Sports bring cousins Isaac Fruechte, Eli King back together

GRAND FORKS — One of Isaac Fruechte’s first stops in Grand Forks was the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center, where he caught a UND men’s basketball game with Fighting Hawks football coach Bubba Schweigert.

Fruechte, UND’s offensive coordinator who was hired Jan. 28, 2024, sat in a corner section with other coaches.

“For whatever reason, I just looked over to my right,” he said, “and I saw my grandma and my grandma’s sister and Susan, Eli (King’s) mom.”

They were there to watch Eli King, a guard for UND and Fruechte’s first cousin.

“I was like, ‘Holy crap. I know you guys,’” Fruechte said. “I went over and started talking to them. It just was really strange, because it was early news for me being introduced out here, and I had no idea that anybody would be out here.”

Fruechte said it’s been “cool and fun” to work at the same university his cousin is playing at. The two are busy balancing their own sports schedules, but they’ve spent time together away from sports.

“I’ve been to his house a couple times already for dinner, with his family and his boys,” King said. “It’s been good just to have someone you know, and we can talk about something completely different from basketball or football. Just talk about life and family back home and things like that.”

The pair, who grew up in Caledonia, Minn., and both played football for Fruechte’s dad Carl, have made it easy on family who want to visit.

“You get to see grandma and grandpa come up, and you get to see aunts and uncles come up and watch him play and be around,” Fruechte said. “I just get to be a fly on the wall and be a fan for it, because he’s a special kid. I’m just lucky enough to be put in this situation. I’m fortunate to be able to watch him play, because he’s a great kid and he’s a great player.”

It’s only fitting for sports to have brought King and Fruechte to the same school, because a love of sports runs through the family.

King will eventually follow in his cousin, uncle and dad’s footsteps and become a coach.

“Sports mean a lot,” King said. “Coming from Caledonia, a small town, I think that’s what a lot of kids just get into, and that’s what they do with their free time. For me, it was basketball and football for the most part. Sports as a whole can teach you a lot of things, and it also helps you make a lot of friends. Just for us in Caledonia, it’s a huge part of a lot of kids’ lives, just growing up all the way through high school.”

Now, UND’s green and black is popping up in Caledonia, thanks to Fruechte, King and UND football defensive lineman Casey Schultz, who’s also from there.

“Five, six years ago you wouldn’t have thought you’d have this many UND fans in Caledonia,” King said. “It’s crazy how you have three people who ended up here now. Everyone’s watching from afar. I know I’ve already met a few people who came up to games that aren’t family members, so that’s been cool to see them make the trip up for a weekend.”