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DenHerder named Carroll's weightlifter of the year

Nearly 3 1/2; years ago, Luke DenHerder lay in a hospital bed weighing just 157 pounds.

Since making a full recovery from non-Hodgkins Burkitts lymphoma, a type of cancer that attacks the body’s immune system, Carroll College’s sophomore offensive lineman has bulked back up to strength.

The Saints announced last week that DenHerder was named the football team’s weightlifter of the year. Story

Drive for Five

Carroll signs three more to football squad

Carroll College head football coach Mike Van Diest announced three more signings for the defending NAIA national champion Fighting Saints recruiting class.

"We are excited to add these three players to our freshman class. They have a great upside and potential in the future here at Carroll," said Van Diest. Recruits

Saints football ranked No. 1 in spring poll

In the second ever National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics Football Top 25 Spring Coaches' Poll, Carroll ends their spring practice session as No. 1, announced Monday.

The Fighting Saints snapped the 27-game winning streak of then undefeated and No. 1 Sioux Falls (S.D.) in the 2007 National Championship to finish 15-0. Carroll received all 16 of the possible first-place votes and recorded 400 total points. Story

Saints scrimmage a success

On the very first play of scrimmage, Carroll College’s junior quarterback Gary Wagner stepped back in the pocket, found time and threw the ball right into the hands of teammate Pat Regan.

Unfortunately for the offense, Regan was on the defensive side of the ball.

Both Carroll quarterbacks threw picks on their first pass plays on Saturday, but also led drives that ended in three touchdown plays in a scrimmage that went back-and-forth on both sides of the ball. A good sign as the players head into summer. Story

Key defensive players return for new season

As the Carroll College football team continues to search for starters at key positions left open from graduation, one thing is certain, they won’t have to look far for their linebacking corps.

The heart of the Saints’ 3-4 defense is on the field this spring as all four starting linebackers from last year’s NAIA championship team return for another season to build on. Story

Saints offense clicks in scrimmage

The Carroll College football team couldn’t ask for a better day than Saturday to line up the purple and white for their second scrimmage of spring football.

With temperatures in the 60s and a cool breeze blowing, the Saints weren’t afraid to keep the scrimmage running long.

“This is spring football, especially when you wake up on a Saturday morning and the weather’s like this in Helena, Montana,” said head coach Mike Van Diest. “I love football. We could be out here all day.”

They nearly were as the offense took 94 snaps and tested the arms of its young quarterbacks. Story

Carroll recruits players

Seven more players have decided to join the Carroll College football team this fall head coach Mike Van Diest announced Thursday.

Four of those are from Montana, and one, Anthony Hogan, son of Carroll offensive line coach Jim Hogan, is from Helena. Recruits

Wagner takes over starting duties for Saints

Gary Wagner is one of those irrepressible football players that always seems to have a smile on his face.

The Carroll College quarterback is quick to make a joke to lighten the mood and he never takes things too seriously.

Except during game time.

“I like to have fun and I can be a goofy kid, but when it comes to leading this team that goes out the door,” the Havre product said. Story

Putting the pieces together

The spring season gives Carroll College’s football team only so much time to find the right mixture of players for another strong team.

So far, the reigning NAIA national champions have been mixing and matching players to fill the 13 starting positions left open from graduation.

Head coach Mike Van Diest said he might have found a few youngsters that have answered the call.

“We’re a third of a way through spring ball, that’s how fast it goes,” he said. “We have some leaders returning on the offensive and defensive lines. Story

Saints score recruits

Saints Football Camp

Since the NCAA's National Signing Day on Feb. 6, the frenzy that envelops every college football program has slowly worked itself down to a simmer. Top athletes have chosen their schools, college teams have started preparing for spring scrimmages and football fans are wondering how their new squads will fare.

Quietly working beneath it all, smaller NAIA schools have been trying to get their share. While big-name programs from around the area usually get the largest chunks of meat, Carroll College hasn't had to worry about surviving off the scraps. The five-time national champion Saints, fresh off another title win this winter, have already picked up 19 recruits and look to have a few more. Head coach Mike Van Diest said that not only has the program replenished many of its ranks, it got many of its first choices and even stole a few away from the bigger schools in the region.

The future once again looks bright for the Saints. Story

Fighting Saints championship DVD available

Attention Carroll College Fighting Saints football fans: The fifth NAIA national championship season is not over.

With the Independent Record's new release, "Pursuit of Perfection," the incredible undefeated season will be memorialized on screen.

Out of all the four-year colleges and universities in the nation, Carroll was the only football program to finish its 2007 season undefeated. That season, which culminated in the Saints' fifth NAIA championship title in six years, is the subject of "Pursuit of Perfection," a new hour-long documentary film produced by the Independent Record and helenair.com. Story

Carroll football signs three more

The Carroll College football team has recently signed three players for its 2008 recruiting class.

Carroll’s signees include Aaron Lenk, a 6-foot-2, 275 pound offensive lineman from Graham, Wash.

Lenk was a first-team all-conference selection and a second-team all-state choice from Kapowsin High School. Story

Nine Saints chosen as VSN All-Americans

Junior middle linebacker Owen Koeppen leads a squad of 10 Carroll College football players that were announced to the Victory Sports Network’s 2007 All-American list released on Monday.

Koeppen, a 6-2, 232-pound native of Florence, Mont., was named the year’s defensive MVP after snagging the same award for the Frontier Conference earlier in the season.

He was also named the defensive MVP of the NAIA National Championship game, which the Saints won over the University of Sioux Falls 17-9. Story