PrepRedzone Minnesota's Heroes of Week 3

Minnesota's Week 3 was a good one! Years-long win streak's snapped, underclassmen Heroes stepping into the spotlight, new names making their mark on the 2025 season, and the almost-comeback of the season all went down from International Falls to Albert Lea last week. As we speed headfirst into the midway point of the 2025 regular season, let's take one final look back at what was a memorable Week 3 in the Land of 10,000 Lakes, as well as a quick peak at the PRZMN Games of the Week for Week 4. Within the best games and most notable results of the week, prospects and players rose to the occasion, stepped into the spotlight, and made the moment their own, putting their teams on their backs and turning the tide in favor of their squad for a Week 3 victory. Get to know our Game Heroes below!   --   Hero of Week 3:   Mankato East 28, Mankato West 7   The winds of change have blown their way across the 507, and after 19 years, the Kato Jug is back at Mankato East High School. I thought this monumental rivalry could shift tides last year, thanks to a loaded Cougars, but the 2025 roster turned out to be the team to be the heroes. A proper thumping of their crosstown rivals led this Cougars squad to glory in Minnesota's Week 3, 28-7 in fact, behind strong days from sophomore QB and Hero [player_tooltip player_id='1581375' first='Kellen' last='Willaert'] (12-19 for 131 yards and 3 TDs) and junior RB Blake Kamphof (20 carries for 139 yards, 2 catches for 33 yards and a TD), as well as four sacks from four different Cougars on the defensive end, dowsed any hope of a Scarlets comeback. I'm especially impressed by Willaert, a sophomore and first-year starter, who PRZMN just broke down on a Sophomore Special yesterday on the site, as he's been accurate and safe with the football through three weeks of varsity action. This was the biggest game of Willaert's life, but only so far, as the undefeated Cougars meet Chanhassen at the Storm's house in two weeks. 5A is fun this year, folks.   Hero: [player_tooltip player_id='1581375' first='Kellen' last='Willaert'] (Mankato East) 2028. QB. 6'1, 165 lbs.   Honorable Mention: [player_tooltip player_id='1248618' first='Blake' last='Kamphoff'] (Mankato East) 2027. RB. 5'10, 190 lbs.   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/kellen_willaert/status/1966925872947966144 </div></figure>   Kasson-Mantorville 21, Stewartville 18   Unfortunately, Stewartville's 30-game win streak, which included two Minnesota Class 3A state titles and more dominant victories than you could count, has come to an end. After racing out of the gates to a 2-0 start in their inaugural season in Class 4A, the always-tough Kasson-Mantorville Komets overcame a roaring Tigers comeback from a 21-12 deficit to hold Stewartville scoreless for the last 10 minutes of the 4th quarter and squeak out a 3-point victory. Stewie came into the contest averaging over 266 yards rushing a game, but the physical and fiesty Komets managed to hold the Tigers to only 90 rushing yards as a team, with star senior RB [player_tooltip player_id='1602765' first='Malik' last='Abdi'] only mustering 61 yards off 31 carries on Friday night. Enter our Game Hero Griffin Grover, who had a monster defensive effort from his DL spot, totaling 10 tackles and 2 sacks for his Komets, leading his defense in both categories. St. Thomas commit Jeremiah Peterson-Gordon also balled out, tallying 18 carries for 105 yards as a splash-play RB while adding a tackle on defense as well. Don't count Stewie out though, friends, the Tigers are 50-7 since 2000, with multiple double-digit win streaks occurring after almost every one of the Tigers loss. I know they're up a class in 2025, but this is a team with culture and discipline. Don't bet against them.   