Recruiting Report: Isaac Hagstrom (2021)
The season did not end the way Annandale junior Isaac Hagstrom Isaac Hagstrom 6'5" | OL Annandale | 2021 State MN envisioned. The Cardinals had a great season. They lost one regular-season game and made a run in the playoffs…
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Continue ReadingThe season did not end the way Annandale junior
Isaac Hagstrom
Isaac
Hagstrom
6'5" | OL
Annandale | 2021
State
MN
envisioned. The Cardinals had a great season. They lost one regular-season game and made a run in the playoffs that did not end until the state semi-finals. Near the end of their loss to Dassel Cokato, Hagstrom injured his knee – torpedoing his entire offseason.
“I tore my ACL in the semi-final game. It has been hard to learn how to be comfortable on my knee after having surgery on it and getting up back to full strength. I think I am going to be able to start cutting and jumping on it next week. I think I will be full-strength by July or August.”
Typically a three-sport athlete, Hagstrom, had to cope with a new reality.
“I would have played basketball and baseball. Basketball I play center, but I am not the main guy. In baseball, I play first and third base. As a sophomore, I played DH on varsity.”
Without his other sports – and now with Covid-19 – Hagstrom has been able to get in some modified workouts.
“I am able to work out with my friend’s weight set a couple of times a week.”
Before his injury, Annandale was one of the best teams in Class AAA.
“We had a really good regular season with just one loss,” Hagstrom said. “That loss got us better and helped us learn how to play in tough conditions like snow and rain. Then we had a good post-season run. We dominated our first four playoff games. Playing Dassel Cokato in the state semi-finals, we made a couple of mistakes, and it came down to the last play, and we couldn’t come through.”
The team relied on their offensive line and a defense that only gave up twenty or more points twice.
“We communicated well and were focused all year,” Hagstrom told northstarfootballnews.com. “We ran the ball a lot. On defense, we could stop the run and get after the passer. We were a balanced defense.”
The offensive line took some time to jell.
“My season went really well. I started slow – we had a whole new offensive line – but I picked it up the last ten games. I was the only returning offensive lineman. I had to get used to playing with new guys. Then we all got comfortable playing together and started to bond on and off the field. We started to have success and trusted each other.”
The two-year starter made significant strides in his second year.
“I was a more physical player as a junior. I was more confident,” Hagstrom – who likes to bass fish – said. “I started to lead the offensive line and learned more about the playbook. I was more focused in practice and the games.”
Hagstrom played multiple positions on the offensive line.
“I mostly played left tackle, but I would play both guard positions in some packages. I have good footwork and good hands. I am able to finish my blocks.”
Soon he was playing both ways.
“The second half of the season I was playing full-time defense,” the 6’5″ 240-pound junior said. “In the middle of the season, we switched to a four-man front, so I started playing defensive end. I was usually playing on the weak-side defensive end. I can fill my gap, and I can get after the passer.”
Hagstrom is being recruited as an offensive lineman.
“Recruiting has been going good,” Hagstrom explained, “but it is stressful not being able to visit any of the schools or see any of the coaches in person. I have five offers – Concordia-St. Paul, Bemidji State, University of Mary, Southwest Minnesota State, and Northern State. South Dakota State, Minnesota-Duluth, and North Dakota are also looking at me.”
“They like my size,” the Cardinals’ big man continued, “footwork and my ability to finish my blocks.”
If he has the ability to finish his high school career as he started it, the Cardinals might be in line for another playoff run, and Hagstrom will be in line for more scholarship offers.