Hi-Line Athlete Profile: Jake Norby, Lights Football

Montana State University-Northern head football coach Andrew Rolin wants to build a program centered around Montana guys and on the current roster, there is probably no one more Montana than redshirt-sophomore Jake Norby.

Norby, who came to Northern under the previous head coach Aaron Christensen, is in the midst of his third season with the Lights program after coming to MSU-N following a successful high-school athletic career with Chinook.

On the football field, Norby was a difference maker for the Sugarbeeters on both sides of the ball as he helped Chinook reach the Class C 8-Man state championship game in consecutive seasons. Chinook won the state title in 2015, following an undefeated season.

While Norby was a standout on the gridiron for the Beeters, he was also part of two state wrestling championship teams in 2015 and 2016. He also earned All-State honors as an individual and finished third at state wrestling as a senior.

Now, Norby is trying to make a name for himself in the Frontier Conference with a Lights football team that is also looking to bounce back from a winless season in conference play. When he came to Northern, Norby first had to make the difficult transition from 8-Man football at the Class C level to the 11-Man game in the premier football conference in the NAIA.

The process was slow at first and Norby redshirted during 2016, his first season with the program in order to give himself more time to make the jump. Then, in 2017, Norby became a regular contributor for the Lights defense, when he was able to stay healthy.

Some nagging injuries cost Norby a few games. However, he did manage to play in eight games for the Lights a season ago and in that limited action, he finished with a total of 42 spots, good enough for ninth of the team. Playing as an outside linebacker, he also picked up 1.5 tackles for loss and registered 23 solo stops. His two best outings came against Rocky Mountain College and Mayville State. Norby finished the season-opener in 2017 against the Battlin' Bears with seven tackles and 0.5 tackles for loss. He topped that in the Lights win over Mayville State, finishing the game with 10 tackles and one tackle for loss.

Despite the transition to a new coaching staff and a different look defensively, Norby has carved out a role for himself as a starting outside linebacker. When the Lights take the field against Mayville State at Blue Pony Stadium Aug. 25, Norby will have an important role to play. Following practice Tuesday, the Havre Daily News caught up with him for five questions.

HDN: Going into this season, what are some of your goals?

Norby: "One of my goals is to beat Mayville (State). That would be huge on our list and that's something we have been working towards. For myself, I am just trying to get better and step up as a leader. I am not saying that I am old yet, but we have some young guys on defense and I would like to see myself take the direction into more of a leadership role."

HDN: How does your role on defense compare to what it was under the previous staff?

Norby: "This is more of a gap-sound defense. We are gapped out so at the end of the day, I am just a SAM linebacker playing football. That is what is really cool about the position. You have to be really athletic and make tackles in the open field and it's cool that coach (Jake) Chestnut trusts me and the other SAM linebackers to be able to do those things."

HDN: There is an exciting atmosphere surrounding the team, where is that coming from?

Norby: "It's definitely the coaching staff. Coach Rolin is a charismatic guy. He's the hype guy and coach Chestnut brings a lot to the defense. Coach Rolin always preaches continuous improvement and continuous effort and that's just something we have all rallied behind."

HDN: How much improvement have you noticed in this team?

Norby: "I think we have taken a step in the right direction. From what I have seen so far from my previous camps, we have hit the ground running. We had a great spring ball and I am really excited for the season. I wouldn't be surprised if we came out and strung some wins together."

HDN: Outside of football, how was your summer?

Norby: "I stayed here all summer. All of the linebackers did. That was cool about our group. We worked out running and lifting, so it was a summer dedicated to football which is good because I love football."