Success on the field . . . and the mat

Sports specialization has become more and more the norm in the years I have been covering high school sports. Whether that is a good or bad thing is a debate for another day. One thing I am confident in, however, is that the percentage multi-sport athletes has gone down. With kids around the nation specializing, one sport, football, is one of the games where specializing is not always needed. I have talked to dozens of football coaches, and they tell me football is one sport most kids don't have to specialize to play at an elite level. The skills in the sport are varied enough and benefit from the other skills athletes learn in other sports. Below I highlight the top-ranked players in NFN's Class of 2019 who also are successful wrestlers. All the rising seniors are currently ranked in NFN's top-150 prospects and ended the wrestling season ranked in the top ten in their weight class by The Guillotine – a publication that has covered Minnesota wrestling for over 30 years. <strong>Bryce Benhart – Lakeville North OL,  NFN No. 2 in 2019 – ended the season ranked No. 4 at 285AAA</strong> In addition to being one of the best football players in the state of Minnesota, Benhart has had success on a state and national level on the mat. Along with the high school season – in which he was 42-7 and finished fourth at the state tournament, Benhart has competed in national tournaments in the Greco-Roman style of wrestling. Like in football Benhart uses his length and athletic ability against his opponents. <strong>Hunter Koenig – Prior Lake TE NFN No. 75, ranked No. 7 at 220AAA</strong> Koenig plays football similarly to how he wrestles. He is a physical run blocker who is light on his feet when getting to the second level or when pass blocking. While he didn't place in the 2018 individual tournament, he compiled a record of 28-5 and went 2-2 at State as a junior. <strong>Christian Kurth – Hutchinson LB NFN No. 80, ranked No. 10 at 182AA</strong> Kurth took second place at the Section 2AA individual tournament to qualify for the state tournament. Although his State run ended after two losses, he accumulated a 43-8 record. Good at shedding blocks against bigger players, Kurth has a knack for forcing fumbles – I counted three on film – and he is a physical blocker and runner from the fullback position. He has speed for as physical as he is – evident from his 95-yard touchdown run. <strong>Logan Nelson – Litchfield RB NFN No. 149, ranked No. 3 at 160AA</strong> Nelson is a powerful upper body wrestler who likes to throw his opponents. He used that upper body strength to roll to a 40-3 record before struggling in the state tournament. Nelson's running style is like his wrestling style – coming right at you with a physical style. <strong>Dalton Andrist – Kasson-Mantorville ATH, NFN No. 154, ranked No. 6 at 160AA</strong> Andrist competes in all three wrestling styles – folk style, Greco, and freestyle. He competes at a national level on the mat, and during the high school season he put together a 32-8 record and qualified for the state tournament as an individual and helped the KoMets win the team title in Class AA. On the football field, he has the speed to get to the edge on a sweep and the quickness to cover receivers or return punts. <strong>Luke Parzyck – White Bear Lake OL, NFN No. 169, ranked No. 10 at 220AAA</strong> Parzyck keeps his hips low and has good feet as an interior lineman. He is a two-time state entrant on the wrestling mat compiling a 45-12 record with 20 pins as a junior. <strong>Carson Huls – Pierz DL, NFN No. 204, ranked No. 7 195AA</strong> Huls finished his junior season on the mat with a 37-10 record including a 2-2 record at the state tournament. His wrestling skills are on full display on the football field as well. Huls is small for a defensive tackle, but his quickness off the ball, explosive tackling style and ability to use his hands to get off blocks made him a problem for offensive linemen in 2017. <strong>James Johnson – Minnetonka OL, NFN No. 225, ranked No. 8 285AAA</strong> Johnson has a physical upper body style of wrestling that he used to place in the Christmas Tournament, one of the state's biggest in-season individual tournaments. It also landed the junior a spot in the state tournament where he finished the weekend with a 1-2 record. On the football field – much like the wrestling mat Johnson uses superior upper body strength to maul his opponents. At the guard position, he has good feet and can pull around the corner or up the hole with similar ease. <strong>Reese Kapsner – Pierz ATH, NFN No. 142, ranked No. 8 at 160AA</strong> Kapsner notched his one hundredth career win on the mat early in his junior season and would go on to a third-place finish at the section tournament – falling one victory short of making the state tournament. On the football field, Kapsner helped make the Pioneers' running game – both by carrying the ball and as a lead blocker – one of the best in the state. The dominant running game – and Kapsner's 128 yards rushing and three rushing touchdowns in the title game helped lead the Pioneers to a state championship in 3A last season.