Apr. 21—MITCHELL — The spring football period for Dakota Wesleyan University wrapped up April 11 with the Tigers' annual spring game, offering a final close-up of a program's intent on turning the page after a 4-7 season in 2025.

While no official stats or score were kept, the afternoon served a different purpose, such as evaluation, development and setting a tone for the months ahead with summer workouts and fall camp slowly approaching.

DWU head coach Alex Kretzschmar emphasized that the controlled scrimmage environment was less about results and more about growth across all position groups. The Tigers leaned heavily into situational football, simulating third-and-short scenarios, two-minute offensive drives and including special teams work to ensure all units were tested in game-like situations.

"There was definitely some good energy and everyone was playing with a chip on their shoulders, which was really good to see," Kretzschmar said of the spring game. "And some young guys stepped up and kind of showed the work they have been putting in since the end of the season last year. Also, another main thing I was really happy about was that we got out of spring ball pretty healthy. That's always a challenge in itself."

That emphasis on development has been a consistent theme throughout the Tigers' three-to-four-week spring practice window. Following last season's growing pains, particularly with a young roster, the focus shifted toward fundamentals, repetition and building togetherness.

Kretzschmar noted that last year's offensive line featured several young contributors who were moved into starting roles early. This spring, those same players began to show signs of progress, both technically and in their ability to operate as one unit.

"On offense, we took some steps forward when it came to maturing together and being more efficient as a whole," Kretzschmar said. "We usually keep things pretty basic when it comes to schemes and plays, just so you can get really good at the fundamentals and our base schemes. So, it was good to see guys get better each day throughout the spring and really get confident with those plays."

A major piece of that offensive progression circles around quarterback Jed Jenson, who is entering his second consecutive season as the Tigers' starter under center. After appearing in 10 games last fall as a sophomore and throwing for 1,977 yards and 17 touchdowns while adding 131 yards on the ground, Jenson has continued to elevate his command of the offense.

Kretzschmar mentioned confidence in Jenson's development, pointing to noticeable growth in both decision-making and leadership over the past several months. The spring game offered another opportunity for Jenson to operate in controlled, high-pressure situations, particularly during two-minute drills designed to replicate late-game scenarios for the offense to move the ball quickly down the field and score.

On the defensive side of the ball, the Tigers faced a different kind of challenge: replacing key contributors lost to graduation. Despite those departures, Kretzschmar came away encouraged by the development of new faces, particularly within the linebacker corps and defensive backfield.

"Defensively, we had some guys that graduated last year but we have a really good core that returned so they might have been a little ahead of the offense in terms of experience level, maturity level and the standpoint of playing together," Kretzschmar said. "But we still had some guys that were plugging in and playing different spots, so everyone was still learning their new roles which was fun to see develop as spring ball moved along."

For younger athletes especially, the spring period has been invaluable — offering more reps and a chance to learn their roles without the pressure of a regular-season game. Kretzschmar repeatedly highlighted the importance of those repetitions, noting that development at this stage often determines the roster's depth come fall.

"The other big thing for our team is that they are all pretty close with one another," Kretzschmar said. "Obviously, a lot of them are roommates with each other. It doesn't matter what year they are, they are close and they want to compete. And if they beat their buddy, they want to let them know about it. Then, the next play they want to get back after them, so it was fun to see that energy and see the guys compete each day."

As the Tigers transition out of spring football and into summer workouts, the program appears to be in a period of steady progression. With a returning core gaining experience and a new recruiting class set to arrive, DWU now turns its attention toward integrating those pieces ahead of fall camp and the 2026 season.

"I am excited to see how this returning core helps kind of implement this new group of fresh players and this incoming class we have," Kretzschmar said. "We think we have some pretty good players in this incoming class, so I am excited to see how everything kind of integrates together and how these guys come to fall camp to get ready for the new season."