Hero: Griffin Grover (Kasson-Mantorville) 2026. DL/OL. 6', 245 lbs. - 10 tackles, 2 sacks   Honorable Mention: Jeremiah Peterson-Gordon (Kasson-Mantorville) 2026. ATH. 5'10, 200 lbs. Committed to St. Thomas   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/ggrover75/status/1967744560303575302 </div></figure>   Lakeville South 28, Lakeville North 12   One of the fiercest rivalries in the state, crosstown rivals Lakeville North and Lakeville South put their annual rivalry on the line in Minnesota's Week 3. With the 6A heavyweight matchup sitting at 14-12 in favor of the home team Cougars going into the 4th, South pulled away in the final quarter of the ball game thanks to a fantastic rushing effort by senior [player_tooltip player_id='482343' first='Nic' last='Swanson']. His 47-yard touch scamper with 11:25 in the ball game could have been the nail in the coffin, but he added a cherry on top with a 5-yard TD push with 4:39 left in the ball game to seal the win. South is 4-1 in this rivalry since 2020, and Swanson is one of the most underrated senior tailback recruits in the state.   Hero: [player_tooltip player_id='482343' first='Nic' last='Swanson'] (Lakeville South) 2026. RB. 6', 200 lbs. - 13 carries for 89 yards and 4 TDs   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/LSHSCougarsFB/status/1966683242074952067 </div></figure>   Academy of Holy Angels 20, Robbinsdale Cooper 14   A Class 4A (AHA) vs. Class 5A (Cooper) matchup between first-ring Minneapolis suburbs, Holy Angels and Robbinsdale Cooper came down to a one-score game in a tail of two halves. The first half was all the home team, as Cooper stormed out of the games to a 14-0 lead going into the half thanks to two first quarter pitch & catches from 2027 Beckham VanVoorst to 2026 Bemidji State WR commit Sema'j Young. However, whatever adjustments and motivational speeches went down for the Stars at halftime worked, as Holy Angels rattled off three straight scores between the two remaining quarters of the ball game thanks to a couple clutch intermediate passing TDs from senior QB Aidan Nygren to utility two-way standout [player_tooltip player_id='1120537' first='Gavin' last='Coughlin'], our Hero of the Game, but he was backed by a relentless Holy Angels defense that forced three turnovers and two sacks and were led on the tackle front by mega senior sleeper [player_tooltip player_id='1629197' first='Will' last='Souba'], a 6'2, 220 lber. who plays on both sides of the ball for the Stars and has a knack for the finding football. NSIC schools need to pay attention to this 2026er. The Stars are hanging tough at 2-1 with their lone loss of the season coming to Class 4A #1 ranked Byron, while Cooper sadly drops to 0-3 going into the midway point of the regular season.   Hero: [player_tooltip player_id='1120537' first='Gavin' last='Coughlin'] (Holy Angels) 2026. RB/DB/ATH. - 3 receptions for 52 yards and 2 TDs, 2 rushes for 11 yards, 2 tackles, 1 FF   Honorable Mention: [player_tooltip player_id='1629197' first='Will' last='Souba'] (Holy Angels) 2026. TE/OLB. 6'2, 220 lbs. - 16 tackles (14 solo), 1 sack, 1 FF, 1 INT   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/Gavin_Coughlin2/status/1968149593054663130 </div></figure>   Rochester Mayo 27, New Prague 24   Rochester Mayo, after dropping back down to 5A after a moderately successful two-year run in Class 6A with the Big Boys, finally earned their first win of the season in a dramatic 27-24 takedown of 507 rival New Prague in the waning seconds of the 4th quarter at Trojan Stadium. A back-and-forth battle between the Spartans and Trojans that saw the home squad New Prague climb back from a 24-9 deficit thanks to all three phases of the roster. In fact, both side's special teams had good days, as New Prague's standout 2026 specialist [player_tooltip player_id='1492966' first='Thomas' last='Geiger'] nailed a 45-yard FG in the 2nd quarter, which may be the longest in the state so far, but it wasn't enough for the hosting Trojans to sneak past the Spartans. After a TD run by New Prague's Tim Washtock and a successful 2pt conversion pass from QB Carter Denhartog knotted the game up at 24, Mayo stormed down the field thanks to senior QB Isaac Peterson, setting up their freshman kicker for what was the biggest athletic moment of his young life. The first-year specialist won't be forgetting this one anytime soon!   Hero: [player_tooltip player_id='1902781' first='Miles' last='Ties'] (Mayo) 2029. Kicker. 6', 145 lbs. - 34-yard, game-winning, go-ahead FG with 17 seconds left in the ball game. Also successfully kicked a 32-yard FG with no time remaining at the first half.   