stadium
Seasons
  2024
2026 
2025 Frontier Conference football standings
Conf.Overall
Team W L  W L 
East Division
No. 5 Montana Tech x^ 60  121 
No. 25 Dakota State  51  82 
Rocky Mountain  42  46 
Valley City State  33  64 
Mayville State  24  56 
Dickinson State  15  37 
Montana State–Northern  06  110 
West Division
No. 4 College of Idaho x^ 60  112 
No. 13 Carroll (MT) ^ 51  93 
No. 18 Montana Western  42  73 
Eastern Oregon  33  46 
Southern Oregon  24  37 
Arizona Christian  15  28 
Simpson (CA)  06  010 
  • x Division champion/co-champions
  • ^ – NAIA playoff participant
Rankings from NAIA Coaches' Poll

The 2025 Valley City State Vikings football team represents Valley City State University in the Frontier Conference during the 2025 NAIA football season. The team is led by 29th-year head coach Dennis McCulloch and plays its home games at Dacotah Bank Field at Lokken Stadium in Valley City, North Dakota.

Contents

The 2025 season marks Valley City State’s first year competing in the Frontier Conference after the collapse of the North Star Athletic Association. VCSU and Mayville State formally joined the Frontier in August 2025 following a conference-wide realignment. [1] In the preseason Frontier coaches’ poll, the Vikings were picked to finish sixth in the East Division. [2]

Valley City State opened the season with a challenging non-conference schedule, including games against Dickinson State, Augsburg, Eastern Oregon and Simpson (CA). [3] The Vikings secured two historic road victories during the year, earning the program’s first-ever win in the state of Oregon and first-ever win in the state of Montana with defensive battles at Eastern Oregon and Montana State University–Northern. [4] VCSU finished the season 6–4 overall and 3–3 in Frontier East play, placing fourth in the division. [5]

In their first season as members of the Frontier Conference, the Vikings were picked to finish sixth in the East Division but exceeded expectations by placing fourth. [6] [7]

After dropping the opener at nationally ranked Dickinson State, Valley City State responded with three straight non-conference victories, including shutout wins over Augsburg and rival Mayville State University and a 3–0 road victory at Eastern Oregon University. The Vikings later added a 13–7 win at Montana State University–Northern, marking the program’s first football victory in the state of Montana. [8] [9] VCSU finished 6–4 overall and 3–3 in Frontier East play. [10]

Preseason

Frontier media days

Frontier East coaches poll
Predicted finishTeamVotes (1st place) [11]
1Montana Tech34 (4)
2Dickinson State33 (3)
3Rocky Moutanin25
4Dakota State21
5Mayville State14
6Valley City State13
7MSU-Northern7

Acquisitions

Incoming transfers [12]

Over the off-season, Valley City State added 9 players from the transfer portal and junior college levels.

NamePos.HeightWeightHometownYearEligibility RemainingPrev schoolSource
Ashton RaquinoLB6'0"220 Wahiawa, HI Junior2 Hawaii
Kassius AshtianiWR5'7"160 Irvine, CA Redshirt Sophomore3 Riverside Community College
Devyne PearsonRB5'8"180 Moreno Valley, CA Junior2 Riverside Community College
Simon-Peter JohnsonWR6'0"190 Sierra Vista, AZ Sophomore3 New Mexico Highlands University
Joey CaveQB6'0"190 Rio Rancho, NM Redshirt Junior2 New Mexico Highlands University
Adam AdeboyeOL6'4"320 Brooklyn Park, MN Redshirt Sophomore3 Minnesota State University Moorhead
Taalmyn StatonDL5'10"260 Bridgeport, CT Redshirt Junior2 Mount Marty University
Matthew JacquotOL6'3"280 Cheyenne, WY Redshirt Junior2 Chadron State College
Walker BrondosK6'0"175 Wilkesboro, NC Redshirt Sophomore3 Lenoir Rhyne University

Incoming freshman

Over the off-season, Valley City State added 35+ players from the high school level. [13]

