Led by sixth-year head coach Bubba Schweigert, they played their home games at the Alerus Center.

They received an at-large bid to the FCS Playoffs, where they would lose to Nicholls in the first round.

The Fighting Hawks left the Big Sky Conference in 2018 to join the non-football Summit League, with the football program joining the Missouri Valley Football Conference in 2020.

Although being classified as an independent for football in 2018 and 2019, they continued to play a full Big Sky schedule, and their games counted in the conference standings for their opponents.

[1][2] The Fighting Hawks were selected for the postseason tournament, with a first-round pairing against Nicholls.