Rocori 15, Hutchinson 14   Tougher year for Hutchinson, but the Tigers are still 1-2 after last week's loss to Rocori, so it's more of a testament to the tradition of success Hutch has built and that we're used to seeing from the Tigers. However, they were a score away from walking out of Week 3 with a hard-fought, thrilling victory over Rocori, but it wasn't meant to be. Rocori's 2026 QB Max Fredin - one of the better new QB names and surprises from the 2025 season - leaned on his legs as opposed to his arm - and had a dynamic day on the stat sheet to push his Spartans over the finish line for a good Week 3 W. With Hutch up 14-7 through the middle of the 4th quarter, Fredin engineered a heckvua offensive drive, and he capped the own drive by calling his own number for a 17-yard TD scamper, after which the impressively-athletic three-phase senior [player_tooltip player_id='1576392' first='Caleb' last='Maddox'] ran the 2pt conversion in to take the lead. Gutsy call there by the Rocori coaching staff. The Spartans defense held strong, bringing their 2025 campaign to a 2-1 mark. These Spartans have some poise.   Hero: Max Fredin (Rocori) 2026. QB. 6'2, 185 lbs. 13-21 for 101 yards passing, 23 rushes for 158 yards and 2 TDs   Honorable Mention: [player_tooltip player_id='1576392' first='Caleb' last='Maddox'] (Rocori) 2026. ATH. 7 tackles, 1 INT, 3 catches for 42 yards, 4 rushes for 19 yards   Albert Lea 17, New Ulm 14   2025 is looking like a good year for Albert Lea, who have started the season with three-straight wins for the first time in more than 20 years. Not a ton of information available here, but I do know that senior stock riser [player_tooltip player_id='1648537' first='Carter' last='Conn'] - a 6'2 DB/RB/ATH who is earning DII offers this fall - scored a TD, and I also know that the Game Hero is another special teamer in junior Isaiah Diaz, who nailed the go-aead, game-winning 42-yard beast of a FG with 15 seconds left in the ball game to earn himself some heroic recognition. Keep an eye on the Tigers in Class AAA this fall!   Hero: Isaiah Diaz (Albert Lea) 2027. K/OL/DL. - Hit a 42-yard game-winning field goal to give his Albert Lea squad the victory   http://www.hudl.com/v/2Sfmvi   Rochester Century 12, Owatonna 7   One of the best narratives of the ongoing 2025 season, Rochester Century won their first game since September 8th, 2023, taking down Owatonna 12-7 on Friday night. Not only was it the Panthers first win in two years, it was also the first time Century defeated perennial 5A heavyweight Owatonna since the 2010-2011 season, 15 years ago. Century's two best players were key parts of the epic victory, with 2027 RB and track star Max Elliot catching the go-ahead, 35-yard eventual game-winning TD late in the game, sealing the hard-fought victory over a 507 rival. He also scored the first TD of the ball game, on the first offensive play of the ball game, dashing 71-yards to the house with 8 minutes left in the first quarter.   Hero: [player_tooltip player_id='1288417' first='Max' last='Elliott'] (Rochester Century) 2027. RB. 5'10, 180 lbs. - 10 rushes for 94 yards and 1 TD, 1 catch for 35 yards and a TD   Honorable Mention: [player_tooltip player_id='1120569' first='Owin' last='Gerber'] (Rochester Century) 2026. 6', 175 lbs. - 4 catches for 102 yards   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/OwinGerber/status/1967747331140489220 </div></figure>   Buffalo 32, Bemidji 31   Rough start to the season for Bemidji, who I was bullish on coming into the 2025 season as a 5A contender, but Buffalo is a first-year drop down from Class 6A with the size to prove it, so I would take this one with a grain of salt, these are two good 5A squads with the chance to make deep playoff runs. One of the top performing seniors, breakout stars, and recruiting stock risers of the 2025 season was the Hero of the Game here, as Buffalo's XL QB [player_tooltip player_id='1201408' first='Grant' last='Benson'] had yet another good game, using both his arm and his legs to find the endzone four separate times for the Bison, once again solidifying himself as one of the best senior QBs in the state this fall. This contest was about as back-and-forth as we saw in Week 3, entering the half tied 10-10 with an exciting six touchdowns in the second half. Benson ran the final TD of the game in himself, then tossed the go-ahead, game-winning 2pt conversion to 2028 6'3, 200 lb. WR and stud hooper Thomas Jordan, a sophomore I am very excited to get on the ranking's Big Board. PRZMN Is really interested to see how these two teams seasons continue to play out.   