HELENA, Mont. – The 2025 Frontier Conference Football East Division All-Conference teams and individual awards have been announced Thursday.  The award recipients are selected by the seven head coaches in the East Division, who are not permitted to vote for their own players.

Valley City State has two players make thew First and Second Teams with another five players making the Honorable Mention list.

TaQuez Chatman DL – First Team Defense: A Senior from Bloomington, Minn., Chatman was fifth on the team in total tackles with 41. He led the team in tackles for loss (10) and sacks (6). He also had three quarterback hurries and a forced fumble. His deflection of a pass on fourth down sealed the Vikings 29-21 win over the Blue Hawks. This is Chatman's second All-Conference selection. He was second team defense in the NSAA in 2024.

Gavin Gerhardt S – Second Team Defense: The Junior from Valley City led the Vikings with 89 tackles this past season. He had a team high 49 solo tackles and 40 assisted tackles. He had three tackles for loss, two pass breakups, two fumble recoveries, and a forced fumble. This is Gerhardt's first All-Conference selection. He was Honorable Mention in 2024.

Jake Deutsch WR – Honorable Mention: The Junior from Fargo had a career year for the Vikings. He led the team with 38 receptions for 447 yards and five touchdowns all career highs. His 63-yard reception against Dickinson State was the longest play from scrimmage the Vikings had this season. His best game was against the Blue Hawks with eight catches for 145 yards and two scores all career highs. He was Second Team All-Conference offense in 2024.

Joey Cave QB – Honorable Mention: The Junior from Rio Rancho, New Mexico led the Vikings on the ground and through the air. The dual threat quarterback had 399 yards rushing and four touchdowns. His best game on the ground was against Augsburg in the First Community Credit Union Ag Bowl when he ran for 75 yards on 16 carries with a touchdown. Through the air, Cave was 111 of 184 for 1,122 yards with ten touchdowns and seven interceptions. He had a season high 228 yards passing in the first Dickinson State game and added 59 yards rushing.

Aiden Russell LB – Honorable Mention: The Junior from South St. Paul, Minn. Was second on the team in solo tackles (38), assisted tackles (22), and total tackles (60). He added three tackles for loss, a half a sack, and a team high three fumble recoveries. One of his fumble recoveries came in the win at Eastern Oregon. He recovered a fumble on the Vikings 21-yard line to stop a drive my EOU with the Vikings up 3-0 late in the third quarter. His recovery against Mayville State came late in the second quarter deep in Comet territory that help set up the Vikings first score of the game.

Taylor Jones OL – Honorable Mention: The sophomore from Gig Harbor, Wash. started all ten games at center for the Vikings this season. He was named Honorable Mention in the NSAA as Freshman back in 2023.

Tommy Cox OL – Honorable Mention: The Senior from El Paso, Texas started in eight games this season for the Vikings. This is his first Honorable Mention nod.

Montana Tech nearly swept all postseason awards, highlighted by senior wide receiver Levi Torgerson who was named First Team All-Conference in both wide position and specialist positions.  He leads the Frontier East Division with 94.9 receiving yards and 12 touchdown catches.  Torgerson also accumulated 1,888 all-purpose yards – 1,044 receiving yards, 420 kick-off return yards, and 394 punt return yards.

He also had a 100-yard kick-off return for a touchdown during the season for the Orediggers.

Quarterback Jarrett Wilson of MT was selected as Frontier East Division's Offensive Player of the Year.  He finished the regular season with an impressive 76.5 completion passing rate (166-of-217) for 2,281 yards (207.4 passing yards per game).  He threw 26 touchdown passes for Montana Tech, which leads the Frontier East Division.

It was the first time since 2016 that an Oredigger football player was named Offensive Player-of-the-Year (Nolan Saraceni who won back-to-back seasons in 2015 and 2016 as a running back.

Linebacker Tel Arthur led Montana Tech as the East Division's Defensive Player of the Year.  It was the first time since 2016 that a Montana Tech athlete (Gunnar Kayser) won the Defensive Player of the Year honor.

Prior to the postseason, Arthur leads the Orediggers with 72 tackles (23 solo, 49 assists).  He also had 1.5 quarterback sacks of six yards loss and 6.5 tackles-for-loss of 19 yards.
MT's Jacob Graves was named the Frontier East Division's Offensive Lineman of the Year.

Kyle Samson was chosen as the Frontier East Division's Coach-of-the-Year after guiding Montana Tech to an 11-0 undefeated regular season for the first time since 1904.  The Orediggers captured the Frontier East Division title with a 6-0 record and led the team to a No. 3 national seed for the upcoming NAIA Football Championship Series (FCS), where the Orediggers will play on Saturday, Nov. 29 at home.

Samson's assistant Montell Allen was named as the Frontier East Division's Assistant Coach-of-the-Year.  The Orediggers were ranked No. 4 in the final Netting Professional NAIA Football Coaches' Top 25 national poll.

Tyler Anderson of Rocky Mountain (Mont.) was voted as the Frontier East Division Long Snapper of the Year.

Montana Tech landed 11 athletes (1 athlete with two positions) on the First Team All-Conference.  The Orediggers has a Frontier-best 16 athletes (2 athletes with two positions) to both the first and second teams. 

Dakota State, who finished second in the Frontier East Division with a 5-1 record, tallied 10 athletes on both first and second teams.

2025 Frontier Football Postseason Awards – EAST DIVISION
Frontier Player of the Year:  Levi Torgerson – Montana Tech
Frontier Offensive Player of the Year:   Jarrett Wilson – Montana Tech
Frontier Defensive Player of the Year:  Tel Arthur – Montana Tech
Frontier Offensive Lineman of the Year:  Jacob Graves – Montana Tech
Frontier Long Snapper of the Year:  Tyler Anderson – Rocky Mountain (Mont.)
Frontier Assistant Coach of the Year:  Montell Allen – Montana Tech
Frontier Coach-of-the-Year:  Kyle Samson – Montana Tech