MINOT, N.D. - You can feel the excitement as practice plans come together, equipment gets sorted, and the Beavers get ready to hit campus.

The Minot State football team checks in this weekend and kicks off fall camp Monday morning as the season opener is officially 30 days away when Valley City State visits First Western Bank Field at Herb Parker Stadium on Thursday, August 29, at 6 p.m.

Admission is free for "Defend the Herb!" night, the Beavers' 2024 season-opener and the kick-off of year two for head coach Ian Shields and his staff.

"It's an exciting time of the year, it always is," said Shields, who enters his 10th season as a head college football coach. "It's a time to reset, get everybody back together; this is the first time a lot of these guys have been together when you include the rookies, whether they're the transfers coming in or your traditional high school recruits; we've got a nice group of both of those.

"We had a really strong spring and I think the commitment level of our guys this summer was outstanding, you can see the arrow is definitely pointing up," Minot State's head man added. "We're bigger, faster, stronger; I think in our offseason program, Caleb (Heilman) and Brody (Myers) did an outstanding job with our guys. There's a real commitment level, we're going to look different and we're going to compete differently and hopefully that translates to a better product on the field this fall."

The Beavers hit the field for their first practice at 9:30 a.m. on Monday, August 5, and currently have 115 student-athletes listed on a roster that will be fine-tuned before that opening kick-off on August 29.

A big factor for Minot State this offseason has been the ability for Shields and his coaching team to spend a full year building on the foundation they set after taking over in January of 2023.

"We're certainly gaining on things culturally, that's a big thing," Shields said, adding, "... we're growing, and I think we're growing together and I think we're getting a lot of the right guys on the bus and in the right seats now.

"That's part of a turnaround. Year one is foundational; we were competitive in a lot of games last year, we just didn't get over the hump in a few of those games. Now it's time to take the natural step forward and we're anticipating that we do."

That next step includes recruiting players who fit the team's needs and culture, which Coach Shields believes he and his staff have done by researching players and talking to families and former coaches to find the best fits for the Beavers.

"I'm excited about this class, I think it's a strong class,' Shields said, "...I think we hit a lot of our needs across the board, and some of those transfers fit those needs immediately.

"You're always evolving, and usually you're evolving based on your roster," Minot State's coach added. "I think we've made some adjustments with the roster, with certain positions, with certain styles."

With players set to hit campus and practice starting Monday, the Beaver coaching staff has continued to work hard to fill the roster and here are the latest additions to the Minot State football program, 27 new recruits: 14 transfers and 13 recent high school graduates.
 

• Garvin Alcenat, a 6-foot, 250-pound freshman defensive lineman from Davenport High School in Davenport, Florida
• Lukaas Bloxham, a 6-foot-1, 285-pound freshman offensive lineman from Highland High School and Milcreek, Utah
• Payton Casillas, a 6-foot-4, 235-pound junior defensive lineman transferring from Moorpark Community College who is from Thousand Oaks High School in Thousand Oaks, California
• Michael Clark, a 6-foot-1, 220-pound junior running back transferring from Central Connecticut State who is from Antelope Valley High School and Los Angeles, California
• Ashton Hammock, a 6-foot-1, 180-pound freshman athlete from Hargrave Military Academy and Dry Fork, Virginia
• Emmanuel Igbonagwam, a 5-foot-10, 205-pound junior running back transferring from the College of the Redwoods who is from Gresham High School and Vancouver, Washington
• Andre Jenkins, a 6-foot-1, 220-pound junior linebacker transferring from Long Beach Community College who is from Narbonne High School and Rochester, New York
• Gabe Johnson, a 6-foot-3, 240-pound junior defensive lineman transferring from Washington State who is from Bothell High School in Bothell, Washington
• Trevor Jungman, a 6-foot, 190-pound junior quarterback transferring from Grossmont Community College who is from San Pasqual High School and Escondido, California
• Julian Kameristy, a 6-foot-2, 280-pound junior defensive lineman transfering from Murray State who is from the IMG Academic and Long Grove, Illinois
• Giovanni Livingston, a 6-foot-2, 230-pound freshman defensive lineman from South Medford High School in Medford, Oregon
• Garrett McGriff, a 6-foot, 195-pound redshirt freshman defensive back transferring from Wyoming who is from Jesuit High School and Sacramento, California
• Reggie Morgan, a 6-foot-2, 300-pound freshman offensive lineman from Armwood High School and Zephyrhills, Florida
• Diego Nunez-Smith, a 5-foot-10, 180-pound junior kicker and punter transferring from Contra Costa Community College who is from Vanden High School and Vacaville, California
• Maverick Price, a 6-foo2, 170-pound freshman kicker from Rejoice Christian High School and Owasso, Oklahoma
• Logan Rouse, a 6-foot-4, 250-pound freshman defensive lineman from Aiea High School in Aiea, Hawaii
• Ricco Sastoque, a 6-foot, 180-pound junior kicker and punter transferring from Waynesburg College who is from Northwest Cabbarus High School and Concord, North Carolina
• Beau Shields, a 6-foot, 250-pound defensive lineman transferring from Eastern Oregon who is from Weiser High School in Weiser, Idaho
• Matthew Shinn, a 6-foot, 190-pound freshman quarterback from Lodi High School and Stockton, California
• Kevin Speed, a 6-foot-2, 205-pound sophomore defensive back transferring from Georgia Southern who is from Cario High School in Cairo, Georgia
• Michael Travis, a 6-foot-4, 300-pound freshman offensive lineman from Liberty High School in Las Vegas, Nevada
• Jabez Tuaoa, a 6-foot-1, 220-pound freshman linebacker from Kentwood High School and Auburn, Washington
• Jedidiah Vandewark, a 5-foot-9, 175-pound freshman defensive back from Uintah High School in Uintah, Utah
• Jacob Wasso, a 5-foot-10, 195-pound freshman defensive back from McClymmonds High School and Oakley, California
• Brandon Weatherford, a 6-foot-2, 280-pound redshirt freshman offensive lineman transferring from Colorado State-Pueblo who is from Aurora Central High School in Aurora, Colorado
• Mark Wiedoff, a 6-foot-4, 290-pound freshman offensive lineman from North High School in Phoenix, Arizona
• Caden Yellowman, a 6-foot-1, 190-pound junior defensive back transferring from New Mexico Highlands who is from Mesa High School and Farmington, New Mexico