Sitting Bull Hills for gold and to determine a suitable location for a military fort in the Hills. Custer's announcement of gold in the Black Hills triggered the Black Hills Gold Rush. Tensions increased between the Lakota and whites seeking to move into the Black Hills. Although Sitting Bull did not attack Custer's expedition in 1874, the US government was increasingly pressured by citizens to open the Black Hills to mining and settlement. Failing in an attempt to negotiate a purchase or lease of the Hills, the government in Washington had to find a way around the promise to protect the Sioux
Sitting Bull Trophy Missouri Valley Football Conference following the demise of Great West Conference football in 2011. 2012 also marked the first year the two teams did not play each other since the 1940s, when World War II interrupted the rivalry, however they both played each other in 2016 and 2017 in non-conference play. The two teams have met 96 times on the football field, with North Dakota currently holding a 61–30–5 edge in the all-time series. North Dakota will join the Missouri Valley Football Conference in 2020 which will renew the annual rivalry. Sitting Bull Trophy The Sitting Bull Trophy is the