PrepRedzoneMN Player of the Year Finalists
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We’ve cut down our PrepRedzoneMN Player of the Year Semifinalist list of 50 standout Minnesota preps and have narrowed things down to the 10 players in the state that we think have had some of the best individual seasons of any…
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Continue ReadingWe’ve cut down our PrepRedzoneMN Player of the Year Semifinalist list of 50 standout Minnesota preps and have narrowed things down to the 10 players in the state that we think have had some of the best individual seasons of any prep in 2020. It’s obviously been a crazy and unparalleled year that has made for a chaotic and shortened high school football season, but I believe the coaches and players throughout the state are handling things with a ton of grace and fortitude. From not knowing who you are going to play sometimes hours before kickoff, to scheduling games against opponents you’ve never played before, and even having to swallow the bitterness of a game having to be cancelled, the kids took everything in stride and really showed out this past season. There were a lot of great performers and performances, but these 10 separated themselves from the pack for a number of reasons and rightfully earned the title of: PrepRedZoneMN Player of the Year Finalist. Find out who was named one of 10 finalists before and get a quick synopsis of their film, stats, and impact for their teams. Thanks for reading!
Jake Ratzlaff Jake Ratzlaff 6'2" | LB Rosemount | 2021 State MN (Rosemount) TE/SS/LB. 6’2, 215 lbs. Class of 2021. One of – if not the most – physical players in the entire state. Sets the tone for the entire Rosemount Irish team who were playing their best football as the season concluded for them undefeated and had an impressively strong and swarming defensive unit. Has a ton of range and can truly go sideline to sideline, run the alley, blitz, cover, block, catch, and of course hit. He is a tremendously strong tackler who is always around the ball and rarely gets himself in a bad position. He covers so much ground and made huge plays offensively and defensively for the undefeated Irish all season long.
Austin Freerksen (Byron) RB. 6’, 190 lbs. Class of 2021. Committed to UMD. Week by week I would check out the Hudl tape of players weekly performances, and every Friday night or Saturday morning I would just see a ridiculous single game stat line from the Byron Bears running back. He led the state with 211 carries for almost 1,600 yards and was third in the state with rushing TDs at 17. He is fast, durable, and was a threat to break out a big run every time he touched the ball. His breakaway speed and vision made him very tough to corral, and he has a good combination of speed and strength that help him to run North and South or East to West. His tape is a fun one to watch and he’s going to be a great NSIC tailback. Byron finished the season at 4-3.
Trey Feeney Trey Feeney 6'2" | QB Moorhead | 2021 State MN (Moorhead) QB. 6’2, 195 lbs. Class of 2021. Committed to North Dakota. Another player who was putting up Madden type numbers week to week, the Moorhead Spud and North Dakota Fighting Hawks commit led the state with 137 completions, 1965 yards, and 36 passing TDs, which are just ridiculous passing numbers for a 5A quarterback. The Spuds stood at 6-0 when the season ended and a great deal of that success came down to Feeney’s personal performance each ball game. He’s got everything you want in a QB prospect: size, arm talent, accuracy, a quick release, he can get outside the pocket and throw on the run if he needs to, and he’s a natural born leader and a three sport athlete to boot. He’ll tear it up in Grand Forks.
Eli King Eli King 6'3" | 180 lbs | WR Caledonia | 2022 State MN (Caledonia) ATH. 6’3, 200 lbs. Class of 2022. No updated Hudl film for the state’s top 2022 recruit, but I saw enough highlights on Caledonia’s local news accounts to know that he scored a TD pretty much every way you can in this shortened season. King made the move to QB this past offseason and has stepped into the role his older brothers played seamlessly. He’s a freakish athlete who can do whatever he wants on the gridiron and the hardwood and is a tremendous vertical threat and natural playmaker. Caledonia was undefeated in 2020.
Carson Hansen (Lakeville South) RB. 6’, 180 lbs. Class of 2023. The youngest player on this list sure did make a splash in the Metro this season and filled into some giant footsteps of the prolific RBs for the Cougars that came before him, including the MSU-Mankato commit Johnny Shabaz Johnny Shabaz 6'0" | 190 lbs | RB Lakeville South | 2020 State MN . He put up 816 yards and 13 TDs against some of the stiffest competition Minnesota has to offer in his first year on varsity as only a sophomore and looked like an experienced senior running the ball in Lakeville South’s run first offense. He’s a long-strider with quick feet and good vision and is fast enough to take it to the house if he sees daylight. I like his balance and lower-body strength for his age too, and he runs pretty similar to now Golden Gopher RB and Owatonna graduate Jason Williamson Jason Williamson RB Owatonna | 2019 State MN . The sky is the limit for this kid and I just couldn’t ignore his breakout season and the way he stepped into such good competition and continued to score is something special.
