2019 Frontier Conference Football Preview Series: Defensive Line

There are always high-powered offenses in the Frontier Conference. Season after season, the league boasts some of the top offenses in all of the NAIA.

That's why, a team with a top-notch defense usually has the leg up on the rest of the league. And, to have a top-notch defense, a team has to start with a dominant defensive line.

That's certainly one area the Montana State University-Northern Lights want to see improvement this coming season. A Northern defense that started as many as seven freshmen last season will look to get better, and it starts up front, where the Lights were last in the league in sacks a season ago.

However, coming into year two under Rolin, Northern's young defense has started to grow up, led by the return of junior Joe Fehr at defensive end. Fehr started several games as a true freshman and was on his way to having a strong sophomore campaign until injuries slowed him last fall. Still, Fehr has the size, talent and athleticism to be a pass rusher this coming season, and with Northern having to face so many potent offenses, the Lights will lean heavily on Fehr to lead the way.

Across the Frontier a season ago, it was truly the year of star defensive linemen. The league produced a pair of All-American defensive ends in Rocky Mountain College's Ryder Rice and Southern Oregon's Sean Rogers. The duo combined for nearly 25 sacks last fall, but both have moved on - Rogers to graduation, and Rice transferring up to the University of Montana.

So, several new faces will likely emerge as starts this fall.

Eastern Oregon certainly has a couple of those stars coming back, led by junior defensive end Sage DeLong, who earned First-Team All-Conference honors last season with his eight sacks and 12.5 tackles for loss.

Meanwhile, Southern Oregon might have lost a superstar in Rogers on the edge, but the Raiders do return perhaps one of the top defensive tackles in the Frontier in 6-5, 280-pound run-stopper John Jackson, while sophomore DT Daniel Mousso is expected to have a big season anchoring the Montana Western defense. College of Idaho also brings back a good tandem in Landon Clark Gammel and Zack White, who coined for nine sacks, 10 tackles for loss and over 50 tackles last season.

The loss of Rice, among a slew of other top defensive players will be tough on the Battlin' Bears, but expect Rocky to still have a stingy defense, as the trio of Filmi Church, Mason Price and Denton Wetherell look to step up and take their turn anchoring RMC's defensive line.

Graduation also hit a pair of teams who always produce stout defensive lines this past spring. Carroll College lost star Beaugh Meyer, while Montana Tech must replace the production left behind by four-year starter Chance Hansen.

David Petersen and Cole Greff are names to watch this season for the Fighting Saints, while former Deer Lodge standout Karson Wheat should have a breakout season for the Orediggers at defensive tackle.

Editor's Note: This is the second installment of the Havre Daily News' annual position breakdown of the Frontier Conference. For a look at the offensive linemen, see Wednesday's HDN.