1000 Yard Guy's 2013 Class All-State Class "A" Football Team

This year I'll do the all-state selections in a different presentation. We'll feature a different class each day beginning with Class A. There will be no Super State selections, I'll leave that in the capable hands of Stu Pospisil, Ryly Hambleton and Bob Jensen. Class A, B, C-1, C-2 D-1 and D-2 will be included. The 6-Man Coaches Association does their own all-state so if I get their selections I'll pass them on, if not the World-Herald usually includes them with Stu's selections.

In addition, I'm going to recognize certain players that stood out in selected areas this season.

They will include:

"Gunslinger Award - To the true passing quarterback who lit it up this season.

"Long Distance Specialist" - To the running back who broke the long one many times.

"One Man Wrecking Crew" - To that defensive man who laid the wood on solo tackles.

"Mr. Crunch Time" - To that one player that seemed to come through when needed the most.

.......and now, on with those 2013 Class A all-state squads:

2013 Class "A" All-State Offensive Team:

QB - Easton Stick - Creighton Prep, 6-2, 205 Sr.

Talk about a coach's dream, Stick fit the quarterback mold about a perfectly as you could find. At 6-4, 205 pounds, Stick could see over any defense he faced and had a rifle arm plus fine running ability. Easton led his team to the quarterfinals in this year's playoffs. Stick passed for 2,011 yards, completing 115 of 205 throws at a 56% clip. He threw for 17 TDs with only 4 picks and added another 481 yards rushing and 7 scores.

RB - Calvin Strong - Omaha North, 5-9, 172 Jr.

First Nebraska school boy to rush for 3,000 yards in a season. Jones hit the 3000 yard mark in the state championship game and led the Vikings to a State Title. Strong gained 3,008 yards on a staggering 355 carries (8.47) and many of these yards were right up the gut of opponent's defenses. The Junior sensation hit the end zone 43 times in 2013 and is the best Class A back since Ahman Green in my opinion. Truly amazing football talent that can leave defenders grabbing thin air or drag 'em for 7 extra yards in the middle. Incredible leg strength and football smarts, college scouts may think Strong is undersized. Don't make the same mistake you did with Danny Woodhead, fellas.

RB - Drew Klein - Papillion La Vista South, 5-10, 180 Sr.

Class A's other 2,000 yard back, Klein rushed for 2,165 yards on 275 touches (7.9/carry) and scored 25 TDs for the Titans. During a 2 game stretch in the middle of the season, Klein ran for 373 yards against Benson then followed it up with a 328 yard outburst against Millard South. A shake and bake runner, Klein had a gazillion yards after contact and led Papio South to a playoff appearance. Not one opponent held Klein under a 131 yards.

RB - Logan Gier - Omaha Burke, 5-9, 185 Sr.

Led his team to a quarterfinal appearance, losing a last minute heartbreaker to Grand Island. Gier ran much like the style of Drew Klein and gained 1,426 yards on 202 carries (7.06/carry) and scored 9 touchdowns. Logan Gier was a feared kick return man and also played some defensive back for the Bulldogs. Gier didn't waste any time with side-to-side yards and could cut on a dime and run over defenders as well.

End - C.J. Johnson - Bellevue West, 6-2, 170 Jr.

Led Class A with 79 receptions, 1,364 yards and 17 touchdowns. Averaged 17 yards a catch and was very difficult to cover for any defensive back. Another feared kick returner, Johnson averaged 24 yards every time he touched a kick off. Johnson could set some receiving records next season and has received recruiting interest from Nebraska, Wisconsin and 3 Big 12 schools, including Missouri. Great hands and hops.

OL - Michael Decker - Omaha North, 6-3, 280 Jr.

Calvin Strong lives to run behind this dude. Decker was a standout as a sophomore and improved every game this season, it seemed. Decker recorded 20 pancake blocks this season and opponents made a habit of either running away from his side or double-teaming him, which was a regular occurance. Calvin owes this guy big time.

OL - Tom Young - Omaha Westside, 6-4, 295 Sr.

Man was this guy a terror from his left tackle slot. Cleared the running lanes for Lane Yates and Drew Fitzmorris

and was a great pass blocker for QB Christian Hagen. Young's favorite trick was taking his defensive 10 yards down the field and continuing until the whistle.....or a little after (:

OL - D. J. Foster - Lincoln Southeast, 6-3, 316 Sr.

One of the 2 best lineman in the state, Foster committed to Nebraska after receiving offers from Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Iowa St, Ohio, UCLA, Vanderbilt and Wake Forest. Foster just flat out obliterates opponents on defense and takes 'em out 2 at a time from his offensive line slot. Yes, he goes under the name "Sir". Funny to watch Foster reduce opponent's lineman to ashes.

