SDSU’s Jackson likes where team is at ahead of the fall

BROOKINGS — South Dakota State wrapped up its spring football practices on Saturday with the annual Spring Game at the Sanford Jackrabbit Athletic Complex.

The game was between the offense and defense and the defense had a 17-0 lead at the beginning of the scrimmage. The offense was allowed to run about 50 plays and scored three touchdowns and a field goal to earn the 24-17 win. The defense had two stops in the red zone and blocked a field goal, so SDSU head coach Dan Jackson was happy with how the scrimmage played out.

“I thought it was some good back and forth,” Jackson said. “I thought the ones and twos on defense were pretty confident flying around, getting some stops early, and then we played a lot of young guys towards the end, and the offense got going.

“... You saw flashes from players we needed to see flashes from. And today was a lot about getting the younger players in, the transfers, comfortable and [getting them] some game experience. Because we still have 70 players on this roster that are in their first or second year, and it was fun to see them get some action.”

SDSU is in a much better place than it was a year ago. The Jackrabbits did not lose any skill players on offense to the transfer portal and are returning star quarterback Chase Mason. They lost two starters on the offensive line and their leading rusher and receiver to graduation, but have a plethora of younger players who made strides in the 2025 season.

The leader of the offensive line, senior tackle Quinten Christensen did not participate in spring practices, along with three other guys who are poised to start this upcoming season. Jackson said some of the linemen could have practiced, but he looked at them sitting out as a blessing in disguise because it allowed the younger guys to get reps and gain some experience in case there are injuries in the fall.

“Where you benefit from playing the younger guys, or the guys that may not have been a starter a year ago, is they start building confidence,” Jackson said. “I thought the O-line is a group that has really built confidence.

“... We played nine linemen [in the spring game], and I thought they were really good in pass protection and moving the ball. We ran the ball well, and there’s four starters standing there, not playing. So, I think that’s really encouraging for the offensive line in a number of ways.”

The running backs that will be behind the offensive line are all underclassmen or transfers.

Sophomores Josiah Johnson and James Basinger saw action in 2025, along with redshirt freshman Corey Blair Jr. The three had a combined 178 carries and ran for 724 yards and 12 touchdowns this past season.
Junior transfer Ramon McKinney Jr., who played his first two seasons at Northeastern State in Oklahoma, had a pair of touchdowns on Saturday. The second one was a receiving touchdown in which he ran through many tacklers en route to the end zone.

McKinney ran for 1,093 yards and 15 touchdowns in 2025 at Northeastern State and Jackson said that he adds depth to an already talented running back room.

“That is a room that I’m always looking at, do we need to bolster and add to that room to have depth? And I think they made it clear that we don’t. We have Josiah, who’s a big, physical guy that can make a lot of plays. We have James that can do a little bit of everything, and Corey’s got his style, and [McKinney’s] got his style. … I think Coach Cooper has done a good job. He did not pull all his hair out or go gray in the process of maturing those guys, but they’ve taken the next step,” Jackson said.

One of the stronger positions for SDSU is linebacker as they return every player who saw action in 2025. Starter Cullen McShane did not participate in spring practices, but Jackson said he thought they developed some depth in the spring with strong performances from junior Jes Krcil, who is a transfer from Wayne State, and sophomore Casey Larson.

“Cullen McShane wasn’t going through the spring. I think that ended up being a positive, because we got more reps. I thought Jes Krcil and Casey Larson emerged as two players that we have to get on the field in some sort of rotation. So I thought those two linebackers really elevated themselves outside of, you know, [Chase] Van Tol, [Joe] Ullman and Bryce Johnson,” Jackson said.

SDSU’s secondary is a position group that lost talent after 2025 as four cornerbacks and two safeties departed. Jackson said there were three guys that stood out in the spring and they will look to figure out who will be starting in the back end of the defense in the fall.

“I think Michael Farr, who is an early enrollee true freshman, is a guy that made strides throughout spring. He’s not where he needs to be yet, but I could see [it by] the end of fall camp. I mean, it’s crazy for me to say a freshman safety would be out there, but I think he may do it. Noah St. Juste was playing confidently and [Wayne State transfer] Ife Current has made a lot of plays for us too. So, it’s becoming more clear, but there’s more bodies that we need to keep sorting out,” Jackson said.

One of the other reasons Jackson felt good about the spring was because he didn’t have to worry about bigger programs poaching his players and then having to add to his team.

That’s because the NCAA got rid of a transfer portal window in the spring and made it so that the only portal window is from Jan. 2-16.

Jackson said that made for better spring practices and removed a lot of stress from his life.

“We’re gradually making steps to make all of this better and more functional,” Jackson said. “So the one portal window was a huge adjustment. I told my wife last night, if there was a second portal window, I wouldn’t be at dinner with you right now, you know, and that’s just the truth of it.

“So I think it’s allowed us to focus on our team and create an identity, because with a second portal window, you kind of wait till June before you start knowing what you have. So, we know what we have, we know what they can do, and it’s helped me design practices that are allowing us to grow and not just evaluate and hope that this roster is still together.”