St. Francis has some explosive prospects set to return to their 2026 roster and namely in their 2028 class. One of these standouts is RB Owen Darsow, a sophomore playmaker platforming himself very well for a breakout, big-time junior season this fall. Darsow is fast, and I mean really fast, and he is stuffing his athletic resume with verified, green numbers and a ton of snaps left in his varsity career. Darsow has popped off an 11.23 100M and 23.45 200M this spring, blazing times for an underclassmen multi-sporter, and Darsow also added a 4.73 laser 40, 4.39 shuttle, 34.9″ vert at 612Q’s Offensive Skills Showcase this spring. He also has posted a 295 lb. bench (on video), 285 lb. power clean (on video), and 460 squat (on video) this offseason in the weight room.

Last fall, Darsow produced 86 rushes for 429 yards and 4 TDs for the Saints‘ varsity squad, and although he has limited tape out, it’s quite eye-catching. Darsow owns impressive contact balance for his age and size, can cut at top speed, and noticeable burst, and he’s an overall shifty ball carrier with light feet, good vision, and a ton of juice in the open field. Darsow showed off some dirty moves in the open field, and he made the most of his limited carries and displayed an electric and well-rounded skillset for an underclassman tailback at the large school level. Can’t wait to see what he produces this fall.

Sophomore Owen Darsow Owen Darsow 5'9" | 190 lbs | RB St Francis | 2028 State MN embodies rare two-way explosiveness in one back. Called up midway through last season, he quickly adjusted to varsity speed and entered 2025 as the featured runner. Described as possessing both “thunder and lightning”, Owen lowers his pads to finish runs and shrugs off contact, yet also flashes breakaway acceleration and smooth lateral cuts. His ability to bounce off tackles, as shown against Cooper, creates long gains from seemingly closed lanes. Calm and team-oriented, Owen shows maturity beyond his years, taking coaching and guidance from seniors without ego. In the St. Francis offense—designed to stay balanced and unpredictable—he thrives as a dual-threat runner who can hammer inside or exploit space outside. With continued development, he profiles as a college-level tailback and a centerpiece for the program’s future.

A pleasant surprise out of Section 7AAAAA, St. Francis is looking lean and mean in 2025, coming out of the gate hot with wins over Robbinsdale Cooper and New Prague, but a Week 3 throttling by Elk River is forcing the Fighting Saints to recalibrate, especially since Elk River is looming large in Section 7’s postseason. Led by Minnesota-Duluth QB commit Tanner Rothbauer Tanner Rothbauer 6'0" | 190 lbs | QB St Francis | 2026 State MN , the Fighting Saints have seen a resurgence thanks to 2028 breakout star RB Owen Darsow Owen Darsow 5'9" | 190 lbs | RB St Francis | 2028 State MN . The speedster has catapulted himself into the RB1 spot for his high school squad, currently sitting at 49 rushes for 307 yards and 2 TDs, with a 6.3 YPC average as a first-year starter and underclassmen battling against seasoned 5A competition.

In the limited film Darsow has posted so far, the 185 lber. flashes an electric skillset, with well-timed, laterally twitchy cuts, the contact balance to bounce off tackle attempts at his lower body, good vision, and a ton of physicality at the contact point. He’s made some would-be defenders look downright silly so far in 2025. Can’t wait for some comprehensive tape on this young tailback soon.

Dawsow just might have been the most productive member of the Fighting Saints’ offense last night, and it was a true breakout performance for the rising sophomore star. He killed the Hawks on outside zone runs, and touted a unique combination of speed and explosiveness that saw him break off multiple chunk 30+ yard runs. Throughout the night, he more often than not broke the first tackle on any given play and was responsible for two of the team’s four TDs. This was an electric first showing from the 2028 prospect, and I’m pumped to see what he can do in a full season.

Darsow has been on PRZ’s radar for a while now, and I think this is the season that he really makes a splash on varsity. He’s looking to split duties as the team’s head ball-carrier this season, and based on some of his scrimmage and camp performances, I’m very excited. He’s incredibly explosive, especially for how thick he is. He doesn’t stop moving his feet when he gets hit, and he’s able to run through multiple defenders on the same play. His ability to change direction is high-level, and he looks to be one of the most promising kids in the class of 2028.

Our current RB6 in the 2028 class out of St. Francis in Owen Darsow Owen Darsow 5'9" | 190 lbs | RB St Francis | 2028 State MN was another target in the running back group that was in my top-tier. Owen showed off a running back that you can tell processes quickly with his vision can run like a bull charging at the rodeo, as on numerous reps I was impressed with how sudden he was with his burst and had top-tier change of direction in the running back group too. I also came away impressed with his route-running, as Owen showed off great fluidity for his 5’8 170 pound frame than to me from the eye test, looked like he played way bigger than that from what I saw in the live eval. He surely is one that I feel is trending upwards in the 2028 class as I love the upside this young man should continue to bring with his durability. Twitter