Mike Kraft/MDN Minot High coach Chauncy Hendershot and the Magicians are looking to avoid a winless season when they travel to play Williston on Friday, Oct. 24, in their season finale.

Minot High and Williston head coaches Chauncy Hendershot and Steve Powell could spend all day sitting around a table at the local coffee shop together reminiscing about the hardships they and their respective teams have experienced throughout the course of this season.

Hendershot is in the initial phases of a rebuild within the program as the Minot High-Minot North co-op officially ended at the end of last year. Along with the beginning of the split, the Magicians also graduated more than 20 seniors for the second consecutive season, leaving the roster thinner than most years. As a result, the Magicians were left to build the airplane while it was flying.

While they have found themselves on the wrong side of lopsided results a couple times this season, the Magi have also had opportunities to claim victory, only to see it slip through their fingers. They led in the fourth quarter against both West Fargo Sheyenne and West Fargo and held a halftime lead against Fargo Shanley, but lost all three.

But the biggest gut punch came last week against Mandan. Despite all the trials and tribulations of the season that included numerous injuries to its offensive line, Minot (0-8 overall, 0-4 WDA) entered that game with a prime opportunity to make the postseason if it could get past the Braves. The Magicians were well on their way, leading 20-6 at halftime, but injuries to their starting quarterback and running back resulted in 28-unanswered points in the second half by Mandan and the end to Minot’s postseason hopes in the process.

“We’ve kind of put that to rest here,” Hendershot said. “We’ve had a really great day of practice and ramping up and understanding those emotions and feelings. We have to set that aside and we’ll have an opportunity to assess the year and look at feedback and ways to get better, but right now we’re looking to play a football game on Friday.”

There will be no postseason football for the Magi for the first time since 2020 and the third time since 1997 as they will put on the pads and helmets one final time this season when they travel to play Williston on Friday, Oct. 24, at 7 p.m. Minot will be looking to avoid its first winless season dating back to 1975. The Magicians were 1-7 in 1982.

“We need to execute,” Hendershot said. “There have been a lot of good stretches and we’re still looking at putting together a full four-quarter football game together and to execute and finish drives. If we get an opportunity to fight up against momentum or if we have momentum just to seize it and close the door. It’s an opportunity to go out and get more reps and compete on a Friday night, try to get a win and build momentum for the offseason.”

A silver lining from last week is that sophomore quarterback Ryder Sutton avoided any serious structural damage to his leg when he was run into while attempting an extra point. He was injured during the second quarter and needed to be helped off the field, unable to put any weight on the injured leg. Hendershot said that he is still dealing with a lot of pain, but the team is monitoring him day-by-day and hasn’t made a decision as to his availability. Sutton has started every game for the Magicians this season, completing 73 of 154 passes for 935 yards, six touchdowns and nine interceptions. If Sutton can’t go, Teagan Schindler will get the start under center. Schindler has served a variety of roles this season, including lining up in the backfield, returning punts and lining up against opposing wide receivers on defense.

“There’s a lot of selfless guys on this team,” Hendershot said. “Just look at what Teagan Schindler did last week. He’s the ultimate teammate and competitor. He’s done a lot of whatever we’ve asked of him this year.”

Senior running back Blake Anderson was able to participate in practice this week with his ankle injury and is expected to play against Williston. Anderson has 63 carries for 339 yards and two touchdowns, but has been limited most of the season due to that ankle injury.

While Minot’s season has been a difficult one, Williston could argue its case that its season has been tougher. The Coyotes are trying to avoid their second straight winless season and enter their season finale on an 18-game losing streak, which began with a 56-0 loss to Minot High on Oct. 13, 2023. WIlliston’s last victory came on Oct. 6, 2023, when it defeated Watford City, 12-0.

The Coyotes (0-8, 0-4) have been outscored 458-83 this season – allowing 215 points in the last three games – and have surrendered at least 41 points in every game this season. They allow 57.3 points per game while only scoring 10.4 points per game on offense. Their closest game of the season came in a 35-point loss to Mandan.

Much like the Magicians, the Coyotes have a relatively small roster for a AAA program, sporting 45 players, with more than half of them being sophomores. A couple of those sophomores have been key contributors to the offense. Backup quarterback Noah Rath has completed 30 passes for 183 yards. Sophomore Leo Kenor is the top receiver, hauling in 14 catches for 291 yards and three touchdowns.

The rest of Williston’s offensive output comes from upperclassmen, led by starting quarterback Collin McCuistion. The junior has thrown for 529 yards and three touchdowns on 34 of 81 passing and has rushed 54 times for 186 yards and two scores. Dominic Thompson is Williston’s lead back, carrying the ball 80 times for 387 yards and three touchdowns.

Minot High has dominated Williston in the history of the two programs. The Magicians have won 44 of 50 career meetings, including the last 16. The Coyotes haven’t beaten the Magi since a 34-14 victory on Oct. 17, 2008. Since then, the Magicians have outscored the Coyotes 669-86, scoring no fewer than 28 points in each contest while shutting out Williston nine times.

The Magicians aren’t looking to compare seasons with Williston, but instead are focused on sending out the senior class on a high note.

“We just want to play well and put a complete game together,” Hendershot said. “A win for this 2025 group, the team in its entirety for all the work that they’ve done, that would be nice. Part of the feeling last Thursday was just wanting this group to feel a win and we never take it for granted and never have, but it’s hard and we feel like we’ve had a challenging year of adversity and different things at different times and a challenging schedule. It would be nice to go out and put a full game together, go out and then send our seniors off the right way and build this thing better and stronger for the future.”