By Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports

The All-Your Prep Sports football team honors 25 of the top football players in the area.

The second All-Your Prep Sports team features Division I recruits, all-state selections, school record holders and state title game participants.

West High senior quarterback Evan Flitz is the 2017 offensive captain.

Flitz was named the captain of the Class 4A INA all-state team after directing West High to a 12-1 record and a second consecutive Class 4A runner-up finish.

A two-year varsity starter, Flitz was 20-4 as a starter and set career records for completions, passing yards and touchdowns.

Flitz had his best season as a senior, setting single season school records in passing yards (2,978) and touchdowns (31) and rushing for 549 yards and a team-high 10 touchdowns.

Solon senior Tyler Linderbaum is the 2017 defensive captain after leading a Solon defense that ranked among the best in Class 3A.

Linderbaum earned first team all-state honors for the second consecutive season after leading Solon to a 11-1 record and its first state semifinal appearance since 2013.

An Iowa recruit selected to play in the US Army All-American game in January, Linderbaum made 34.5 tackles from his defensive tackle spot.

Linderbaum had three tackles for loss and a sack to anchor a Solon defense that set a school record with six shutouts and held opponents to 154 yards and six points per game.

2017 All-Your Prep Sports Football Team

Offense

Quarterback: Evan Flitz, 6-1, 180, Sr., West High (Offensive Captain) – Rewrote West High’s career and single season passing records throwing for 2,978 yards and 31 touchdowns while leading the Trojans to the 4A title game for the second consecutive season.

Running Back: Isaac Vollstedt, 6-0, 200, Sr., Regina – Northwest Missouri State recruit cracked the 1,000-yard mark for the second year in a row, rushing for 1,238 and 18 touchdowns while averaging 7.7 yards per carry.

Running Back: Trumell Roberts, 6-0, 200, Sr. West High – Ran for more than 100 yards four times in the final seven games after taking over as the lead back and finished with a team-high 896 rushing yards and seven touchdowns.  

Wide Receiver: Zach Jones, 5-10., 172, Sr., City High – Set a single season school record for receptions snagging 77 passes for 1,045 yards and 10 touchdowns and also returned a punt and a kick off for a score.

Wide Receiver: Traevis Buchanan, 5-11, 170, Sr., West High – Led Class 4A in receiving yards (1,165) and touchdowns (15) on 69 receptions while establishing himself as one of the state’s top pass catchers.

Wide Receiver: Darius Moore, 6-1, 175, Sr., Clear Creek Amana – In his first season at Clear Creek Amana Moore was the Clippers’ top playmaker, catching 47 passes for 697 yards and four touchdowns while also throwing a touchdown and returning a punt for a score.

Offensive Line: Jonathan Gannon, 6-4, 245, Sr. West High – Three-year starter was an all-state pick and the anchor of the West High offensive line from his left tackle spot.

Offensive Line: Jacob Barnhart, 6-5, 300, Sr., West Branch – Earned all-state honors for the third consecutive season after helping West Branch to a 9-1 record and Class 2A playoff berth.  

Offensive Line: Steve Sehl, 6-3, 275, Sr., Regina – Versatile lineman was a force on both sides of the ball for the 1A runner-up Regals but made his mark on offense where he helped Regina average 396 yards and 34.5 points per game.

Offensive Line: Zach Wegmann, 6-1, 215, Sr., Solon – Two-year, two-way starter was a key cog on an improved Solon offensive front that helped the Spartans rush for 205 yards per game.

Offensive Line: Guy Snow, 6-1, 250, Sr., West High – Senior center helped pave the way for West High offense that averaged 196 rushing yards and better than 40 points per game.  

Kicker: Beau Cornwell, 6-1, 170, Jr., West Branch – Connected on 8-of-11 field goals, including a 42-yard game-winner at Durant, and made 28-of-29 PAT attempts.

Defense

Defensive Line: Tyler Linderbaum, 6-3, 250, Sr., Solon (Defensive Captain) – An Iowa recruit and US Army All-American Game selection, Linderbaum made 34.5 tackles including three tackles for loss and a sack to anchor one of the top defenses in Class 3A.

Defensive Line: Dillon Shephard, 6-3, 205, Sr., West High – Led West High in tackles for loss (15) and sacks (7.5) for the second straight season and closed his career with 33.5 tackles for loss and 15.5 sacks.  

Defensive Line: Cole White, 5-11, 225, Sr., Regina – Led Regina with 10 tackles for loss and nine sacks and ranked third on the team with 50.5 tackles despite missing the first three games.  

Defensive Line: Spencer Wegmann, 6-1, 190, Sr., Solon – Moved to defensive end from linebacker and led Solon with seven tackles for loss and four sacks while ranking fifth on the team with 29.5 tackles.

Linebacker: Adam Bock, 6-0, 200, Jr., Solon – First-year starter led Solon with 71.5 tackles and also intercepted two passes and recovered two fumbles, returning one of each for a touchdown.

Linebacker: Coal Flansburg, 6-2, 230, Jr., Solon – An imposing figure in the middle of a Solon defense that posted six shutouts and scored seven touchdowns. Flansburg was second on the team with 42 tackles including five tackles for loss and two sacks and returned two of his team-high three interceptions for scores.  

Linebacker: Dillon Doyle, 6-3, 215, Sr., West High – Iowa recruit was a force on a West High defense that ranked among the best in the state making 49.5 tackles including nine tackles for loss and two sacks and also recovered three fumbles.

Linebacker: Kendrick Harris, 6-0, 205, Sr., Solon – A versatile player that rushed for 920 yards and 10 touchdowns, Harris was even more valuable to the Spartans at outside linebacker where he made 23 tackles, had a sack and recovered a fumble.

Defensive Back: Jacob Graves, 5-9, 170 Sr., West Branch – An all-state defensive back for the second year in a row after making 30 tackles and picking off two passes Graves also had a team-high 48 receptions for 588 yards and four scores and rushed for 612 yards and eight touchdowns.

Defensive Back: Jake Phillips, 6-0, 200, Sr., Regina – Phillips made plays all over the field for Regina including on defense where he ranked fifth on the team with 39.5 tackles and picked off two passes. 5th with 39.5 tackles.  

Defensive Back: Cole Mabry, 6-2, 190, Jr., West High – Already a two-year starter Mabry had his best season yet as a junior ranking second on the team with 56.5 tackles including 3.5 for loss and recovering a fumble and picking off a pass.

Defensive Back: Michael Conlon, 5-10, 175, Sr., Regina – Was well known for leading the Regina offense at quarterback but was a key in the Regina secondary making 20.5 tackles and recovering two fumbles.

Punter: Bryce Hunger, 6-2, 191, Sr., City High – Senior did it all for the Little Hawks including on special teams where he averaged 36.7 yards on 22 punts.