“Choosing NDSU is the right decision for me,” said Conklin. “My teammates and friends helped lead me to today. It’s just a big moment and I want to take it in.”

Conklin will be a preferred walk-on for the Bison, where he will play wide receiver. According to him, a preferred walk-on simply means that they want him as a recruit, but they don’t have enough money left to give him a scholarship.

“I’m just hoping to get there, go to work and show them that I deserve the money,” said Conklin.

Conkin played three years for Minot High School’s football team, slotting in as both a wide receiver and a safety, being elected as a team captain this year.

On offense, this past season, he had 34 receptions for 663 yards and 13 touchdowns, helping lead the Magicians to the Class AAA state championship. Defensively, he recorded 43 tackles and four interceptions.

Conklin completed his prep football career averaging 21 yards per catch, with 74 receptions for 1568 yards.

Just as important as his on field performance, Conklin was part of a senior leadership group that forever left their mark on the Minot High football program, according to Minot High football head coach Chauncey Hendershot.

“He’s been a part of a really special senior group,” said Hendershot. “I think at the end of the year, everyone saw what we knew: he’s a special player and a great teammate. It’s a really exciting day for him to commit to NDSU.”

Hendershot added, “Always bet on Logan. We did in the season and it paid off for us.”

Logan also was a part of the 2021-22 boys’ basketball state championship team as a sophomore, and last spring finished as state runner-up in the Class A high jump competition.

“It’s really cool. It’s been a dream of his for a long time,” said Conklin’s father, Ryan Conklin. “His dedication and hard work that he’s put forth so far and will continue to will contribute to his success at the next level.”

Another local athlete who will be living his dream of playing college football is Bishop Ryan’s Coy Okeson, who will be joining Conklin on the Bison’s roster next fall.

“I’m super excited to play for the Bison,” said Okeson. “I’ve always wanted to be a Bison football player, ever since I grew up watching them.”

Okeson starred on both the offensive and defensive line for the Lions, and he was named team captain twice. On four occasions, he was named all conference, and three times he garnered all-state honors, including being named to the first-team the past two seasons.

Defensively, Conklin finished his senior campaign with 65 tackles, including 31 tackles for a loss, and 6.5 sacks. He closed out his career with 200 tackles, 90 for a loss and 35 sacks. Yet one of his favorite football memories came during his eighth grade year.

“Some of my best memories are going to state in football my eighth grade year with my older brother being a senior,” said Okeson.

It did not take long for him to leave an impression on Bishop Ryan’s first-year football head coach Eric Knutson.

“He was basically the foundation for our team,” said Knutson. “We built a lot of our offense and defense around him, because not very often do you get a player of his size and speed on a high school football team.”

According to Knutson, Okeson led by example.

“He may not have said a whole lot some of the times, but he led by doing and everyone watched him at all times,” said Knutson. “It’s awesome to see. It’s one of those things where kids can see it happen to someone else, so now [a player] can maybe see it happen for himself somewhere down the line. It really helps him make his dreams.”

Okeson has proven himself quite the athlete in other sports besides football. Okeson is a two-time state champion in wrestling and finished as a finalist once, as a four-time state qualifier. He has also won two region championships in shot put, and plays basketball.

According to Okeson, the recent coaching change at NDSU shouldn’t affect him too much, as new head coach Tim Polasek recruited Okeson while the former was still the offensive coordinator at Wyoming under former NDSU head coach Craig Bohl.

Okeson plans on majoring in civil engineering at NDSU.