FARGO — Every Mel, Bucky and Todd is an NFL Draft guru in this Internet age. So take this with a grain of salt.
One small-school analyst believes Minnesota State University Minnesota quarterback Jack Strand will be selected in the late rounds of the draft when it’s held in Pittsburgh on April 23-25.
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Josh Buchanan of NFL Draft Scout, who lists himself as a Hula Bowl scout, has Strand as the fifth-best small-school prospect available and predicts he’ll go in the sixth or seventh round.
Large disclaimer: This is totally FWIW information and Buchanan is the only draft analyst of which the Tip Sheet is aware that has Strand being drafted. Many of the big boys like ESPN’s Mel Kiper don’t mention Strand at all.
One of the Sheet’s favorite gurus, Dane Brugler of The Athletic, says he hasn’t heard of a team giving Strand a draftable grade and has heard primarily “PFA love” about the 6-foot-5, 245-pound gunslinger. PFA means priority free agent, a player teams target because they believe they have NFL potential.
“There is definitely intrigue out there for him,” Brugler said.
Buchanan says Strand is the only NCAA Division II player he projects to be drafted.
Dragons head coach Steve Laqua said he’s not sure whether Strand will be drafted or not.
“Hard to tell,” Laqua said. “It feels like teams hold their cards so close to their chest. I think it’s because he’s such an unknown.”
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One source told the Tip Sheet there is at least one NFL team potentially flying to Moorhead to meet with Strand in the coming weeks, which would seem to be a good sign of heavy interest.
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Concordia's head coach Kim Wagers watches as the women's basketball team plays against St. Benedict on Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026, at Concordia College Memorial Auditorium.
Anna Paige / The Forum
Concordia coach to UMD?
Keep an eye on Concordia women’s basketball coach Kim Wagers as a top candidate for the open job at Minnesota-Duluth.
Mandy Pearson, longtime Bulldogs’ coach who happens to be a former Concordia player, recently left Duluth to take over at St. Thomas.
Wagers would seem to be the perfect fit for the Bulldogs, a successful program in the NCAA Division II Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference.
She played at UMD and is said to be a favorite of Karen Stromme, the former longtime Bulldogs coach and ongoing legend who still carries some sway in the athletic department. Wagers is from Moose Lake, Minnesota, near Duluth.
In seven years at Concordia, Wagers is 106-60 (.639) with 20 or more victories in three of the last four seasons. The Cobbers were 26-5 this season and advanced to the Division III Elite 8 for the first time in more than 30 years.
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Hot take of the day
Something that probably won't happen, but if it does I'll look like a genius:
— Jason Eck, head coach at New Mexico and a longtime thorn in North Dakota State's side from his days at South Dakota State, will be coaching Wisconsin in 2027.
A little birdie said …
Moorhead’s Matt Cullen could become an assistant coach at the University of Minnesota under new coach Brett Larson. Cullen and Larson are friends and two of Cullen’s sons, Brooks and Wyatt, are already committed to the Gophers. A third, Joey, has not yet pledged to a college. … Former Fargo Force coach Nick Oliver, an assistant at Wisconsin, is the front-runner for the St. Cloud State job opened when Larson left for the Gophers. … Former NDSU basketball players Treyson Anderson and Damari Wheeler-Thomas have received mid- to high six-figure offers after entering the transfer portal. … Iowa State could be a landing spot for former Bison guard Trevian Carson, who entered the portal. … Former Bison and Alabama basketball player Grant Nelson had surgery to clean up the knee that’s given him issues, which is why he wasn’t given a second 10-day contract by the Brooklyn Nets. ... The Summit League could look to Division II schools like Grand Valley State or Northwest Missouri State for expansion, but the interest level from those schools in moving to Division I has thus far been minimal. Also, the NCAA has a moratorium on moving from D2 to D1 until at least February 2027.
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North Dakota State’s Trevian Carson looks for an opening on a inbounds play against Michigan State’s Coen Carr during the NCAA men’s basketball tournament on Thursday, March 19, 2026, at KeyBank Arena in Buffalo, N.Y.
David Samson / The Forum
Bemidji State, Mayville State and Dickinson State all have women’s basketball coach openings. … ESPN analytics expert Bill Connelly has NDSU ranked 72nd among all FBS teams in his first predictive analysis rankings of 2026. That is third among returning Mountain West Conference teams, behind UNLV at 59th and New Mexico at 68th. … Connelly ranks NDSU as the seventh-best Group of Six team behind Boise State, UNLV, Navy, New Mexico, Memphis and San Diego State. … The Athletic ranked UNLV’s Dan Mullen as the top Group of Six head coach. New Mexico’s Jason Eck was ninth. … West Florida is the latest Division II school ready to make the move to FCS, according to multiple reports. The Pensacola school won a national championship in 2019. … Former South Dakota men’s basketball coach Todd Lee has been named the new coach at Cal State-Bakersfield. … Former NDSU men’s assistant Josh Sash is an assistant to Ben McCollum at Iowa, which is playing for a berth in the Final Four. ... North Dakota State College of Science cagers Cham Okey and Jikany Deang are getting some mid-major looks. San Francisco, New Mexico State and Sam Houston State among others have shown interest.
Mike McFeely
Opinion by Mike McFeely
Mike McFeely is a columnist for The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead. He began working for The Forum in the 1980s while he was a student studying journalism at Minnesota State University Moorhead. He's been with The Forum full time since 1990, minus a six-year hiatus when he hosted a local radio talk-show.
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