VERMILLION — This senior class for University of South Dakota football has faced as much adversity as any that has come before them.
From uncertainty following a 3-9 season only two years ago to the completely unprecedented challenge posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, the seniors that have steered the ship through it all have encountered obstacles like almost no one to ever come through Vermillion.
And yet, they have already become the most accomplished senior class to ever walk through the fabled concourses of the DakotaDome.
From individual accolades, playoff appearances and the first Missouri Valley Football Conference title in program history, no other senior class in Coyote history can boast the success this one has had. In total, 21 seniors went through Senior Day activities last week. Each and every one of them can say they’ve impacted this team in some way, shape or form since they arrived in Vermillion.
The run of success has especially been special for those who have utilized redshirt and the extra year of eligibility granted by the NCAA because of the pandemic. For that group, they’ve been around for five or even six years in some cases.
For someone like Carter Bell, that journey has been through the highest of highs and the lowest of lows. He’ll end his career as the all-time receiving yards and receptions leader in Coyote history. He still has a chance to end it as the all-time receiving touchdowns leader as well.
But he never expected to get to this point, especially with everything he faced in the early stages of his career in Vermillion.
“It’s been kind of a circus really,” Bell said. “I've had four different receiver coaches, a couple of different quarterbacks, so it's kind of been a little circus. But everyone around me appreciates everything and pushes me every day. That's what it's all about."
Those who have been in the program for as long as Bell have truly grown closer through the experiences regardless of whether they were positive or negative.
Joey Lombard has been a staple of the offensive line since he arrived in 2019. He’s played guard but has been the Coyotes’ star center for the past two seasons. He’s been through it all just like Bell and he says this group of seniors is nothing short of special and that comradery has been the foundation for the last two seasons of success.
“A lot of us have been here six years, that’s about a quarter of our lives we’ve been together,” Lombard said. “All these guys that we've been doing it with for so long are family. The sacrifice that having that relationship has allowed for us to give for each other has built an amazing culture. I think it's just it makes everything so much more special when you get to share these moments with people who are truly your brothers.”
Even for those who haven’t been through the fire as long as Lombard or Bell has seen how special the turnaround has been. Aidan Bouman has been at the center of it as USD’s starting quarterback for two of the three seasons he’s been in the program.
“It’s been awesome,” Bouman said. “Obviously, I wasn’t here the five or six years that some of these other guys were. But to see where the program was and see where we've been able to take it, it's a really cool feeling.”
For as much as this senior class has accomplished, some may think they could be content with the new era of Coyote football they’ve ushered in. But that could not be farther from the truth. This team still has one more goal in front of them, the ultimate goal.
A national championship.
No USD team has ever even made it to the FCS Playoff semifinals let alone get close to a national title. But this senior group wants to leave an even greater lasting legacy with the program’s first.
Head coach Bob Nielson said he’s been proud to coach this group of seniors and said he’s eager to see them try and accomplish yet another feat that no other team before them has done.
“It’s a great group to coach,” Nielson said. “They're very matter-of-fact, they understand what you have to do to win. They take pride in doing it the right way, and I look forward to this next stage. They won a championship, but there's another championship out there that this team is going to be focused on.”
JJ Galbreath said championships have been the goal from the beginning and that the team has discussed it constantly. But to be able to claim the big one would mean more to him and everyone surrounding the program than anything could.
“At the beginning of the season, even at the end of last season, that was our goal,” Galbreath said. “We talked about chasing that conference championship, so that's just one check done. We still got a few weeks left, but it would mean the world, not just to me, but to every guy that's on this team. ... It'd be huge for all of us and for this program just to do something else that no other Coyote football team has done in the past.”
“It'd be amazing,” Bell added. “Our goal has been to win a championship this whole year, and we did. But we're not done yet. We're going to go for two and it's going to be awesome when we do.”
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