Dupree and Takini are joining forces to play in the All-Nations Football Conference next season. 

The Tigers and Skyhawks have opted to play in the football league that’s made up of tribal schools in South Dakota and Nebraska. Each member school must have at least a 50% Native American enrollment to participate in the league, which began in 2019. 

Takini was a charter member of the league in 2019, but has not fielded a football team in recent years. Dupree, which previously played football in the South Dakota High School Activities Association, began exploring options for the future of its program. 

Dupree Athletic Director Christian Christianson said the school approached Faith about a football co-op under the SDHSAA, but the Longhorns opted to remain on its own.

That left the Tigers with exploring the All-Nations Football Conference. 

“We could probably sustain the activities association football one more year,” Christianson said. “But we don’t want to be a team that plays a year and then has to forfeit the next season. So we were kind of looking at ways to gain our participation. So All-Nations became an option. We have the requirement of Native American students and Takini is looking for somebody to play football with as well.”

Christianson estimates the Dupree and Takini co-op will have about 30 players next season, and said ideally more players would join in the future. 

“All-Nations seemed like a really good option for us just for being able to participate and play,” Christianson added.

In addition to Dupree-Takini joining the league, Walthill (Nebraska) will also join next season. Omaha Nation (Nebraska) has withdrawn from the conference, giving the league 17 teams for next season. 

The league is broken down into two divisions — Class 9B and Class 9A — based on enrollment numbers. 

The 10 Class 9B teams include Crow Creek, McLaughlin, White River, Tiospa Zina, Flandreau Indian, Dupree-Takini, Lower Brule, Walthill, Marty and Crazy Horse.

The seven Class 9A teams include Todd County, Little Wound, Pine Ridge, Cheyenne-Eagle Butte/Tiospaye Topa, St. Francis, Mahpiya Luta and Winnebago (Nebraska). 

Lower Brule superintendent and All-Nations Football Conference Chairman Lance Witte said “There will be increased crossover games between divisions, with scheduling and locations prioritized to minimize travel when possible.”

Christianson is excited about possibly playing nearby Cheyenne-Eagle Butte, which is 25 miles from Dupree. He’s also looking forward to building rivalries on the football field with the other ANFC teams. 

“It will be fun to play them across the board now,” Christianson said. “We’re here at LNI (Lakota Nation Invitational) playing all these teams. We are just building the culture together.”