NamePos.HeightWeightHometownYearPrev school
Kade SwensonDB6'0"177 Dilworth, MN FreshmanDilworth-Glyndon-Felton High School
Eli LeaverQB6'0"193 Tampa, FL Freshman Chamberlain High School
Jeremy YoderQB6'1"193 Lewiston, ID Freshman Lewiston High School (Idaho)
Taylor StefonowiczQB6'7"167 Horace, ND FreshmanHorace High School
Chad ColburnDB5'10"140 Aiea, HI Freshman Aiea High School
Iosua LetuliLB6'0"225 Honolulu, HI Freshman Kaimuki High School
Bradyn BossertDB5'10"195 Velva, ND FreshmanVelva High School
Mariano SisonDB5'8"164 Aiea, HI Freshman Aiea High School
Noah NelsonDB6'0"166 Roseburg, OR Freshman Roseburg High School
Shayzen LopesDB6'0"161 Waianae, HI Freshman Waianae High School
Eric SaauLB5'9"186 Aiea, HI Freshman Aiea High School
Cayden IsaakLB6'0"185 Beulah, ND Freshman Beulah High School
Taurus AllenDL6'3"230 Murfreesboro, TN Freshman Oakland High School (Tennessee)
Haiden CrowLB5'11"208 Detroit Lakes, MN FreshmanLake Park-Audubon High School
Brody WeisenburgerDL6'2"292 New Rockford, ND Freshman New Rockford-Sheyenne Public School
Cole HendersonDL6'2"216 Rolla, ND FreshmanRolla High School
Bayette Akaka-FolauDL6'4"236 Kapolei, HI Freshman Kapolei High School
Nevin DaleyOL6'5"369 Pisek, ND FreshmanPark River High School
Matthew CruzOL6'0"306 El Paso, TX Freshman Austin High School (El Paso, Texas)
Scot RohdeDL6'3"270 Valley City, ND Freshman Valley City High School
Rylen CoeOL6'4"271 Lake Benton, MN FreshmanElkton High School (SD)
Hunter LukesOL6'0"221 Lisbon, ND FreshmanLisbon High School
Devin Cooper-JacksonWR5'7"161 North Pole, AK Freshman North Pole High School
Kaden AustinWR5'9"153 Roseburg, OR Freshman Roseburg High School
Slater KaleiohiWR5'6"140 Waianae, HI Freshman Waianae High School
Brysen FerreiraK5'5"130 Waianae, HI Freshman Waianae High School
Tyson BallWR6'1"166 Ewa Beach, HI Freshman James Campbell High School
Kyle CottonTE6'4"285 St. Louis, MO Freshman St. Charles West High School
Grant KinzelTE6'5"240 La Vernia, TX Freshman La Vernia High School
Jack MillerDL5'10"231 Fargo, ND Freshman Fargo North High School
Savili-Hiapo Castillo-LeovaoDL6'2"280 Waimanalo, HI Freshman Kamehameha High School
Xander MoodyLS6'0"229 Fargo, ND Freshman Fargo South High School
Jacob FossDL6'0"261 Grand Forks, ND Freshman Grand Forks Red River High School

Schedule

DateTimeOpponentSiteResultAttendance
August 287:00 p.m.at No. 13 Dickinson State *
L 15–30
September 46:00 p.m. Augsburg *W 27–0200
September 203:00 p.m.at Eastern Oregon *
W 3–0
September 272:00 p.m. Simpson (CA) *Dagger-14-plain.png
  • Lokken Stadium
  • Valley City, ND
W 27–21
October 412:00 p.m. Rocky Mountain
  • Lokken Stadium
  • Valley City, ND
L 21–31300
October 111:00 p.m. Mayville State
  • Lokken Stadium
  • Valley City, ND (rivaly)
W 21–0300
October 184:00 p.m.at Dakota State L 7–40507
October 251:00 p.m. Dickinson State
  • Lokken Stadium
  • Valley City, ND
W 29–21250
November 81:00 p.m.at Montana State–Northern
W 13–7
November 152:00 p.m.at No. 4 Montana Tech
L 0–413,254
  • *Non-conference game
  • Dagger-14-plain.pngHomecoming
  • Rankings from NAIA Poll released prior to the game
  • All times are in Central time

