Brandon McCary

A record-setting effort by Minot State kicker Brandon McCary earned the sophomore special honors from the NSIC.

Monday, the league announced its football players of the week, and McCary was honored as the NSIC Special Teams Player of the Week for his play in the Beavers’ 40-37 overtime loss at Minnesota State Moorhead on Saturday.

The sophomore from Plano, Texas, kicked five field goals and added two successful point-after-touchdown kicks, for 17 points for the Beavers on Saturday.

His last-second, 28-yard field goal capped a 17-point, fourth-quarter rally by Minot State that forced overtime. In the extra session, McCary added his fifth field goal of the game, another 28-yarder, giving the Beavers a temporary 37-34 lead.

The 5 successful field goals is a new all-time single game record at Minot State, breaking the former record of 3 made field goals by All-American JoseLuis Moreno, who achieved the feat twice in 2017, and Diego Nunez-Smith, who kicked 3 in a game in 2024.

The 5 successful field goals in a game also ties an NSIC single-game record held by three other players and was last accomplished by Danny Laudet of Concordia, St. Paul in 2019.

The honor is the first this season for McCary, who now has 7 field goals made this season. It also is the second Player of the Week honor for the Minot State football team as cornerback Nalu Cordeiro was named NSIC Defensive Player of the Week on September 29.

McCary and the rest of the Beavers are at home this weekend as they host in-state rival Jamestown on Saturday at 2 p.m., renewing a rivalry that began in 1927. The meeting is the 90th in the series, but the first since 2010.