Hero: [player_tooltip player_id='1201408' first='Grant' last='Benson'] (Buffalo) 2026. 6'4, 220 lbs. - 13-32 for 227 yards and 2 TDs, 17 rushes for 88 yards and 2 TDs   Honorable Mention: [player_tooltip player_id='1896128' first='Rhys' last='Sneide'] (Bemidji) 2026. RB. 5'10, 140 lbs. - 5 rushes for 96 yards and 2 TDs   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/GrantBenson08/status/1966895280022040590 </div></figure>   Greenway/Nashwauk-Kewatin 20, Crosby-Ironton 14   Not a ton of information publicly available from this Section 7AA showdown, but I do know that senior GNK Titans RB Zeke Stuber went off. The 5'11, 160 lb. unsigned tailback popped off for 26 rushes for 220 yards and all 3 of the Titans touchdowns, which was enough to eek out the win over Crosby-Ironton, 20-14.   Hero: Zeke Stuber (Greenway/Nashwauk-Kewatin) 2026. RB. 5'11, 160 lbs. - 26 rushes for 220 yards and 3 TDs   <a href="https://www.hudl.com/video/3/22685222/68c6b1bdd54522d550a6f34c">https://www.hudl.com/video/3/22685222/68c6b1bdd54522d550a6f34c</a>   Holdingford 12, Eden Valley-Watkins 8   Another hard-fought AA showdown with a one-score finish, as the Holdingford Huskers notch a big victory over AA heavyweight Eden Valley-Watkins on Friday night during Minnesota's Week 3. One of the 2025 Summer Camp SZN's better performers was our Hero of the Game, as 6'4, 220 lb. TE, EDGE, and stud wrestler [player_tooltip player_id='1255144' first='Jaxon' last='Bartkowicz'], who has been moved to QB for the 2025 season, had a big day with both his arm and his legs, securing the win late in the 4th quarter on a 1-yard push to pull ahead from their 6-8 deficit. I bet this contest was a physical one, and I'm excited to see Bartkowicz dominate the prep football and wrestling scene as a senior.   Hero: [player_tooltip player_id='1255144' first='Jaxon' last='Bartkowicz'] (Holdingford) 2026. ATH. 6'4, 220 lbs. Committed to St. Thomas - 20-25 for 196 yards passing, 12 rushes for 58 yards and a TD, go-ahead TD late in the 4th quarter   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/htownfootball_/status/1967633319358833109 </div></figure>   Austin 14, Worthington 13   Another awesome storyline and narrative coming early in the 2025 season, 507 4A competitor Austin finally snapped their 17-game losing streak in Week 3, holding onto a thriller against Class AAA Worthington on the road and in electric fashion. After coming out of the halftime break tied 7-7, Game Hero Elias Arndt found his favorite WR target Jamison Bastyr for his second of the game, and Austin, after allowing a TD late in the 4th, held on to force an incomplete pass on the attempted 2pt conversion, though there was still 3:02 left remaining in the ball game. Worthington had one more chance to win the ball game, but a sack by the Austin defense sealed the victory for the Packers and their faithful road dogs in attendance. Congrats to Austin on the victory, more coming!   Hero: Elias Arndt (Austin) 2028. QB. - 15-19 for 147 yards and 2 TDs   Honorable Mention: Austin Gruis (Worthington) 2027. TE. 6'6, 190 lbs. - 3 catches for 121 yards   <a href="https://fan.hudl.com/usa/mn/austin/organization/6474/austin-high-school/team/16811/boys-varsity-football/schedule?date=2025-09-07T05%3A00%3A00.000Z&range=Week&ss=2025&s=U2NoZWR1bGVFbnRyeVB1YmxpY1N1bW1hcnk2OGE3NzU4NzliNzVkMjJlMDY3OWZjYTQ%3D">https://fan.hudl.com/usa/mn/austin/organization/6474/austin-high-school/team/16811/boys-varsity-football/schedule?date=2025-09-07T05%3A00%3A00.000Z&range=Week&ss=2025&s=U2NoZWR1bGVFbnRyeVB1YmxpY1N1bW1hcnk2OGE3NzU4NzliNzVkMjJlMDY3OWZjYTQ%3D</a>   St. Michael-Albertville 15, Wayzata 14   2025 has been tough for Wayzata, and the Trojans dropped a heartbreaker to St. Michael-Albertville in what would have been their first win of the season. With a 15-8 ball game in favor of the Knights coming out of half, STMA didn't manage any second-half points, but the Knights defense held strong after surrendering a TD run from Wayzata junior QB [player_tooltip player_id='725721' first='Thor' last='Soukup'] with less than a minute left in the ball game, breaking up the potential game-winning 2pt pass from a clutch effort by junior Beckett Young. Hard-earned win by the away squad in Minnesota's 2025 6A ranks.   