South Dakota

South Dakota State gives UND worst home loss since 2013

Published

1 year ago

November 9, 2024

South Dakota State gives UND worst home loss since 2013

GRAND FORKS — By the final moments of the fourth quarter Saturday, the typically noisy Alerus Center fell quiet before a loud chant from the corner visitors section broke out.

“Let’s go Rabbits,” the blue and yellow fans rang out.

Through the final three quarters, the South Dakota State faithful were the only ones with anything to cheer about.

No. 3 SDSU scored 28 points in the second quarter en route to a 38-7 win over No. 21 UND in the worst home loss in the Bubba Schweigert Era.

The Fighting Hawks dropped a third-straight game to fall to 5-5.

UND hadn’t lost at home this bad since Montana State beat UND 63-20 in 2013, the final season of former head coach Chris Mussman.

“We’re going to find out a lot about our team and individuals on our team right now,” UND coach Bubba Schweigert said. “We already talked about it in the locker room. We have to stay together. These are hard times. If we can use sports and teach life, this stuff is worth it.

“There’s going to be hard times in all of our individual’s lives. Harder times than losing football games. It doesn’t seem like it right now because we put a lot of time and effort in to preparing for games and we want to be successful. We’re going to find out a lot of our character. Our coaches have to do it, your players have to do it. I think when you really, really care about your guys and they care about you, I think they’ll stay together.”

UND entered the matchup with the Jacks 5-0 in the Alerus this year and 16-2 at home vs. the Missouri Valley Football Conference since joining the league in 2020. The only losses were 16-10 to North Dakota State in 2021 and 49-35 to SDSU in 2022. NDSU and SDSU went on to win national titles in those respective years.

All but forgotten by the end, UND actually got off to a decent start.

Running back Isaiah Smith, who finished with 87 yards on nine carries, scored on a 62-yard run to give the Hawks a 7-0 lead midway through the first quarter.

But the Jacks dominated from there.

UND’s quarterback Simon Romfo flips a pass over SDSU linebacker Adam Bock for a completion Saturday at the Alerus Center.

Eric Hylden/Grand Forks Herald

SDSU wide receiver Griffin Wilde finished with five catches for 140 yards and three touchdowns. He caught touchdown passes of 25 and 39 yards in the second quarter.

Quarterback Mark Gronowski was comfortable in the pocket, finishing 11-for-19 for 193 yards. He wasn’t sacked.

The Jacks ran 43 times for 264 yards and picked just the right times to hit deep balls for Wilde, who frequently was able to beat UND’s last line of defense in the secondary.

“They have big formations, and when throw it deep, they kept in a lot to protect to make sure he has time,” Schweigert said. “It’s 1-on-1, so you have to hold up. They beat us in some 1-on-1 situations. Running the football sets up the entire offense.”

UND’s offense was limited after Smith’s breakout run. Quarterback Simon Romfo finished 16-for-23 for 124 yards with one interception and was sacked three times.

111024 UND6.jpg — UND’s C.J. Elrichs reacts to a missed field goal in the first half Saturday at the Alerus Center.

Romfo struggled to find time in the pocket and his longest pass of the day was 18 yards to tight end Quincy Vaughn.

Romfo also fumbled on a scramble in the second quarter with UND already trailing 24-7. Seven plays later, the Jacks scored on Amar Johnson’s 3-yard run for a 31-7 lead.

The Hawks also missed two field goals, including a 51-yard attempt with 34 seconds to halftime.

“We just have to make plays,” Smith said.

Miller has covered sports at the Grand Forks Herald since 2004 and was the state sportswriter of the year in 2019 and 2022.

His primary beat is UND football but also reports on a variety of UND sports and local preps.

He can be reached at (701) 780-1121, tmiller@gfherald.com or on Twitter at @tommillergf.

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South Dakota

Iowa football lands explosive running back L.J. Phillips Jr.

Published

9 hours ago

January 11, 2026

Press Room

Iowa football lands explosive running back L.J. Phillips Jr.

