FARGO — The most impressive baton passing in the history of Division I FCS football came to a close in February when North Dakota State accepted membership into the Mountain West Conference. NDSU formally put behind its impressive run of quarterbacks in the subdivision with the likes of NFL players Carson Wentz, Easton Stick, Trey Lance and Cam Miller.
Ladies and gentlemen, now on the starting blocks for FBS football: Senior Nathan Hayes. He’s the unquestioned starting quarterback with spring football one week old.
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“It’s a little different, when things aren’t going your way, you’re the one they turn to and I don’t mind being that guy for this team,” Hayes said. “We’ve come a long way together.”
Next fall will be Hayes’ fifth year in the program. And like Cole Payton last year, he’s aiming to make his one year as the starter count.
“That’s something I’ve talked to Cole a lot about just because there’s so much uncertainty with that,” Hayes said. “There’s that new leadership role where you don’t have a season to progress and show everybody what you’re capable of. You have to use the offseason to your advantage as much as possible to show that leadership and get the team behind you.”
Payton was a proven runner, but not passer, at this time last year. In some ways, it’s reversed with Hayes in that he’s shown his arm strength, but maybe not as much in the run game. He did show a burst of speed with a 34-yard touchdown run against Northern Iowa last season and a 51-yard TD sprint two years ago against Tennessee State.
At 6-foot-3 and 218 pounds, he has the size.
Hayes will go into next season completing 37 of 63 passes for 595 yards and 7 touchdowns in his previous three seasons. He’s been around, having redshirted in 2022 and spending the next two seasons as the No. 3 quarterback.
He moved into the top understudy to Payton last season with Polasek giving him some snaps that were more than just handing off in mop-up duty. He was 25 of 44 passing for 381 yards, with the most impressive toss a 68-yard touchdown bomb to Mekhi Collins against Tennessee State.
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“I got a lot of good experience last year,” Hayes said. “Cole had some big-time opportunities as well getting into a lot of meaningful games in his time under Cam. This year it’s no different, we’re looking to constantly improve.”
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North Dakota State quarterback Nathan Hayes warms up at Bison football practice on Friday, March 27, 2026, at the Nodak Insurance Football Performance Complex in Fargo.
Alyssa Goelzer / The Forum
It hasn’t been often in Polasek’s three different tenures with the Bison that started in 2006 as a graduate assistant where there’s been a knock-out, drag-out battle for the No. 1 job. Freshman Brock Jensen battled Jose Mohler in 2010, Miller and Zeb Noland went head-to-head in the spring season of 2021 and Miller overtook Quincy Patterson in the fall of 2021.
The succession from Steve Walker who finished in 2007 went like this: Nick Mertens in 2008-09, Jensen from 2010-13, Wentz in 2014-15, Stick in 2016-18, Lance in 2019, Miller in 21-24 and Payton last season.
It appears Hayes has the arm power to compare to any of those quarterbacks, with Polasek saying he threw the ball on the run about 73 yards in practice last week.
“Just that kind of throw where that was a wow factor of a throw,” Polasek said. “For us, we’re eager to see if he can play consistent, good, tough, clean football situationally. He has been on point making decisions but he had one poor decision the other day. Can he be a consistent player is what we’re looking for?”
That goes for the backups to Hayes, too, which as of last week was not settled. And may not be for a while.
“The real competition right now lies in the development of who can be or most solid No. 2 that you would put into a game,” Polasek said. “And then, is there a superstar waiting in the wings that maybe you would give a start to if something drastic happens and you have to start moving the program forward?”
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The latter would be a competition between sophomore Preston Brown and redshirt freshman Zander Smith. Junior Trey Drake will be going into his fourth year in the program and appears to be a solid bet to be the No. 1 backup to Hayes.
“Trey’s in good shape to win that job but these other two kids are talented and they were recruited here for a reason,” Polasek said. “I like the competition level for the two, three and four spots.”
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North Dakota State quarterback Nathan Hayes gets his gear on at the start of Bison football practice on Friday, March 27, 2026, at the Nodak Insurance Football Performance Complex in Fargo.
Alyssa Goelzer / The Forum
[ Jeff Kolpack](https://www.jamestownsun.com/Jeff Kolpack)
By [Jeff Kolpack](https://www.jamestownsun.com/Jeff Kolpack)
Jeff Kolpack, the son of a reporter and an English teacher, and the brother of a reporter, worked at the Jamestown Sun, Bismarck Tribune and since 1990 The Forum, where he's covered North Dakota State athletics since 1995. He has covered all 10 of NDSU's Division I FCS national football titles and has written four books: "Horns Up," "North Dakota Tough," "Covid Kids" and "They Caught Them Sleeping: How Dot Reinvented the Pretzel." He is also the radio host of "The Golf Show with Jeff Kolpack" April through August.