[14]

Coaching staff

Postseason awards

All-Frontier East First Team

All-Frontier East Second Team

All-Frontier East Honorable Mention

Frontier Conference Academic All-Conference

Frontier Conference Champions of Character Award

Roster

2025 Valley City State Vikings football team roster
PlayersCoaches
Offense }
Pos.#NameClass
WR 1Jake DeutschJr
WR 3Simon-Peter JohnsonSo
WR 4Kassius AshtianiSo
WR 6Wuoson NehwahFr
RB 7Marty GohnSr
RB 9Laggarius MarshellSo
QB 10Eli LeaverFr
RB 12Ka'ua NishigayaSr
QB 13Jeremy YoderFr
TE 14Will PfahlJr
QB 15Joey CaveJr
QB 16Taylor StefonowiczFr
WR 18Exavian WestbrookJr
QB 19Ethan KastnerFr
RB 21Devyne PearsonJr
WR 23Nick MearsSo
WR 25Mason NelsonFr
RB 26Owen QuailSo
RB 42Collin PeckFr
OL 52Wadley LamySr
OL 56Caden BelgardeSo
OL 60Tommy CoxSr
OL 61Jaxon BaumgarnFr
OL 63Adam AdeboyeSo
OL 64Caiden OlsonFr
OL 65Taylor Jones (C)So
OL 66Nevin DaleyFr
OL 67Patrick HallFr
OL 68Matthew CruzFr
OL 70Rylen CoeFr
OL 71Nolan ThalerFr
OL 73Reese WillprechtSr
OL 74Hunter LukesFr
OL 75Landon JohansenFr
OL 76Atibordin SophonsakulratJr
OL 77Matthew JacquotJr
OL 78Zackary PfahlSo
WR 80Devin Cooper-JacksonFr
WR 81Kaden AustinFr
WR 82Rowen BucaoSo
WR 82Slater KaleiohiFr
WR 84Tyson BallFr
TE 85Kyle CottonFr
TE 87Trent Finney (C)Sr
TE 88Grant KinzelFr
TE 89Blake LundeSo
Defense
Pos.#NameClass
DB 0Gavin Gerhardt (C)Jr
LB 2Ashton RaquinoJr
DB 3James DahnJr
DB 5Caleb TorkeSo
DB 6Fafo LefanoFr
DL 7Moziah Rogers-TivaoSr
DB 9Kade SwensonFr
LB 10Riley OlsenSo
LB 11Aiden RussellJr
DB 20Khalil ToneyJr
DB 22Chad ColburnFr
LB 22Levi OlsonJr
DL 24Dorian SandnessFr
LB 25Iosua LetuliFr
DB 27Bradyn BossertFr
DB 28Mariano SisonFr
DB 30Noah NelsonFr
DB 31Jace StewartFr
LB 33Logan RistFr
DB 34Tuff LongieSo
DB 35Shayzen LopesFr
LB 38Brent BearmanFr
DB 39Hunter PhelpsSr
LB 40Jim MillerSo
LB 43Eric SaauFr
LB 44Javaughn EndemannJr
LB 45Joey AntonuttiSo
DL 46Karbin BrinkSo
LB 47Cayden IsaakFr
DL 48Taurus AllenFr
DL 49Tarren LarsonSo
DL 50TaQuez Chatman (C)Sr
LB 51Haiden CrowFr
DL 55Emmitt MaherFr
DL 56Brody WeisenburgerFr
DL 57Lorenzo LuchiSo
DL 58Cole HendersonFr
DL 59Bayette Akaka-FolauFr
DL 69Scot RohdeFr
DL 90Malik AljackSo
DL 91Taalmyn StatonJr
DL 92Jack MillerFr
DL 93Paul WebsterFr
DL 94Brody O'KeefeFr
DL 95Savili-Hiapo Castillo-LeovaoFr
DL 97Jermaine WatsonFr
DL 98Jacob FossFr
Special teams
Pos.#NameClass
LS 53Carter LyonFr
LS 96Xander MoodyFr
K 83Brysen FerreiraFr
K 86Walker BrondosFr
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
  • Gregg Horner (defensive coordinator / linebackers)
  • Dustin Yorek (offensive coordinator / quarterbacks / wide receivers)
  • Brandon Bouma (running backs / tight ends)
  • Raynor Beierle (offensive line)
  • Jahidi West (special teams coordinator / safeties)
  • Leon Smith (offensive line)
  • Nate Pecoraro (defensive line)
  • Trent Kosel (quarterbacks / wide receivers)
  • Dave Rausch (linebackers)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • Injury icon 2.svg Injured
  • Redshirt.svg Redshirt

