BISMARCK, N.D. (KFYR) — Century High School’s Peyton Seil has committed to North Dakota State University after impressing coaches at a recent Bison football camp.

The 6″6′ offensive lineman received his offer following the camp and became one of the newest members of NDSU’s 2027 recruiting class. He is the 20th verbal commitment in the class and just the third player from North Dakota to commit to the Bison.

Seil is coming off a strong junior season in which he allowed only one sack and earned second-team all-state honors. He helped lead Century to a 9-3 record and an appearance in the Dakota Bowl, which was played at the Fargodome, home of the Bison.

As part of Century’s offensive line, Seil contributed to a rushing attack that averaged 287 yards per game.

Before choosing NDSU, Seil also received offers from the University of North Dakota, Minnesota State University and the University of Minnesota Duluth.

WILLISTON, N.D. — A 23-year-old Wyoming man has died as the result of injuries sustained in a crash early Friday, June 12, near Williston.

On Friday, a 1993 GMC Sierra was traveling westbound on Highway 1804 on the east side of Williston when it struck a pedestrian who was walking along the roadway, according to the North Dakota Highway Patrol.

The man was taken to CHI St. Alexius in Williston before being flown to Trinity Hospital in Minot, where he later died.

The driver of the Sierra, a 19-year-old man from Westby, Montana, was initially booked on charges of criminal vehicular injury, driving under the influence and minor in possession.

The crash remains under investigation by the North Dakota Highway Patrol.

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“I think one of the things that we noticed with the CHL guys was, even just after our first week of practice, we played so many competitive games, small-area games, and a lot of physical confrontation-type box-out drills and stuff,” Jackson said. “The guys, after week one, they came to us and said hey, is this is this normal? Is this a regular practice week? They were ready for the games, obviously, but I think the intensity and severity, the length of practice, it was an adjustment for them.”

He adjusted well enough that he earned a spot with Canada at the 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship. Despite not playing the first two games, he had four assists in 11:10 of ice time in five games, including one assist in 12:08 of ice time in a 6-3 win against Finland in the bronze-medal game.

That gave him some confidence that carried through the rest of the season, and helped him play a significant role in North Dakota reaching the Frozen Four for the first time since 2016.

“His size and skill jump off the page right away obviously,” Central Scouting’s Pat Cullen said. “I saw him early and then in the second half. He likes to get involved offensively but he definitely made progress with his decision making, when to push the offense or make the simple, conservative play, which showed a lot of growth and maturity.”

Verhoeff finished his season with four assists in five games as Canada’s captain at the 2026 IIHF World Under-18 Championship. The team finished in sixth place, but Verhoeff made an impression on coach Drew Bannister.

“I think he’s going to be a shutdown guy that’s hard to play against,” Bannister said. “He’s got a very good physical aspect to his game. Outstanding human being. Quality person, quality leadership skills. I could see him being a captain of a team down the road.”

Scouts have compared Verhoeff’s game to Aaron Ekblad of the Florida Panthers, but Jackson said Jake Sanderson of the Ottawa Senators could provide the right road map to the NHL.

Sanderson spent two seasons at North Dakota after the Senators chose him with the No. 5 pick of the 2020 NHL Draft. After leaving school, he stepped right into Ottawa’s lineup at the start of the 2022-23 season.

“The defense position is so hard and so much more nuanced in your reads and the experience you have,” Jackson said. “I see in young defensemen, play a little bit longer at lower levels is, I think, usually a benefit because it is such a hard position to play at the NHL. I think Keaton is aware of that, and I think he is cognizant that playing another year would probably lessen the learning curve that he would have when he makes that jump to the NHL.”