Hero: Beckett Young (St. Michael-Albertville) 2027. OLB. - Broke up Wayzata's last-second 2pt conversion attempt that would have gave the Trojans the go-ahead, one-point victory. Also added 3 tackles.   Honorable Mention: [player_tooltip player_id='725721' first='Thor' last='Soukup'] (Wayzata) 2027. QB. 6', 230 lbs. - Ran for 2 TDs   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/612Qs/status/1968451380214911185 </div></figure>   Walker-Hackensack-Akeley 31, Bagley 29   What a Class A thriller we had on our hands in Minnesota's Week 3! Walker-Hackensack-Akeley shot out of the gates to a lead that got as large as 31-7 early in the 4th quarter. However, things got funky, and Bagley nearly pulled off the comeback of the season. After finding paydirt early in the 4th, the Wolves proceeded to fumble away the rock to the Flyers, who scored seven plays later AND converted the 2pt conversion. Bagley then recovered the onside kick, arguably the most exciting play in football, and scored four plays later. The Wolves recovered the next onside attempt, however, and proceeded to use Game Hero Karch Frazier (2026, 6'2, 200) to rush for two consecutive first downs to ice the game as the away team. What a game, and what a game it could have been!   Hero: Karch Frazier (WHA) 2026. RB/DE. 6'2, 200 lbs. - 33 carries for 270 yards and 4 TDs   <a href="https://fan.hudl.com/usa/mn/walker/organization/30912/walker-hackensack-ak-high-school/team/91572/boys-varsity-football/schedule?date=2025-09-07T05%3A00%3A00.000Z&range=Week&ss=2025&s=U2NoZWR1bGVFbnRyeVB1YmxpY1N1bW1hcnk2ODQzMDFiZTY0MDFmNmEzOWJjY2E3MGU%3D">https://fan.hudl.com/usa/mn/walker/organization/30912/walker-hackensack-ak-high-school/team/91572/boys-varsity-football/schedule?date=2025-09-07T05%3A00%3A00.000Z&range=Week&ss=2025&s=U2NoZWR1bGVFbnRyeVB1YmxpY1N1bW1hcnk2ODQzMDFiZTY0MDFmNmEzOWJjY2E3MGU%3D</a>   BOLD 29, Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City 22   Another almost-comeback, BOLD was up as much as 21-0 early in the third quarter after a [player_tooltip player_id='1900905' first='Maxim' last='Mabee'] (2026, DB/ATH, 5'9, 160) scored on a 13-yard touchdown dash, but ACGC came storming back, scoring TDs from three different Falcons to nearly bring the game within reach. Mabee, a new name to the PRZMN, is interesting, as BOLD puts out some seriously talented tailbacks year to year, and his production, big-game ability, and assumed skillset make me very eager to get a look at some updated tape on the young man. Please upload some Hudl film, young man!   Hero: [player_tooltip player_id='1900905' first='Maxim' last='Mabee'] (BOLD) 2026. ATH. 5'9, 160 lbs. - 3 rushing TDs in the victory   <a href="https://fan.hudl.com/usa/mn/olivia/organization/16819/b-o-l-d-high-school/team/33426/boys-varsity-football/schedule?date=2025-09-07T05%3A00%3A00.000Z&range=Week&ss=2025&s=U2NoZWR1bGVFbnRyeVB1YmxpY1N1bW1hcnk2ODBmZGUxYzY2Nzg5YzlhODRkNGQ5YTE%3D">https://fan.hudl.com/usa/mn/olivia/organization/16819/b-o-l-d-high-school/team/33426/boys-varsity-football/schedule?date=2025-09-07T05%3A00%3A00.000Z&range=Week&ss=2025&s=U2NoZWR1bGVFbnRyeVB1YmxpY1N1bW1hcnk2ODBmZGUxYzY2Nzg5YzlhODRkNGQ5YTE%3D</a>   --   Other Notable Scores:   Fergus Falls 28, Becker 7 - no stats from FF   Two Rivers 28, Apple Valley 21   Osakis 22, Kimball Area 14   Detroit Lakes 19, Princeton 12   Triton 13, Caledonia 3 - Triton's 2026 Penn State TE commit [player_tooltip player_id='1255902' first='Pierce' last='Petersohn'] is back from an early-season injury scare, scoring the final TD of the ball game to ice the win over recent rival Caledonia   Holy Family 24, Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted 20   Mille Lacs 26, Cromwell-Wright 20   Houston 24, Spring Grove 18   Kittson County Central 35, Badger/Greenbush-Middle River 28   Breck 15, St. Cloud Tech 14 - Breck scored the game-winning, go-ahead score on a 1-yard touchdown run as time expired in the fourth quarter. The Mustangs then converted on a 2-point pass to spoil homecoming night at Tiger Stadium in St. Cloud.   