Roster

References

  1. Peterson, Eric (August 8, 2025). "Mayville State, Valley City State ready for new Frontier in athletics". InForum. Retrieved November 20, 2025.
  2. "2025 Frontier Conference football coaches' preseason poll announced". Frontier Conference. August 18, 2025. Retrieved November 20, 2025.
  3. "2025 Football Schedule". Valley City State University Athletics. Retrieved November 20, 2025.
  4. "College Insider: Deutsch's journey leads VCSU receiving corps". InForum. October 29, 2025. Retrieved November 20, 2025.
  5. "2025 Football Cumulative Statistics". Valley City State University Athletics. Retrieved November 20, 2025.
  6. "2025 Frontier Conference football coaches' preseason poll announced". Frontier Conference. August 18, 2025. Retrieved November 20, 2025.
  7. "2025 Football Cumulative Statistics". Valley City State University Athletics. Retrieved November 20, 2025.
  8. "2025 Football Schedule". Valley City State University Athletics. Retrieved November 20, 2025.
  9. "College Insider: Deutsch's journey leads VCSU receiving corps". InForum. October 29, 2025. Retrieved November 20, 2025.
  10. "2025 Football Cumulative Statistics". Valley City State University Athletics. Retrieved November 20, 2025.
  11. https://fcsports.org/news/2025/8/18/2025-frontier-conference-football-coaches-preseason-poll-announced.aspx
  12. https://vcsuvikings.com/sports/football/roster?view=2
  13. https://vcsuvikings.com/news/2025/2/5/viking-football-announces-34-signees-on-national-signing-day.aspx
  14. "2025 Football Schedule". Valley City State University Athletics. Retrieved December 16, 2025.
  15. "2025 Frontier Football East Division All-Conference Teams and Postseason Awards Announced". Frontier Conference. November 20, 2025. Retrieved November 20, 2025.
  16. "2025 Frontier Football East Division All-Conference Teams and Postseason Awards Announced". Frontier Conference. November 20, 2025. Retrieved November 20, 2025.
  17. "2025 Frontier Football East Division All-Conference Teams and Postseason Awards Announced". Frontier Conference. November 20, 2025. Retrieved November 20, 2025.
  18. "2025 Frontier Football East Division All-Conference Teams and Postseason Awards Announced". Frontier Conference. November 20, 2025. Retrieved November 20, 2025.
  19. "2025 Frontier Football East Division All-Conference Teams and Postseason Awards Announced". Frontier Conference. November 20, 2025. Retrieved November 20, 2025.
  20. "2025 Frontier Football East Division All-Conference Teams and Postseason Awards Announced". Frontier Conference. November 20, 2025. Retrieved November 20, 2025.
  21. "2025 Frontier Football East Division All-Conference Teams and Postseason Awards Announced". Frontier Conference. November 20, 2025. Retrieved November 20, 2025.
  22. "Frontier Conference Announces Football Academic All-Conference Presented by Billings Clinic and Logan Health". Frontier Conference. November 19, 2025. Retrieved November 20, 2025.
  23. https://vcsuvikings.com/news/2025/11/25/lamy-recipient-of-the-champions-of-character-for-football.aspx