Bison linebacker fired after gun incident – InForum

FARGO — Linebacker Jaiden Pickett's football career at North Dakota State lasted just one game. The redshirt freshman was dismissed from the team Saturday night following a shooting incident in North Fargo.

Bison head coach Tim Polasek and athletic director Matt Larsen issued the following statement through the school's sports information office:

“Being a student-athlete at NDSU is a privilege that comes with the expectation to positively represent the team and university while being a responsible member of our community. After learning the facts surrounding Jaiden's arrest, we have concluded that he violated our Student-Athlete Code of Conduct and will no longer be a member of the Bison football program. We appreciate the work of the Fargo Police Department in this matter.”

Pickett was arrested in connection with the shooting and sentenced to prison on three serious felony charges: terrorizing with a dangerous weapon, reckless endangerment, extreme indifference in the handling of a dangerous weapon, and theft of a weapon – possession of a firearm.

The incident has been a rarity in the Bisons' football program since their Division I dynasty began with the 2011 FCS national championship. The last notable player to be ejected was Desmond Cain, a backup wide receiver in 2018 during a December playoff run.

Pickett was an inactive player last season and did not play in a game. He played in the second half Saturday of a 52-3 afternoon rout of Tennessee State at Gate City Bank Field in the Fargodome. The incident in question occurred that night, and officers were dispatched just before 1 a.m. Sunday.

According to police, a gun was fired into a house after an argument, but no one was injured.

Pickett was a highly rated recruit out of Riverside University High School in Milwaukee, rated two-star by Rivals.com. He was named an All-State selection as a defensive back and held offers from Illinois State, North Dakota, Northern Iowa and South Dakota State.

Jeff would like to dispel the notion that he was around when Johannes Gutenberg invented the printing press, but he has been a reporter for Forum Communications for three decades. The son of a reporter and an English teacher, and brother of a reporter, Jeff has worked for the Jamestown Sun, Bismarck Tribune and, since 1990, The Forum, where he has covered North Dakota State athletics since 1995.
Jeff has covered all nine of NDSU's Division I FCS national football titles and has written three books: “Horns Up,” “North Dakota Tough” and “Covid Kids.” He is the radio host of “The Golf Show with Jeff Kolpack” from April through August.