Smith to play at Montana State University-Northern - Central Oregonian

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Lon Austin

Rhett Smith has signed a letter of intent to play football at Montana State University-Northern.

“They recruited me kind of late, so right now it’s only a partial scholarship,” Smith said. “But they said that if I stay, they will probably give me nearly a full scholarship later. I had a few other schools look at me, but they offered me more.”

Smith, a three-sport athlete at Crook County High School, chose to play football in college over wrestling or track and field.

An all-league fullback and linebacker, Smith was recruited for both positions, but is currently listed on the roster as a fullback.

Montana State University-Northern is located in Havre, a town about the same size as Prineville. The community is located east of the Rocky Mountains, just a few miles from the Canadian border.

The University has an enrollment of about 1,200 students, and competes in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) as a member of the Frontier Conference.

Carroll College has dominated the conference in football, winning the conference title each of the last 12 seasons. Carroll finished second in the nation a year ago. Other teams in the conference include Eastern Oregon University, Montana Tech, and Montana Western.

The Montana State University-Northern football program finished last season with a 5-5 record — their best record in years. The team ranked fifth in the nation in total offense, and was 13th in passing yardage.

“I don’t know if I will get much playing time this year,” Smith said. “They have a fullback that is a senior and has played the last three years, so I may be backing him up. But I’m just really excited about the opportunity.”