For the eighth time in the past nine years, Pierre TF Riggs has won the state 11AA football championship. The Governors defeated Yankton 56-35 on Friday night at the Dakota Dome in Vermillion to win the crown.
Friday night’s showdown started with a bang as both teams combined for 49-points in the opening quarter. From there, the defenses settled in, but it was Pierre who made the most plays in the second half to pull away from the Bucks.
This past summer, one of the members of the Pierre football team, Aiden Van Balen, passed away in a car accident. The team carried his jersey with them all season, including to the dome in Vermillion this week. When the game was over and the Governors were presented with the state championship trophy, Aiden’s younger brother Jacob went to grab the hardware.
“That was one of the most special moments seeing Jacob lift that trophy for Aiden," said an emotional Steve Steele, Pierre Governors head coach. "I just can’t be more proud of these guys for carrying [Aiden] with us all season and finding a way to get back on top.”
The Governors got the ball to start the game, but their opening possession stalled after picking up a lone first down. A good punt by Jerren Deal pinned Yankton’s first drive up against their own goal line.
Two plays into Yankton’s first drive Tate Beste hit Abe O’Brien for a nine-yard gain, but O’Brien was stripped of the football by William Eilers on the tackle, which was recovered by Samuel Larson of Pierre.
Pierre capitalized on the turnover with a Porter Hunsley touchdown run from three yards out a few years later. This gave the Governors an early 7-0 lead.
The Bucks answered right back on the ensuing kickoff with an 88-yard kick return touchdown by Tegan LaCroix. Yankton did miss the extra point, however, keeping the lead with the Governors.
Pierre wasted no time hitting their next big play. On the first play of their next drive, Deal hit Carter Schiefelbein for a 78-yard touchdown to increase the Governors lead to eight-points. Pierre got the ball right back too on an onside kick attempt that was recovered by Aydan Behm. A few plays later Hunsley scored again, this time from nine yards away. The wild start saw the Governors holding a 21-6 lead with 6:42 to play in the first quarter.
Two-and-a-half minutes later the Bucks found the end zone again. Beste hit Owen Eidsness for a 28-yard strike over the middle. A successful two-point conversion made up for the missed extra point earlier, which made it a 21-14 game.
Following the Yankton score, Pierre hit paydirt on the kickoff. Carter Schiefelbein took it 97-yards for a touchdown, which once again made it a two-touchdown advantage for the Govs.
With 41-seconds to go in the first quarter, Yankton narrowed the deficit to seven points after a two-yard touchdown run by Jace Sedlacek.
End of the 1st Quarter | Pierre TF Riggs 28 Yankton 21
With the first quarter seeing seven touchdowns scored, the second quarter didn’t see one until nearly ten-minutes in. Both defenses looked much more locked in on each opposing offense. The Bucks tied it up at 28-28 after a nine-yard carry from Sedlacek, which capped a 15 play, 78-yard scoring drive.
Yankton’s defense forced Pierre’s offense into a three-and-out following the touchdown, which gave the Bucks a chance to take the lead going into the break. Yankton was unable to move the ball or run out the clock, so they had to punt it back to Pierre who got the ball near midfield with six-second to go. With one final heave before the break, Deal took a shot on a Hail Mary. Terwilliger caught the ball around the five-yard line in a crowd of traffic and then pushed his way into the end zone for a touchdown as time expired.
Halftime | Pierre 35 Yankton 28
The Bucks received to start the second half, but after picking up one first down the drive stalled out and led to a punt. The Governors then went to work and moved the ball downfield. Deal finished the Pierre drive by finding Hunsley wide open for a 19-yard touchdown. This gave the Governors a two-touchdown advantage near the midway point of the third quarter.
A 27-yard run by Sedlacek put Yankton inside Pierre territory on their next possession. Two plays later Beste hit Eidsness for a 45-yard touchdown down the sideline. This narrowed it back to a seven-point game.
Pierre would increase their lead back to 14-points a few minutes later though, as Hunsley powered his way over the goal line on a 13-yard run.
End of the 3rd Quarter | Pierre 49 Yankton 35
A key fourth down holding penalty by Yankton halted the Bucks offensive possession in the early stages of the fourth quarter, which forced a Yankton punt.
Pierre then went to work and put together an eight play, 95-yard drive that was capped off with an eight-yard run by Hunsley – his fourth of the game. This gave the Governors a 56-35 lead.
Desperately needing points, the Bucks offense took the field. Beste would hit Carter Boosma on a crucial third down that went for 49-yards. A few plays later, Beste took a shot to the end zone to Eidsness, but it was intercepted by Hudson Stoeser.
From there, the Governors ran out the clock to clinch the win.
Final | Pierre 56 Yankton 35
Governors quarterback Jerren Deal threw for 287-yards and three touchdowns in the game. Porter Hunsley, who was named the Joe Robbie MVP, rushed for 171-yards and four touchdowns.
“We went back to film when we played them last. We watched what they did, watched their tendencies, we just adjusted our play to their style and shut down what they do.”
After a wild first half, both teams went to the locker room to work on adjustments to slow down the opposing team. In the second half, Pierre scored 21-points on offense while holding Yankton to just seven-points.
“We made some great halftime adjustments,” said coach Steele. “We came out and found a way to get some stops in the second half. The offense found a way to keep things rolling and a lot of it was from [Hunsley] right here.”
This is the ninth state football championship for the Pierre Governors football program. They won it in 2013, went on a streak of winning seven straight from 2017-2023, and have now returned to the top in 2025. The empire has officially struck back!
Joe Robbie MVP | Porter Hunsley (Pierre)
Outstanding Back | Porter Hunsley (Pierre)
Outstanding Lineman | Max Bogenhagen (Pierre)
