MINOT, N.D. — Eight Montana athletes signed to continue their football career at Minot State, Beavers head coach Mike Aldrich announced Wednesday.
“I am really excited about this recruiting class,” Aldrich said in a release. “Our staff has been building relationships with these student-athletes for a long time, and we were able to bring in the right kind of young men to our football family. We were able to address some very specific needs, both immediate and long-term.”
“This class is built on specific traits of toughness, athleticism and blue-collar mentality,” Aldrich added. “We were able to focus on specific recruiting areas to grow and develop our team.”
Jordan Nees of Hobson-Moore-Judith Gap, Jace Reddick of Townsend, Lane Schall of Arlee, Warren Hanson of Livingston, Carson Cayko of Fairview, Tyler Barnes of Hamilton, Grady Taylor of Circle and Calder Fleming of Circle will join the Beavers in the fall.
Minot State, an NCAA Division II program in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference, struggled to a 1-10 record last season.
In addition to the eight Montanans, the Beavers signed 26 other athletes on Wednesday.
Breakdowns from Minot State on the eight Montana signees are below.
Jordan Nees, RB, 5-9, 175, Hobson-Moore-Judith Gap
Nees was a four-time all-conference and two-time all-state selection at Moore. In the classroom, he was named to the honor roll all four years. He competed in football, basketball, wrestling and track.
Jace Reddick, DT, 5-11, 241, Townsend
Reddick was a second team all-conference on the defensive line and a five-year academic all-state selection for this performance on the field and in the classroom. He competed in football for four years and basketball for three years.
Lane Schall, ILB, 6-0, 185, Arlee
Schall earned all-conference and all-state honors while competing in football and basketball at Arlee.
Warren Hanson, ILB, 6-2, 210, Livingston
Hanson competed in football, basketball, wrestling and track for four years at Park.
Carson Cayko, LB, 6-2, 180, Fairview
Cayko was an all-state selection as a quarterback, linebacker and tight end at Fairview. He competed in football, basketball and track and also earned all-state honors in basketball and track.
Tyler Barnes, WR, 6-1, 175, Hamilton
Barnes was a four-time academic all-state selection while also a second team all-conference selection his junior season and first team all-conference selection in his senior campaign. On the basketball court, he started his final three years as a four-year letterwinner and was a runner-up in the Class A state championship his junior and season year.
Grady Taylor, DE, 6-4, 210, Circle
Taylor was a two-time all-conference selection as a quarterback and a first team all-conference and all-state defensive end at Circle. He played football and basketball for four years while named to the honor roll in the classroom.
Calder Fleming, RB, 5-9, 190, Circle
Fleming was a four-year all-state selection, including four-time all-conference at linebacker and three-time all-conference at running back. In the classroom, he was a four-time honor roll selection and two-time academic all-state selection.
