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MADISON, S.D. — Dakota State University football player Jack Hemmen wrapped up his collegiate career this past Saturday, Nov. 15.
Hemmen, a native of Elkton, S.D., recorded one solo tackle and three assisted stops as the Trojans overwhelmed Montana State-Northern, 50-3, in the regular-season finale at Brian Kern Family Stadium.
One of Hemmen’s tackles was for negative yardage.
The Trojans held the Lights to just 88 yards, including just nine rushing.
Jack Hemmen was a defensive lineman for the Dakota State University football team this season. (Contributed photo from Dakota State University athletic communications)
Thanks to local players Cole Paulson (Pipestone Area), Seth Gawerecki (PAS) and Hemmen, DSU cracked inside the final NAIA Top-25 poll of the season released Sunday, Nov. 16.
This marked the Trojans first appearance in the top 25 since the 2018 preseason national poll.
A sour note, DSU fell just short of qualifying for the Football Championship Series despite an 8-2 overall record and 5-1 in the Frontier Conference. The 20-team playoff field was announced on Sunday.
The Trojans finished the season on a five-game winning streak, and their first eight-win season since 2017. DSU allowed just 11.2 points per game thanks to Hemmen and Paulson.
Grand View (Iowa) finished the season No. 1 in the final top-25 poll, with Keiser (Fla.) second, Benedictine (Kan.) third, Montana Tech fourth and Friends (Kan.) fifth.
Hemmen, a 6-foot-2, 280-pound defensive tackle, finished with five solo tackles and 23 assists for 33 tackle points in The Star’s system during the 2025 campaign. He also had four tackles for losses and one quarterback sack.
For his Trojans career from 2023-25, he recorded 24 solo stops and 33 assists with six tackles for loss and two sacks.
Jack Hemmen is a business major at DSU.
Jack Hemmen is shown with his family in this photo: Luke Hemmen, Berkeley Hemmen, Robin Hemmen, Malayna Hemmen, Jack Hemmen and Kayla Goertz, Jack’s girlfriend. (Star photo by Eric Viccaro)
Hemmen is the son of Robin and Luke Hemmen. Malayna Hemmen, Jack’s younger sister, is on the cross country and track and field teams at Southwest Minnesota State University.