We are just one week away from the Dakotabowl kicking off in the state of North Dakota, and 16 teams are looking to punch their ticket to the Fargodome during the Semifinal weekend!
Lets give you a quick preview of the 8 Semifinal games!
-Class AAA-
(W2) Bismarck High @ (E1) Fargo Davies
- Fargo Davies is looking to get back into the State Championship after taking a loss in last years final, while Bismarck will try to get back into the title game for the first time since 2018. These two teams met earlier in the season and it would be Fargo Davies getting the upper hand winning in Week 4 42-13. Both teams feature heavy run games, so look for this game to be a battle of who has the ball last, and who has the ball longest.
(W3) Bismarck Legacy @ (W1) Bismarck Century
- A battle of the Bismarck’s for a shot at the state title. Century is attempting to make it to their first state title since 2019, while Legacy will compete for their first state championship appearance in school history. These two teams played each other in Week 8 with Century winning in a close one 33-27.
-Class AA-
(W2) Devils Lake @ (E1) Kindred
- Kindred has proven they belong in the upper classifications after moving to AA this season, in their way will be a team that had an inconsistent end to their season, but caught fire at the right time in Devils Lake. Kindred will attempt to make it back to the state championship (AGAIN) but this time under a new classification, and Devils Lake will try to make their first appearance in the title game since 2010. These teams played each other early in the 2025 season in Week 1 where Kindred debuted in Class AA with a 42-12 win. Can Devils Lake learn from that first week loss, and keep up their momentum to shock the state with a massive upset?
(E2) Central Cass @ (W1) Minot North
- Minot North has cruised just about every week so far, but this time they will play a team that has no quit. Central Cass has ran the gauntlet the last couple weeks, and will look to keep up their underdog mentality against the #1 team in AA. These teams did NOT play each other in the regular season, so how will Minot North respond to a team that can #1 punch them back a little, and #2 not give up if the score gets of hand. As said above, Minot North hasn’t really played a tough game so far in 2025, can Central Cass bring them down to Earth a little and make this game interesting? Both teams will be competing for their first appearance in the state title game under the AA classification.
-Class A-
(#4) Velva-Garrison-Drake/Anamoose @ #1 Langdon Area/Munich
- This COULD be the game that tells who the eventual state champ is going to be. Velva is the defending Champ in Class A, and Langdon has been the #1 team practically all year, besides the preseason ranking of Velva before they lost in Week 0. Both teams have been the most dominant in Class A this season, and its kind of disappointing how this game wasn’t set up to be a state title matchup. Velva has been here before and knows what it takes to win a big game like this, but at home, can Langdon prove they’re the best team in the class this year and do work against this Aggies team. Both teams feature vaunting defenses, and offenses that can score points. Somethings gotta give!
(#6) Bottineau @ (#2) Killdeer
- Bottineau shocked the state last week with their furious comeback on the road versus EEK, while Killdeer got it done with a win over Dickinson Trinity. Bottineau will have to make another long road trip to get the upset over Killdeer who didn’t lose a game in state of North Dakota. Both teams have good defenses and offenses, and neither of these teams played each other in the regular season. Who will meet up with Velva/Langdon in the Dakotabowl?
-9-man-
(#5) Hankinson @ (#1) New Rockford-Sheyenne/Maddock
- It will be a tough task, but anything can happen. New Rockford-Sheyenne/Maddock has barely blinked during this 2025 football season, constantly blowing out opponents left and right by large margins. They will welcome Hankinson this Saturday, who has an upset in mind. These two teams didn’t play each other in the regular season, but one bad omen heading into this game, was no.. these teams didn’t play each other, but Hankinson played a similar team in Lamoure-LM and was blown out 64-36. Will this be a repeat of that meeting? Hankinson is going to need to play a perfect game, and rely on a couple lucky bounces if they’re going to take down THEE Titan of 9-Man football.
South Border @ (#2) Lamoure-LM
- South Border was responsible for taking down the first “Titan” of 9-man with a upset at Linton-HMB in the quarterfinal. South Border will be tasked with trying to take down another titan of the Classification against a hungry, and playing angry Lamoure-LM. These teams played each other in the regular season, and when we thought South Border could play with Lamoure, we were surely wrong, Lamoure JUMPED on South Border and won in Week 2 50-7. South Border has been extremely under looked all season long due to those losses, can they ride the momentum of their upset win last week and take down another Titan? Much like Hankinson with NRS-Maddock this week, South Border is going to have to play perfect and weather the first quarter storm that will be Lamoure-LM at home just one game away from another shot at a state title.
Make sure to tune in to our sister station Mix 93.3 this Saturday afternoon where we will have live play by play coverage from Lamoure between the Loboes and Mustangs. Coverage begins at 12:30 on MIX 93.3 with a tape delayed broadcast on KSJB 600 am, 100.1 fm after the conclusion of NDSU Bison football.
You can see all the results from these games on our website KSJBam.com as well as our brand new “KSJB Sports APP”.
Best of luck to all teams involved in Semifinal Weekend, may the best TEAM win.
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