Prep Redzone Presents: 2020 Class 1A All-State Team

OABCIG’s [player_tooltip player_id="23817" first="Cooper" last="DeJean"] not only put himself and his team on the map this year, he made a name for himself nationally. DeJean, who led the Falcons to a second consecutive unbeaten campaign capped by another state title, earned All-American honors. So, his placement on the Prep Redzone Class 1A All-State Team was an easy one. <strong>OFFENSE</strong> <strong>Quarterback</strong> <em>[player_tooltip player_id="23817" first="Cooper" last="DeJean"], OABCIG (2021)</em> If you missed either of the past two state semifinal and championship games involving OABCIG, shame on you. One of the all-time great players, [player_tooltip player_id="23817" first="Cooper" last="DeJean"], put on a show for four games, leading the Falcons to back-to-back unbeaten state titles. DeJean, who is headed to the University of Iowa, racked up 62 touchdowns and almost 5,000 all-purpose yards. He was also a standout on defense and special teams. <em>Just an incredibly gifted athlete who excels in all phases of the game. DeJean will be a special, special talent for the Hawkeyes moving forward. </em> <strong>Running Backs</strong> <em>Trevor Thompson, South Hamilton (2021); [player_tooltip player_id="23999" first="Dalten" last="Van Pelt"], Van Meter (2022)</em> For South Hamilton’s Trevor Thompson, defenses knew he was getting the ball play after play after play. It didn’t stop him from picking up over 1,300 yards and scoring 17 touchdowns. Same held true for [player_tooltip player_id="23999" first="Dalten" last="Van Pelt"], as the talented Van Meter junior reached the 2,000-yard mark with 21 TDs. <em>Thompson is more of the between the tackles type runner who also excels on defense. Van Pelt offers breakaway speed and is also a talent on the defensive side.</em> <strong>Wide Receivers</strong> <em><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-67462" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2020/11/Capture-300x197.jpg" alt="[player_tooltip player_id="23977" first="Griffin" last="Greiner"]" width="300" height="197" /></em> <em>[player_tooltip player_id="23962" first="Easton" last="Harms"], OABCIG (2022); [player_tooltip player_id="23877" first="Brayden" last="Wollan"], Underwood (2021); [player_tooltip player_id="23977" first="Griffin" last="Greiner"], Cardinal (2022)</em> Over the past two years, [player_tooltip player_id="23962" first="Easton" last="Harms"] has transitioned into the No. 1 receiver role for [player_tooltip player_id="23817" first="Cooper" last="DeJean"] and OABCIG. The Class of 2022 prospect hauled in 64 passes for almost 1,100 yards, scoring 16 touchdowns. [player_tooltip player_id="23877" first="Brayden" last="Wollan"] averaged over 17 yards per catch, constantly stretching defenses. [player_tooltip player_id="23977" first="Griffin" last="Greiner"] was not only a top talent at WR for Cardinal with 35 catches for 652 yards and 10 scores, he was a top tackler out of the secondary. <em>Harms and Greiner have another year to show even more development. Expect both players to take that next step as seniors next fall. </em> <strong>Offensive Line</strong> <em>Lincoln Olsen, Van Meter (2022); Zach Smithart, Sigourney-Keota (2022); Colton Willis, South Hamilton (2021); Carson Pibal, South Central Calhoun (2021); Alex Buser, Waterloo Columbus (2021)</em> All five members of the offensive line mentioned here above were key components to high-octane offenses that constantly racked up yards, points and wins. <strong>Utility</strong> <em>Sam Sieren, Sigourney-Keota (2021)</em> Sigourney-Keota put the ball in the hands of Sam Sieren each Friday night, and the senior delivered with over 1,700 yards and 25 touchdowns. <em>Speed, size and power all comes to mind when describing what Sieren can do.</em> <strong>DEFENSE</strong> <strong>Defensive Line</strong> <em>[player_tooltip player_id="23944" first="Aaron" last="Graves"], Southeast Valley (2022); Sam Vonnahme, Interstate 35 (2021); Ted Weber, Cascade (2021); Casey Trudo, Van Meter (2022)</em> Southeast Valley’s [player_tooltip player_id="23944" first="Aaron" last="Graves"] is one of the top players in the Class of 2022, and the dominating force showed that. Graves recorded 8.5 sacks and 18.5 tackles for loss this past fall. Sam Vonnahme of Interstate 35 had eight sacks and 14 tackles for loss with Ted Weber and Casey Trudo each registering 7.5 sacks and 37 combined tackles for loss. <em>All four of these guys constantly got after the quarterback, causing fits for the offenses throughout the fall. </em> <strong>Linebackers</strong> <em>[player_tooltip player_id="24020" first="Dallas" last="Westhoff"], Waterloo Columbus (2022); Brennan Holder, South Central Calhoun (2021); Kaleb Brouwer, Dike-New Hartford (2021)</em> All three of these linebackers were dominating forces who captained the defensive units. [player_tooltip player_id="24020" first="Dallas" last="Westhoff"] had over 106 tackles including 15.5 for loss; Brennan Holder was not only a big-time player on defense, but also carrying the ball for the Titans; and Kaleb Brouwer constantly made big plays. <strong>Secondary</strong> <em>[player_tooltip player_id="23868" first="Brady" last="Duwa"], Sigourney-Keota (2021); Ben Dunlap, Emmetsburg (2021); Alex Feldmann, Waterloo Columbus (2021)</em> Eighteen total interceptions from [player_tooltip player_id="23868" first="Brady" last="Duwa"], Ben Dunlap and Alex Feldmann. The three helped change the direction of several games with their ability to force turnovers. <strong>Utility</strong> [caption id="attachment_64730" align="alignnone" width="300"]<img class="size-medium wp-image-64730" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2020/10/Ej8PS5BWAAABM-i-300x197.jpg" alt="Blake McAlister" width="300" height="197" /> Photo: Emma Anderson <a href="https://www.thegraphic-advocate.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Graphic-Advocate</a>[/caption] &nbsp; <em>Blake McAlister, South Central Calhoun (2022)</em> Along with racking up over 1,300 yards and 15 touchdowns, Blake McAlister was causing havoc on defense with 13.5 tackles for loss and 58 stops. <em>McAlister is going to have a huge senior year as he looks to follow in the footsteps of several recent South Central Calhoun grads who went on to play at the next level.</em> <strong>SPECIALISTS</strong> <strong>Kicker/Punter</strong> <em>Simon Wagner, Carroll Kuemper (2021); Bryce Griffin, Hudson (2021)</em> Carroll Kuemper’s Simon Wagner missed just two extra points on the year while also connecting on seven field goals. He was a game-changer in the special teams. Same for Hudson’s Bryce Griffin, who posted an average of 39.5 yards per kick.