MSU football staff, roster set for upcoming season

Jul. 2—MANKATO — The coaching staff is set, and the roster is nearly complete.

In about a month, the Minnesota State football team will begin practicing for the upcoming season, trying to erase the bad taste left by a 6-5 season that fell short of nearly every team goal.

"Not doing so hot last year, with no playoff games, it's been a long offseason," Minnesota State coach Todd Hoffner said. "For the players who have been here, it's been tough. We have to be better coaches, we have to play better. Maybe some of the new people can light a fire for us."

The players report to Minnesota State on Sunday, Aug. 7, with the first practice the following day. Minnesota State's first game is Thursday, Sept. 1, at Bemidji State.

Earlier this week, Hoffner finalized his coaching staff. Offensive line coach Chad Henning was promoted to run game coordinator, and wide receiver coach Houston Jones was promoted to pass game coordinator.

Henning is in his fourth season as an assistant coach with the Mavericks, while Jones is in his second season at Minnesota State.

Hoffner said that, as of now, he'll be calling the plays on game day.

"The whole offensive staff will collectively come up with the plan to put the players in the best position to succeed," he said. "It's always evolving but for now, I'll be calling the plays."

Hoffner announced the addition of three assistants. Todd Taylor will serve as the special teams coordinator and defensive line coach, Mitchell Schurig will coach the cornerbacks, and Austin Schmidt will serve as kicking and punting specialist coach.

Taylor has been the associate head coach and defensive coordinator at North Park University since 2020. Schurig has been a graduate assistant coach at Washburn, where he played quarterback from 2016-21. Schmidt has worked as a video assistant with Minnesota State for two years.

"Todd has previous experience as a coordinator, so that's nice," Hoffner said.

Hoffner said his staff worked hard to upgrade the secondary through transfers.

Cornerback Trey Vaval, who came from Missouri Western State, was here in the spring. He is also a return specialist, whom Hoffner compares to former Minnesota State standout Kelvin Rodgers.

Christian Wise (Texas A&M Commerce) and Devon Richards (Iowa Central) have also been brought in to bolster the secondary, which lost Ty'Shonan Brooks and Terrell Jennings from last season.

"We've got some shoes to fill back there," Hoffner said.

Hoffner said that because of the popularity of the transfer portal, with Division I programs taking players from four-year programs, junior-college players have been overlooked. He said that safety Zack McIntire (Butte College), offensive lineman Mason Scott (Iowa Western) and defensive tackle Arturo Torres (Grossmont College) were highly coveted transfers.

"Those are players that in the past, we wouldn't have a chance to get," Hoffner said. "With the transfer portal running wild, there are some high-end players available to us."

Offensive lineman Keeshawn Westley, a transfer from Kentucky Wesleyan, is the last signing for the program.

Linebacker Nathan Bolton of Riverside City College is the younger brother of Curtis Bolton, who played five games with the Detroit Lions last season.

Linebacker Dakota Smith, a transfer from South Dakota, injured his leg during spring practice, and Hoffner hopes he is ready to go this season.

Defensive tackle Shawn Brodie played at Northern State last season, competing against Minnesota State in the season-opener.

"He was out there in the game last year, holding his own against our guys," Hoffner said.

With the schedule beginning with games against Bemidji State and Minnesota Duluth, both playoff teams last season,

Hoffner said it's important that the new coaches and players develop chemistry quickly to avoid another non-playoff season. There could still be one or two players joining the program, but nothing is planned as of now.

That first game is a tough one," Hoffner said. "If we can find a way to get past that one, maybe we can get on a roll."

You can follow Chad Courrier on Twitter @ChadCourrier.