IOWA CITY — South Dakota transfer running back L.J. Phillips Jr. has committed to Iowa football, he announced on Jan. 11.

Phillips had a breakout 2025 season, rushing for more than 1,900 yards, along with 19 touchdowns. He also added 28 catches for 195 yards receiving and one touchdown. Phillips was named a second-team FCS All-American by Phil Steele.

Phillips, listed at 5-foot-9 and 225 pounds, will come to Iowa with two seasons of eligibility remaining.

After rushing for more than 4,100 yards in his high school career, Phillips spent three seasons at South Dakota. During his time with the Coyotes, Phillips rushed for nearly 2,220 yards, along with 23 touchdowns. A majority of that production came in 2025. Phillips rushed for 96 yards while maintaining his redshirt in 2023 and then 176 yards as a redshirt freshman in 2024.

But his numbers exploded last season with some ridiculous performances. Phillips rushed 35 times for 301 yards and two touchdowns against Northern Colorado. He had four rushing touchdowns in two separate games. That includes a 244-yard, four-touchdown outing against Murray State. Phillips finished the season averaging 6.5 yards per rush.

Iowa has seen a pair of departures via the transfer portal in its running back room — Jaziun Patterson and Terrell Washington Jr. Patterson ranked third on the Hawkeyes in rushing yards during the 2025 season with 296.

Iowa still projects to have a talented running back room for the 2026 season. Kamari Moulton, who led Iowa with 878 rushing yards last season, still has two seasons of eligibility remaining. Nathan McNeil showed potential in his true freshman season. Xavier Williams tallied 285 yards on the ground as a redshirt freshman.

And now, Iowa adds another weapon to that room in Phillips. The Hawkeyes’ running back unit looks to be stacked entering the 2026 season.

Follow Tyler Tachman on X @Tyler_T15, contact via email at ttachman@gannett.com

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South Dakota

Pictures of semi-truck, name of woman released in Minnehaha County fatal crash

Published

21 hours ago

January 11, 2026

Press Room

Pictures of semi-truck, name of woman released in Minnehaha County fatal crash

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (Dakota News Now) – The South Dakota Department of Public Safety has released the name of the woman who was killed in a fatal crash in Minnehaha County last week.

64-year-old Patricia Archambeau of Mitchell died on January 5 due to her injuries in a crash that took place in the early hours of Saturday, January 3.

Archambeau’s 2012 Chevrolet Traverse was traveling eastbound on I-90 near mile marker 379, about four miles west of Humboldt, when she attempted to pull off on the side of the road.

At the same time, the Traverse was struck by a semi-truck, also traveling eastbound, and pulling a trailer. The truck continued driving east after the crash and has yet to be located.

On Sunday, the South Dakota Highway Patrol released two images of the semi-truck suspected of hitting Archambeau’s Traverse. The two photos were taken on I-29 near 41st Street in Sioux Falls at 2:25 a.m., about 12 minutes after the crash west of Humboldt.

The South Dakota Highway Patrol has released two images of a semi-truck believed to be involved in a fatal crash that took place last Saturday in Minnehaha County.(South Dakota Highway Patrol)

Highway Patrol is seeking more information about a red Freightliner Cascadia semi-truck, missing its passenger-side headlight. If anyone has information, they’re asked to contact Highway Patrol at 605-367-5700.

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South Dakota

South Dakota knocks off Denver 82-72

Published

1 day ago

January 10, 2026

Press Room

VERMILLION, S.D. (AP) — Cameron Fens scored 23 points as South Dakota beat Denver 82-72 on Saturday.

Fens also contributed 12 rebounds and four blocks for the Coyotes (9-9, 1-2 Summit League). Isaac Bruns scored 20 points while going 8 of 12 and 3 of 4 from the free-throw line and added six rebounds. Jordan Crawford went 5 of 11 from the field (3 for 7 from 3-point range) to finish with 13 points.

Gabe Oldham led the Pioneers (8-11, 1-3) in scoring, finishing with 24 points, 13 rebounds and two steals. Denver also got 19 points from Zane Nelson. Carson Johnson also put up 11 points and six assists.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

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