Dickinson native Jake Kubas makes waves as NFL prospect

Mar. 27—FARGO — There are just-shy of 1,700 people on one National Football League roster or another, and that rarified air is reserved for people who truly earn those positions and the athletes come from towns — large and small — across the country and the globe. Who would have thought that one potential prospect would come from Dickinson, ND? Those who know Jake Kubas, actually.

The 6'4," 308-lb offensive lineman recently represented not only the North Dakota State University Bison, but the entire Southwest North Dakota region on the university's pro day workouts, and pushed out 28 repetitions on the bench-press to add to his reputation as a first-team All-Missouri Valley Football Conference selection after being named to the Division A-All-State first-team selection when he played for the Titans.

The Trinity High School Class of 2018 graduate has since shined on the FargoDome's turf in more ways than one, as a perennial starter and third-team All-American. But he also puts the exclamation-point on his resume in the classroom, where he has been on the MVFC Honor Roll every year at NDSU and is currently an FCS academic all-star and the winner of the MVFC's academic excellence award in 2019.

"It's been a really fun process — and kind of a long process with the training and everything — but it's been a blast and I'm trying to become the best version of myself as a football player and a competitor and it's been really fun to strive for that the last couple of months here," Kubas said. "Being at NDSU's meant the world to me; I grew up going to NDSU games — my Dad played here and my brother, Zach, played here before me — and it meant the world to become a Bison coming out of high school, and once you get fully immersed into the program it's about the family and the brotherhood that is North Dakota State football: All the winning traditions and the routines and habits everybody has here, it really just sets you up to be an unbelievable human-being, first, and an unbelievable football player, second, and have success in whatever you may do in life."

Jake's parents, Monte and Susan, are excited for their son's prospects, and they know it's an opportunity that doesn't come to everybody. Having been an instrumental part of his growth — not only in football but also in his development as a student and a young man — they know Jake has earned his current position every step of the way.

"It's exciting, sure, but it's not like, 'Hey you won the lottery,' or something and it's not like it's new news or anything, but it's still exciting," Monte Kubas said with a laugh. "Football is pretty important to Jake and he certainly wouldn't be where he's at if it wasn't, and it's more than just an extracurricular activity and it's certainly not a hobby, if you ask him who he is: He's a football player."

Mr. Kubas added, "I think where he comes from has had an impact on him — in his formative years whether that was in junior high or high school with Coach Odermann and everybody else that had an impact on his life and where he's at — he has a high level of respect for them and just wants to give back in any way he can."

For Titans head coach John Odermann, Kubas's football acumen is almost without peer, and while he also participated in track & field and basketball when he attended THS, he was a National Honor Society member as well. Kubas also has been an ambassador for the Titans off the field, and was on hand at the FargoDome when Trinity faced off with Kindred in the Division A Football State Championship game in November of last year.

"Jake was a great player for us at Trinity, and he was a leader on the team but also he's one of those guys that embraces the concept of, 'Football is a family,'" Odermann said. "He came and spoke to the team a year or two ago for one of our formation activities that we do on Thursday nights as a team and he really talked about his experiences at NDSU and about being a good teammate and being accountable and he's a firm believer in that."

Odermann added, "He's one of those guys that, especially at NDSU, has really grown into — not just a great football player — a great young man."

Jake said the city of Dickinson and the Trinity football program had a profound influence on him, but added that Trinity Catholic School was just as big a factor in his growth as a student and an athlete.

"I think the whole Trinity school system had a big impact on myself and a lot of other people, and I think they do a great job of establishing a lot of discipline in the kids, establishing great moral values in kids while establishing great roots in their faith," Jake said. "I think that just allows you to succeed in whatever path you may choose in life; obviously my path was pursuing football at NDSU, but there have been so many other people that have come out of the Trinity Catholic School System that have been successful in whatever they may do, because that school system just builds a great foundation for them to be successful."

While Jake isn't certain where he might end up, either drafted or as a free-agent heading into the 2024 season, he said there has been some interest and he doesn't want to stop playing the game anytime soon. Instead, he is focused on the future and all that it might hold in-store for him.

"It's really cool, and there are some teams that have reached out and are interested," Jake said. "I'm not really sure where I'm going to end up come draft time ... but it's nice to have people reach out and say, 'We really liked your tape and what you did this last season,' and have all that hard work that you put in your senior year in college come to fruition."

Kubas's football-playing cousin, THS junior RB/LB Camden Kubas, is naturally one of his biggest fans, and will be sitting on the edge of his seat come draft day.

"It's really cool; I watched him all the way through high school and I looked up to him all the time," Camden said. "I saw him grow in college and went to most of his games and you hear stories about people going to the NFL, but I think for someone in your own family to be given that chance is special."

While Camden said he doesn't have that level of expectation from himself in the game, he said Jake's accomplishment encourages him as he heads into his senior season at Trinity. "It definitely gives you the chance to see that: If you really put your head down and work hard, you can get to where you want to go, and with Jake nothing was given to him; he worked for everything he got so far."

With there being no more NDSU games to attend for the Kubas family to see Jake Kubas play, Camden said, "I mean, there are some cool NFL stadiums to go to."

One way or the other, Jake would like to stay close to the game for as long as he can. With an academic track-record that is incredibly sound, he would someday look towards coaching, administration or being closely involved with athletics in some capacity, but he's not ready to hang up the cleats just yet.

"I really enjoy the game of football right now and I want to take that as far as it may go, and I'd like to be involved with the game of football whenever my time comes to be done," Jake said. "The big thing for me is getting the message out to a lot of kids in the state of North Dakota that a lot of them get overlooked and a lot of them might be under-recruited, but at the end of the day if you do what's right — every day — if you show up on time and go to work and try to make others around you better and try to become the best version of yourself that you can, you can accomplish a lot in life."

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