OL - Brandon Vandervorst - Millard North, 5-11, 275 Sr.

This is the Mustang's center on both offense and defense who cleared the way for Clay Fisher and Millard North's other runners. #65 is a dreaded sight when he has the assignment to block a linebacker. Solid as they coming when snapping that football.

End - Skyler Monaghan - Millard West, 5-11, 175 Sr.

A repeat selection from last season, Monaghan not only had a 1000 yards receiving as a sophomore, but set the single game receiving record with a 282 yard perfromance against Creighton Prep a year ago. Monaghan WAS the most feared return man in Class A this season. Can kick into overdrive in a heartbeat and is a nightmare to cover on a pass route.

Ath/Capt. - Ross Drwal - Millard West, 6-1, 195 Sr.

Duel threat, speedy quarterback has already committed to the Ivy League's Harvard. This young man can and has, played every skill position on the gridiron during his 3 seasons at Millard West. Led the Wildcats to a semi final appearance in this year's playoffs and is a fitting captain for this year's Class A all-state team. Talk about a Renissance Man on the football field. Smart kid. Maybe I'll wake up one day have have his looks and skills.

PK - Christian Hagen - Omaha Westside, 6-2, 175 Sr.

Was the Quarterback for the runner-up Warriors, but also was Class A's most proficent place kicker. Hagen made 56 of 57 extra point kicks and was good on 9 of 15 field goal attempts with a longest of 40 yards. As a QB Hagen completed 136 of 213 passes for 1,987 yards and 21 TDs and 9 interceptions. Hagen nearly led his Westside team to a state title in 2013, falling to Omaha North in the final minutes, 23-20. Great field general.

2013 Class "A" All-State Defensive Team:

DL - Harrison Phillips - Millard West, 6-4, 259 Sr.

How on earth the Huskers passed on this kid, I'll never know. Literally unblockable on defense, the 2 way standout committed to Pac-12 power Stanford early in the year. Likely the best lineman in the state and without a doubt the best defensive end. One of the top 30 strong side D-Ends in the United States in 2013. Have to watch this guy play to believe how good he performs. Stanford is one lucky team to land Phillips and his 27 ACT doesn't hurt either.

DL - Michael Emodi - Creighton Prep, 6-4, 215 Sr.

This dude has a wingspan of 76 inches which helped him to amass 122 tackle points this season for the Junior Jays. People ran away from #88 this fall. Emodi is lean and mean and can play either defensive end or inside linebacker.

How would you like to see he and Harrison Phillips as defensive bookends?

DL - Chase Reis - Grand Island, 6-2, 220 Sr.

Reis has a motor that never, ever stops. May have the best lateral movement of any linebacker in the state. Talk about consistency, Reis had 57 solo tackles and 51 assists for 108 total tackles. Reis led the defense that was just a breath away from a state final appearance against Westside. Dude is 220 pounds and runs a 4.8 forty and has a vertical leap of 30...are you kidding me? How's that for stats! Also a standout wrestler for the State Champion Islander grapplers.

LB - Matt Connelly - Omaha Westside, 6-0, 175 Sr.

Outstanding linebacker that was everywhere in the state final game against Omaha North. Connelly had 12 tackles and nearly was instrumental in holding Calvin Strong down as a runner. Had 105 tackles during the regular season and 63 were solos. He and Drew Fitzsimmons were about as good a LB duo as there was in the state.

LB - Jason Martin - Omaha North, 5-8, 190 Jr.

If you recall, Martin led the Vikings in tackles a year ago and just plain and simple was better this fall. Martin was instrumental on defense in the state final against Omaha Westside, getting 10 stops. Only Elijah Lavalais-Hawkins had more tackles for North. Martin had 4 sacks and was in on 87 tackles for the Vikings and will be back next year to do more damage to opponents. Very heady, disciplined football player.

LB - Elijah Lavalais-Hawkins - Omaha North, 5-8, 210 Sr.

How about this LB duo for Omaha North? Tough to beat these two players that just know the game so well. Lavalais-Hawkins also was a terror in that Westside game, logging 6 tackles. For the season, Lavalais-Hawkins finished with 95 tackles and 2 interceptions. Elijah was also excellent at dropping back in pass coverage.

LB - Drew Fitzmorris - Omaha Westside, 5-10, 190 Sr.

Fitzmorris is one player that plays at a fever pitch....all the time. #48 had 125 tackles a year ago and this year increased his total to 163 and 96 were solos. On offense, Fitzmorris had 1000 total yards right on the button. On offense, Drew rushed for 556 yards, had 241 yards receiving and returned kick offs and punts for another 203 yards. There's not a football team in the state who wouldn't give an arm and a leg for this kid. What a player.

