Submitted Photo Offensive lineman DJ Schneibel (69) in action during the 2023-2024 season will be a senior for Minot State University for the 2024-2025 season this fall. Photo submitted by Sean Arbaut.

When you are from a town of fewer than 3,000 people, it helps to belong to the clan that has championships as the family tree and heritage.

“My dad was the state champion in the shot put in his day,” said DJ Schneibel, offensive lineman for Minot State University. “I was the state champion my junior year at heavyweight in wrestling. We like to kid each other about who had the better state championship run.”

Schneibel comes from Rugby where he was one of 38 in his graduating class. His parents are also both Rugby alumni and his four younger brothers are keeping the trend alive. Cole is a junior at Valley City State University, Brody is a freshman at Minot State, Austin is a senior at Rugby High School and Zach is the youngest as a freshman for the home town Panthers.

“We grew up doing everything locally with the sports,” said Schneibel. “Besides football and wrestling, we competed in the throwing events in track and field. When we had free time, as a family we would hunt, fish and camp.”

Schneibel credits the coaches in Rugby with preparing him for athletic success at the next level of play- and his father, David.

“I would lift with my dad early in my youth,” said Schneibel. “That habit of working hard to get physically ready for each sport came from my time with him. That helped a lot when I got here [MSU] and solidified the idea that success and opportunities come from lifting and taking the diet seriously.”

Scneibel’s mother, Nicole, is not there to cook all his meals for him now.

What is ever present though, is the desire to excel at whatever he is working on at the moment. During the 2021-2022 season, Schneibel was named to the Fall 2021 NSIC All-Academic Team of Excellence and Named to the Spring 2022 President’s List at MSU.

In the 2022-2023 season, he repeated by being named to the Fall 2022 NSIC All-Academic Team of Excellence and both Fall 2022 and Spring 2023 President’s List at MSU. He also was named to the College Sports Communicators Academic All-District Team.

This previous season, Schneibel was one of 16 MSU athletes named as NSIC Myles Brand All-Academic with Distinction Award winners, the highest academic award from the NSIC for top student-athletes.

“It is one of the main reasons I enjoy being here [at MSU],” said Schneibel. “This team has students who want to improve and be successful at whatever we are doing. We want to become better athletes, win games and be better students as well. We are here to support each other.”

That support goes beyond the gridiron teammates. Schneibel credits fellow athletes and coaches with support across the campus for all the teams and sports involved. The fact that he is close to home for his family to attend games was an initial selling point on attending MSU. Meeting like-minded athletes that come from across the states has added to the draw.

“The brotherhood and closeness that comes from shared goals and commitment is what keeps me here for sure,” said Schneibel. I have friends from California, Minnesota and other states that I would never have met without being here.”

Schneibel is a History Education and Physical Education major with plans of coaching at the university, college or high school level at some point.

“I would like to keep playing as long as possible,” said Schneibel. “When I injured my knee, the realization that playing would come to an end at some point did help me focus on being an even better student and I look forward to the future, whatever level of coaching that includes.”

He wouldn’t be surprised to end up back in Rugby at some point to continue the trend of success by giving back as a coach.