Amazingly, we've already reached the last day on the calendar.
Tomorrow will begin the next rotation around the sun, but before that all starts it's customary to look back at the last 365 days.
In this case, for the seven most significant developments for players and fans in the region.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
As so many other recent years have, Frisco was the site of the first major development of the year. South Dakota State finally got over the championship hump and in-so-doing, ushered in a different sort of year for NDSU football.
The season which concluded in Missoula was a down year in several respects but still got them to the semi-finals and got their head coach a job at one of the top football factories in the country. In his stead came Tim Polasek with a breadth of experience that his predecessors would be hard-pressed to match.
That doesn't guarantee that he will maintain and elevate the level of the program but experience in conjunction with the continuity that has so far been displayed could make 2024 even better!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
2023 could also have been called the year of Grant Nelson. While it's still unfortunate that he had to transfer to increase his professional outlook he will remain a fan favorite and role model for all the young hoopers across the state!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Some of those young athletes made their own bit of history by becoming the first team from North Dakota to reach the Little League World Series with a win over South Dakota!
They weren't able to carve-out the first win in Williamsport but the history they made raised the bar for all the future youngsters!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
That achievement came sandwiched between Fargo North winning the State A boys basketball championship and the AA football title. With several of the best athletes in the state there was an air of inevitability to the outcomes but it wasn't that long ago that the North side seemed like a sports after-thought so the taste of victory should be that much sweeter for those boys, the coaches and all the families involved in them!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Purple weren't so capable as they generated some excitement after a poor start to the season but continue to teeter on a knife-edge to determine the length of their season. With Kirk Cousins suffering the first major injury of his career the entire season came under peril but that is just the top excuse for them to be able to make for their eight losses with two games to go. They may squeeze into an 18th game but, regrettably, it is tough to be optimistic about that.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
But as the seasons are not all fully contained between January & December, some great stories are still unfolding.
With Moorhead State's men's basketball at 12-0 & #2 in the nation for D2 they may be the best basketball team in the region. Whether they are able to make-good on the great start won't be known for months but it puts them firmly in the top-7 for 2023!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Likewise for the Fargo Force as they are 28 games into their season and have already come a point shy of half-100. They have a long way to go but they are unquestionably the favorite to represent the Western Conference in the League Final again!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Just a snippet of the year of memories, as the campaign to make more begins!
What was your favorite part of the 2023?