With Will moving inside, Bison football poised to unleash Mostaert muscle next fall

Next fall, North Dakota State is hoping to create a Lakeville West of sorts. The Mostaerts are all in on the interior of the Bison defensive line.

Eli Mostaert was a regular at defensive tackle last fall when NDSU went 14-1 and won its ninth Division I FCS title in 11 years. Will was more of an inside-outside versatile player who mainly was considered a defensive end.

No longer.

NDSU lost inside starters Lane Tucker and Costner Ching plus valuable role player Michael Buetow to graduation.

“We lost a whole lot on the d-line in general,” Will Mostaert said. “I know that Lane and Costner were big parts of this defense and we didn’t have a lot of depth at that position right now so someone needed to step up.”

Will is stepping up in the food line, too. He added 10-12 pounds over the winter conditioning period and is around 260. The plan is to get to around 270 this summer and carry that through the season.

Eli started spring ball at 283 and has been the bigger of the twins since coming to NDSU.

“He put that on like nobody’s business,” Will said.

With Will catching up, it promises to be a whole lot of Mostaert muscle on the inside. Technically, they both play the same defensive tackle position but in NDSU’s defense, where rotation up front with the noseguard is common depending on the opponent, don’t be surprised to see both Mostaerts in the game at the same time.

“It will be fun, sometimes we’ll argue I’m sure and get (upset) at each other if we do something wrong,” Will said. “But it’s good for us to push each other and be right next to each other and know we can lean on each other when we need to.”

Not only did NDSU lose its inside starters but defensive ends Brayden Thomas, who led the team in quarterback sacks, and Logan McCormick also graduated. The Bison return veterans at that spot with Spencer Waege, who missed most of last season with a knee injury, and key contributors Tony Pierce and Jake Kava.

Sophomore Loshiaka Roques is back and NDSU head coach Matt Entz said this spring is big for junior Reed Ryan. Moreover, junior Dylan Hendricks, a highly-touted recruit in 2019 who has yet to play because of injuries, is making a bid to see the field at defensive end.

“We have a lot of good D-ends and I think I can make an impact at the defensive tackle spot,” Will Mostaert said. “It’s crazy how many good defensive linemen we’ve seen leave in the last three years. But someone has to make those plays they made. Hopefully it will be me, Eli and Javier (Derritt) and us young guys coming up.”NDSU wraps up spring practice with a Saturday event free to the public at Gate City Bank Field at the Fargodome. Parking lots and the east lobby of the dome will open at 10 a.m. for the annual locker room sale of NDSU apparel and equipment from various sports.

Stadium doors open at 1:30 with a national championship ring presentation at 2 followed by a Bison practice at 2:30. WDAY-TV will stream it live on InForum.com beginning at 2 p.m.

As in recent years, the practice will be controlled, meaning don’t look for the Mostaerts to be hunting down and tackling a quarterback.

That will have to be saved for next fall.

“I think I’ve made huge improvements in my game,” Will said. “I feel like I’m taking a big step and I think I’m close to being there mentally. It’s just the physical aspect of it.”

Said Entz: "When we go back to recruiting, we thought these guys will be disruptive in our league and up to this point we've seen that in Eli. I think Will has room to grow and we're excited to have both."