Mound Westonka 16, Providence Academy 10 - game was 16-10 going into halftime, no one scored for the rest of the ball game   Rochester Lourdes 21, Dover-Eyota 19 - Highlights: <a href="https://www.kttc.com/2025/09/13/sports-extra-friday-september-12-part-one">https://www.kttc.com/2025/09/13/sports-extra-friday-september-12-part-one</a>   PRZMN's Games of Week 4   Games of the Week   Elk River (3-0) @ Alexandria (2-1)   A rematch of last year's Class 5A state championship game, Elk River and Alexandria go head-to-head up in Alex in what is one of the best 5A games of the weekend. Despite the Cards losing a boatload of talent to the 2025 class and their graduation, Alex looks feisty in 2025, with fellow hooper Talan Witt taking over control of the Cards offense at QB, which is fresh off putting 42 points on Sartell this past week. Elk River hasn't put up less than 50 points in a game this season, and are coming in with a ton of returning experience at their skill spots.   I think the Elks take this one and go to 4-0 on the 2025 season.   Zimmerman (3-0) @ Fergus Falls (3-0)   PRZMN is very excited about this 4A showdown up in Fergus Falls on Friday night. Zimmerman, led by their two-headed rushing attack of Thomas McEachern and [player_tooltip player_id='551392' first='Mason' last='Spence'], meet up in Fergus Falls for an undefeated matchup that should be quite the competitive showdown. Fergus Falls doesn't update their stats, so I don't know much about this squad besides the 2026s on the ranking's Big Board, but the Otters are talented and experienced in 2025 and are out for some hardware.   If I had to guess, I'd put money on Zimmerman here, only as I saw them at the BSU Big School Team Camp and their OL was looking massive. I just know more about them right now. Wouldn't mind being wrong, though!   Lakeville South (2-1) @ Farmington (3-0)   Farmington is out for blood in 2025, and they've already taken down half of their Lakeville competition this fall, downing North in Week 2 7-3. I'm not 100% sure on this, but I believe that Farmington has never beaten both Lakeville teams in the same season, as their first-ever victory over Lakeville North came in 2020. That fact makes this 6A battle one of the best of the Friday slate of games, and one we may be attending.   However, I'm taking South here. They are BIG, and [player_tooltip player_id='482343' first='Nic' last='Swanson'] is a beast.   Dawson-Boyd (3-0) @ Springfield (3-0)   A Section 3A vs. Section 4A matchup, as well as one of the best small school contests of Week 4, could Dawson-Boyd be the David to take down Springfield's Goliath? The Blackjacks have a balanced offense, some stars on the roster, and big game experience from last season, so I wouldn't be surprised to see it happen.   However, safe money is on Springfield. They are ridiculously talented at the top-end, and have maybe the best QB in all of MN small school football.   Chanhassen (3-0) @ St. Thomas Academy (3-0)   Arguably the best game of the entire week, 5A competitors Chanhassen and St. Thomas Academy put their undefeated records on the line in Week 4 for yet another grinder of a regular season contest for the two 5A heavyweights. Chan likes to toss it around, STA likes to pound the rock behind PRZMN favorite Dom Baez, and both squads are extremely well coached. This one has the chance to see a lot of points scored.   I think Chanhassen is too explosive, handing STA their first L of the season. Wouldn't mind being wrong here, though. Any Travis Walch-coached team is a favorite of mine.   Honorable Mentions   Monticello (2-1) vs. St. Francis (2-1)   Fillmore Central (3-0) @ United South Central (2-1)   Waterville-Elysian-Morristown (3-0) vs Janesville-Waldorf-Pemberton (2-1)   Goodridge/Grygla-Gatzke (3-1) @ Kittson County Central (4-0)   Buffalo (2-1) vs. Robbinsdale Armstrong (3-0)   Chatfield (3-0) @ Triton (2-1)   --

Minnesota's Week 3 was a good one! Years-long win streak's snapped, underclassmen Heroes stepping into the spotlight, new names making their mark on the 2025 season, and the almost-comeback of the season all went down from International Falls to Albert Lea last week. As we speed headfirst into the midway point of the 2025 regular season, let's take one final look back at what was a memorable Week 3 in the Land of 10,000 Lakes, as well as a quick peak at the PRZMN Games of the Week for Week 4. Within the best games and most notable results of the week, prospects and players rose to the occasion, stepped into the spotlight, and made the moment their own, putting their teams on their backs and turning the tide in favor of their squad for a Week 3 victory. Get to know our Game Heroes below!