Lucas Heyer Lucas Heyer 6'5" | 295 lbs | OL Hill-Murray | 2022 State MN (Hill Murray) OL. 6’5, 295 lbs. Class of 2022. A powerful and explosive OL that plays like his 4 star ranking would suggest, Heyer is a vicious blocker with an overwhelmingly strong punch that can move in his space and work to the second level effectively. There were a couple things that stood out to me about his tape that made me choose him for the OL spot on the finalists, the first being his playmaking ability in 2020 at both the DL and on punt block/special teams. He would absolutely bulldoze would-be blockers 10-15 yards backwards with what looked like very little effort exhausted from the Hill Murray Monster, and used that dominance to cause FFs in the backfield as well as blocked punts. The other big quality that stood out to me was Heyer’s proficiency in pass-pro at such a young age. His footwork and pass-set looks clean and crisp, and he plays with a wide base and keeps his feet really active. He also has a powerful pop in his hands that sends defenders flying, and is constantly looking for work and someone to put down. He’s a nationally ranked OG for a reason, and helped the Pioneers to a 4-2 record in 2020.
Bryce Lance Bryce Lance 6'2" | WR Marshall | 2021 State MN (Marshall) WR. 6’2, 170 lbs. Class of 2021. The younger Lance rewrote the record books for the Tigers in his senior year and became the schools #1 wideout in receptions, TDs, and yards as he put up 30 catches for 631 yards and 8 TDs and also recorded 6 interceptions on defense. With an accomplished basketball background he is a dangerous vertical threat that can play the X in college and makes a ton of plays when the ball is in the air. His release off of the LOS is really fun to watch as he’s laterally quick and has great feet, and he’s got breakaway speed to combine for a really polished high school WR. I hope he becomes a Bison. Marshall went 5-2 in 2020.
Nick Flaskamp Nick Flaskamp LB Minneapolis Southwest | 2021 State MN (MPLS Southwest) RB/LB. 5’11, 210 lbs. Class of 2021. Led the state in tackles with 93 in the regular season (6 games) and coupled that with 1,208 yards rushing and 11 TDs as a RB for the Southwest Lakers. His toughness and versatility are hard to ignore, as he rarely took a play off and was all over the field on both sides of the ball for SW. The offense and defense both worked through him, so every game he knew that he had to set the tone and bring his A game in order to help get his team to win. Flaskamp is a really impressive physical specimen who is also a standout wrestler, and that physicality really shows up in his game on the gridiron as he in non-stop from whistle to whistle and goes balls to the wall every snap offensively or defensively. As a LB he sifts through traffic well and beats blocks efficiently and can go sideline to sideline with great range and instincts. As a RB he’s explosive and a scary combo of size and speed. He’s a fun one to watch and helped the Lakers go 4-3 in 2020.
Terrance Kamara Terrance Kamara 5'9" | RB Minneapolis North | 2021 State MN (MPLS North) RB. 5’9, 180 lbs. Class of 2021. Committed to Northern Iowa. Helped the Polars to a 6-1 record with their lone loss coming to the 4A favorite Fridley Tigers and was a workhorse back who has a ton of power packed into his frame and is a complete RB with large skill-set and a ton of burst and speed in his game. He can make good runs out of seemingly nothing, and has great patience that helps his OL open up gaps and get the North’s rushing attack timing consistent all year. He had 138 carries for 1,147 yards and 9 TDs in 7 games and looked great doing it. Complete package at RB who is going to be a prolific FCS runningback.
Deven Eastern Deven Eastern 6'5" | DL Shakopee | 2021 State MN (Shakopee) DL. 6’5, 285 lbs. Class of 2021. Committed to Minnesota. Faced double and triple teams all season long and still was the most dominant defensive lineman in the Metro and probably the entire state. He recently earned his 4th star and showed off why he deserved it all season as he is a freaky combo of size and explosiveness and gets out of his stance low and with a lot of power. He uses his hands proficiently, attacks OL leverage, and has great bend as well as the overwhelming strength to bullrush OL if need be as well. He will be seeing snaps for PJ Fleck early on in his career and will be a great Golden Gopher defensive lineman in the coming years. Helped Shakopee to a 6-2 record in 2020.