Standeford heads to next level at Western
Montana Western bound Darren Standeford prepares to unleash the discus during the 2025 Divisional track and field championship this past season. Standeford signed a track scholarship offer from Western this past week. (File photo)
College recruiters are not just looking for the best player at the best position.
The recruiting game is more and more a matter of getting the best bang for the buck when offering to pay for all or part of a young student athletes' four-year education.
Value is increasingly as important as talent.
That being said, Western Montana College in Dillon may have found the ultimate in talent and value in the presence of Plains High graduate Darren Standeford.
Throughout his time at Plains as a member of the Horsemen sports teams, Standeford emerged as a leader with talent to spare, no matter the sport.
And he has maintained his standing as one of the top students at the school along the way.
After mulling over several offers, Standeford, a standout in track, football and basketball, announced he has accepted a scholarship to Western, a magnet for area players in recent years.
“I really like the coaching staff and the players I met on my visit,” Standeford said. “The people there are so kind and encouraging. The coaching staff seems to be all in when it comes to developing not only athletes but people”.
Standeford said he plans to major in elementary education at Western on a track and field scholarship.
He also had offers from Rocky Mountain College in Billings to throw the javelin for the Bears and was offered a walk-on opportunity as a decathlete.
Standeford was the starting quarterback for Plains’ resurgent football team and was the starting point guard and floor leader for the Horsemen round ballers.
He has exceptional speed and quickness and is deceptively strong, as evident by his javelin and shot-put results from this past season.
Standeford is one of the last players to sign this past season. The Bulldogs, who play in the NAIA Frontier League, have signed several top names from this area in the past few years, including all-state football players Caleb Ball (St. Regis) and Kyle Lawson (Hot Springs). Earlier, state champion and new Class C high jump record holder Ricky Williams (Noxon) signed with Montana Tech, another of the Frontier schools with solid representation from Sanders/Mineral Counties.