Section Strength: 2A

This is the fifth installation of a series of seven stories. This story will cover Class 2A, a class that also has a lot of turnover when section lines are redrawn. Like Class 3A, many teams drop a class or move up a class based on changes in school sizes. There is a wide variety of talent in Class 2A, producing a handful of college athletes each year. The certain section that I want to highlight is Section 2. I determined this section the toughest based on the fact that there is a different Section Champion each year and the champion is almost never the top seed in the section. Waterville-Elysian-Morristown Buccaneers The Buccaneers had another winning season in 2018, finishing 9-2 and capturing the top seed in the tournament. Averaging 37 points a game on offense and giving up 14 points a game on defense. WEM enjoys running out of the pistol formation, but can also pass the ball well. Defensively, they primarily come out in a 4-man front. They will have another good season in 2019 as they will return a strong core of players like: Running Back/Linebacker- <b>Brant Melchert</b>, speed, strength and a little agility, patience in the backfield and finds open field. Attacks the ballcarrier on defense. Quarterback- <b>Grant McBroom</b>, arm and pocket presence, can throw a decent deep ball and keeps himself out of pressure to make a good throw. New Richland-Hartland-Ellendale-Geneva Panthers The Panthers were the second seed in the tournament and emerged as the champion. They finished their season at 9-3, averaging 30 points on offense and gave up 19 points a game in defense. New Richland HEG has a wide variety of options in their playbook, but ultimately seem to like the pass. Defensively looks like a 3-man front that they use most. The Panthers may have a bit of rebuilding next season as they lost most of their lineup to graduation, players they will return include: Quarterback- <b>Blake Ihrke</b>, arm and precision, throws a good deep ball and can squeeze it in tight windows. Wide Receiver/Defensive Back- <b>Lonnie Wilson</b>, agility and hands, runs hard routes and makes the catch, hard to bring down. Maple River Eagles The Eagles finished the season at 6-3 and was the third seed in the playoffs. Averaging 29 points a game on offense and giving up 18 points a game defensively. Maple River likes the spread with the fast-pace offense. Defensively, they seem to like the 3-4 package. 2019 looks to be a rebuilding year for the Eagles as well, but they will return a couple good players in: Quarterback/Defensive Back- <b>Caden Ochsendorf</b>, speed and power, has proven to be a powerful runner on the draws, but can also throw the ball too. Wide Receiver/Defensive Back- <b>Wyatt Simon</b>, speed, primarily used as a screen receiver, once he gets into open field, he is hard to catch. St. Clair/Loyola Spartans The Spartans finished 2018 at 8-2 claiming the fourth seed in the tournament. Averaging 27 points a game on offense and giving up 17 points a game defensively. St. Clair/Loyola seems to be a run first type of offense with the triple-read offense. They also seem to have a 3-4 look defensively. The Spartans will return a good crew of athletes for next season including: Quarterback: <b>Ben Ellingworth</b>, agility and awareness, running the read option, he has great decisions on pulling, keeping and pitching the ball and is tough to hang on to on keeps. Offensive &amp; Defensive Lineman: <b>Dawson Devito</b>, size and strength, already bigger than his opponent, but also powers through the other lineman to make a block or get into the backfield. Lake Crystal/Wellcome Memorial Knights The Knights finished the season at 3-6 and captured the fifth seed in the tournament. Lake Crystal-Wellcome Memorial likes the pistol offense and the 5-3 defensive look. Looks to have a bit of a rebuilding year as I was not able to find a lot of film on the returning players in 2019. LeSueur-Henderson Giants The Giants finished the season at 5-5 and received the sixth seed in the playoffs. LeSueur-Henderson also like looks out of the shotgun with looks of a 3-4 look defensively as well. There is one player I would like to highlight for the 2019 season: Wide Receiver- <b>Tommy Gupton</b>, speed, runs his route fast and gets behind the defense in a hurry. Medford Tigers The Tigers finished 2018 at 4-5 with the seventh seed in the playoffs. Medford likes the pistol look on offense as well. Defensively, looks like a 3-5 front. The Tigers should have a good 2019 season, returning a good squad of seniors for the season in: Quarterback: <b>Willie VonRuden</b>, mobility, gets out of the pocket quickly, but keeps his eyes downfield to make a throw. Running Back/Defensive Back: <b>Jerone Davis</b>, speed and agility, follows blocks, accelerates in the open field and does not go down easily. Blue Earth Buccaneers The Buccaneers finished the season 3-6 and rounded out the playoffs at the eighth seed. Blue Earth likes the pistol and shotgun on offense and defensively likes the 4-3. They have a good balance of speed and size on both sides of the ball. They will return a few key players for the 2019 season like: Offensive Lineman/Linebacker- <b>Zach Murphy</b>, speed and power, reads and reacts well on defense and drives his feet on offense, hits hard. &nbsp; &nbsp;