DB - Clay Fisher - Millard North, 6-2, 204 Sr.

The last in line of the talented Fisher boys from Millard North, Clay could very well have been placed on the all-state Offensive team. Fisher ran for 1,709 yards from his quarterback position to lead the Mustangs in rushing. Clay Fisher fit the Millard North QB slot like a glove but added some defensive toughness to that package which made him a tough customer to bring down when he toted the football. A pure athlete, Fisher runas a 4.5 forty, benches 320, sqauts 425 pounds, has a vertical leap of 36" and a grade point average of 3.5. What's not to like here?

DB - Luke Gifford - Lincoln Southeast, 6-4, 205 Sr.

3rd time around for all-state honors for the Husker recruit. Gifford was a stalwart on defense the past two seasons and took over the QB reins this fall for the Knights. Small wonder the Huskers wanted this kid. Football IQ is around a trillion and Gifford is around the ball on every down when he is on "D". Familiar #13 had 50 tackles from his DB slot and pirated 2 passes this year. On offense he passed for 970 yards and 4 TDs and added 742 yards rushing with 8 TDs. Not one wide receiver with a sane mind would relish a hit from Luke Gifford...and this includes running backs with a full head of speed.

DB - R.J. Urzendowski - Creighton Prep, 6-1, 185 Sr.

And you thought Urzendowski was "just" a wide receiver. R.J. had 33 tackles on defense, had 2 interceptions, a recovered fumble, 4 pass break ups and 1 caused fumble. BUT, on offense Urzendowski notched his 2nd consecutive 1000 yard receiving season by hauling in 70 Easton Stick aerials for 1,127 yards and 8 TDs. One of those catches was a sweet 97 yard touchdown catch. Like Skyler Monaghan, RJ was one of the most feared kick and punt returners in the Class A. Probabaly would have made the Offensive team, but there were only 2 WR slots.

DB - Trey Carr - Omaha Burke, 5-11, 175 Sr.

Another repeater fron last season, Carr may have been the best DB in Class A, pound for pound. Had 37 tackles, 6 INTs, 4 break-ups and was the captain on the defensive side of the ball. In 10 games on offense, Carr had 31 receptions for 531 yards and 10 TDs. Try this one on for size. Carr rushed the ball only 20 times this season and ran for 320 yards...that's 16 yards a pop. He had two TDs rushing and both were long distance (63, 59 yds). Oh yes, he did complete 2 of 4 passes for 48 yards.....and one went for a score. Some kind of player.

ATH - Pierce Almond - Grand Island, 6-2, 175 Jr.

No way does this kid get ommitted from All-State. Almond was the man that made this offense go and GO they did. The speedy, deceptive Islander quarterback, often times a Master of Trickery, completed 153 of 234 of his passes (65%) for an even-steven 2,000 yards and 19 TDs while suffering only 9 picks. Most of Almond's interceptions came on tipped passes. A nightmare to defend, Almond rushed for 396 yards and 8 touchdowns. Another player who always played within his capabilities, Pierce Almond engineered two final last minute combacks in the playoffs and nearly pulled off a 3rd against State Champion Omaha North in the semi finals. Splendid athlete.

P - Colton Hough - Omaha Burke, 6-0, 220 Sr.

Big Burke Bulldog averged a hair under 40 yards per punt and unleashed a 74 yard bomb against Omaha Central. Kept Burke's opponents pinned back all season long.

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*Gunslinger Award*: Alec Ditoro-Papillion La Vista

Ditoro was a record setter as a pure passing quarterback and stamped himself as the finest passing QB in Class A history. Check out these Class A records:

Most Passing Yards-Career - 8,451 (2010-2013)

Most Passing Yards-Season - 3,112 (2012)

Most Passing Yards-Game - 484 (vs. Millard North, 2012)

Per game Average-Season - 311.2 (2012)

Most Completions-Career - 653 (2010-2013) (State Record)

Most TD Passes-Career - 93 (2010-2013) (11-Man Record)

Most TD Passes-Season - 37 (2012-Tied with Silas Fluellen-Bell West-2005)

*Long Distance Specialist Award* - Calvin Strong-Omaha North

No explanation needed on this one. Cal looked at 'em in the rear view from long distance many times.

*One Man Wrecking Crew Award* - Luke Gifford-Lincoln SE and Drew Fitzmorris-Omaha Westside:

Both players can knock your brains silly. Only difference is that Gifford has a head start from his DB position.

*Mr. Crunch Time* - Pierce Almond-Grand Island

Oh Lord, just check those come from behind drives against Bellevue West and Omaha Burke in the playoffs and the heartbreaking miss vs. Omaha North in the semis. Ice Water Man......Pierce Almond. Will he pull it off a few times for the Islanders on the hardwood?