Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports

With four area teams reaching the postseason some of the best football in the state was once again played within the Your Prep Sports area.

For the third year in a row Your Prep Sports honors some of the top players in the area for their efforts this season.  

The third annual All-Your Prep Sports team features 25 of the top area players and includes Division I recruits, all-state and all-district sections and school record breakers.

West High senior receiver Jalen Gaudet is the 2018 offensive captain.

The 6-foot-2, 225-pound Gaudet became the third player in West High history with 1,000 receiving yards in a single season, ranking 19th in the state with 1,061 yards on 37 receptions.

Gaudet averaged 28.7 yards per catch, tops in the state among players with more than 25 receptions and had 10 touchdowns.

West High senior defensive tackle Landon Green is the 2018 defensive captain.

Green led West High in tackles from his nose guard spot, collecting 52.5 stops including a team-high 31 solos.

The 5-foot-9, 210-pound Green ranked second in Class 4A with 25.5 tackles for loss and 9.5 sacks.

2018 All-Your Prep Sports Football Team

Offense

Quarterback: Beau Cornwell, 6-2, 185, Sr., West Branch – Set single-season school records with 2,152 passing yards and 25 touchdowns while leading Class 1A with a 66.8 completion percentage.

Running Back: Tonka Hickman, 5-10, 180, Jr., City High – Had four 100-yard games in his first season as the lead back for the Little Hawks rushing for a team-high 832 yards and seven touchdowns.

Running Back: Tanner Lukavsky, 6-2, 210, Jr., West Branch – Emerged as one of the top backs in Class 1A rushing for 1,309 yards and 18 touchdowns while averaging a 1A-best 10.2 yards per carry and added 27 receptions for 358 yards and three touchdowns.

Wide Receiver: Jalen Gaudet, 6-2, 225, Sr., West High – The latest in a growing list of standout receivers at West High Gaudet become the third receiver in program history to crack 1,000 yards with 37 receptions for 1,061 yards and 10 touchdowns while averaging a 4A best 28.7 yards per catch.

Wide Receiver: Alec Wick, 6-1, 175, Soph., Regina – Despite a quarterback carousel that saw Regina start three different players behind center Wick emerged as a consistent pass catching weapon making at least five receptions in seven games and posting 75 or more yards six times and finishing with 59 receptions for 746 yards and two touchdowns.

Wide Receiver: AJ Coons, 6-3, 190, Jr., Solon – Ranked third in Class 3A in touchdown grabs with 12 during a breakthrough season that included career highs in catches (48) and yards (815).

Tight end: Liam McComas, 6-0, 205, Sr., City High – After moving from tackle to tight end after three games ranked second on the team with 19 receptions and 256 yards and had at least four receptions in four of six games.

Offensive Line: Ian Gluesing, 6-3, 235, Sr., West High – A two-time all-district pick Gluesing was the leader on a West High offensive line that helped the Trojans go 21-3 over the past two seasons.

Offensive Line: Drake Bloem, 6-0, 250, Sr., West Branch – A stalwart up front on both sides of the ball Bloem anchored a Bear offensive line that paved the way for West Branch to average 353 total yards and 38.1 points per game.

Offensive Line: Luke Stein, 6-2, 245, Sr., Regina – Stein was a pivotal piece of the Regal defensive line with a team-high five sacks but did some of his best work on offense as the leader of a young offensive line.

Offensive Line: Jonah Upah, 6-1, 254, Sr., Clear Creek Amana – The Clippers found an identity as a power run team and Upah was a big reason for the success earning first-team all-district honors as the anchor of an offensive line that paved the way for 200 rushing yards per game.

Offensive Line: Rocky Lensing, 6-1, 275, Sr., Solon – Lensing led a Solon offensive front that helped the Spartans average 38 points and 343 total yards per game.

Kicker: Josh Jasek, 6-0, 160, Sr., West High – Converted 45-of-46 PATs, was 9-of-11 on field goal attempts with a long of 43 and had 21 of 71 kick offs go for touchbacks.

Defense

Defensive Line: T.J. Bollers, 6-4, 228, Soph., Clear Creek Amana – The highly sought after Bollers showed his sky-high potential as a sophomore ranking fourth on the team with 45.5 tackles including a team-leading 13 for loss and four sacks.

Defensive Line: Landon Green, 5-9, 210, Sr., West High – One of the top defensive linemen in the state, Green was almost unblockable as a senior with 25.5 of his team-high 52.5 tackles coming behind the line of scrimmage including a team-high 9.5 sacks.

Defensive Line: Dalyn Pedersen, 6-1, 220, Jr., West Branch – Had a team-high 14.5 tackles for loss and three sacks from his defensive end position in a breakthrough season in which Pedersen finished fifth on the team with 42 tackles.  

Linebacker: Max Tafolla, 6-0, 205, Soph., Liberty High –Tafolla impressed in his first season of varsity action leading Liberty High with 76 tackles, 13.5 tackles for loss and three sacks.

Linebacker: Adam Bock, 6-0, 215, Sr., Solon – South Dakota State recruit had a team-high 74.5 tackles including 47 solo stops and also rushed for 644 yards and 10 touchdowns.  

Linebacker: Coal Flansburg, 6-1, 235, Sr., Solon – Iowa State recruit ranked second on the team with 46.5 tackles including three for loss and a sack and recovered two fumbles.

Linebacker: Owen McAreavy, 6-2, 220, Sr., West High – Ranked second on the team with 49 tackles including 12.5 for loss and two sacks.

Linebacker: Andrew Rohret, 5-10, 170, Sr., Clear Creek Amana – Rohret grabbed headlines at quarterback, accounting for 1,995 total yards and 27 touchdowns, but was even more valuable at linebacker where he ranked second on the team with 52 tackles including eight for loss and four sacks with two interceptions and two fumble recoveries.

Defensive Back: Max DePrenger, 5-10, 155, Sr., City High – Led City High in tackles for the second consecutive season finishing with 75 total tackles including 60 solo stops which ranked fifth among Class 4A defenders.

Defensive Back: Cole Mabry, 6-2, 195, Sr., West High – Army recruit had 29 solo stops among his 47 tackles and finished his career as a three-year starter with 167 tackles

Defensive Back: Noah Aanestad, 6-0, 180, Sr., West High – In his first season as a starter in the Trojan secondary Aanestad showed a knack for making the big play picking off a team-best four pass and recovering two fumbles while making 24.5 tackles.

Punter: Marcus Morgan, 6-2, 165, Soph., West High – Averaged 39.1 yards on 38 punts and had a school-record 68 yarder against Cedar Rapids Kennedy.