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Morningside head football coach Steve Ryan has announced the names of 25 high school recruits who will join the Mustangs for the 2008 season.
The recruits are:
Justin Anderson, a 5-11, 170 lb. running back-defensive back from Sioux City East High School. Anderson, a two-time All-Missouri River Conference performer, earned honorable mention All-Western Iowa honors from the Omaha World-Herald following a senior campaign where he rushed for 766 yards and seven touchdowns in 183 carries and caught 10 passes for 150 yards and one touchdown. He was the Black Raiders’ second leading scorer with 52 points. Defensively he collected 23 solos and 19 assists for 42 total tackles and led the Black Raiders with three interceptions.
Ryne Armstrong, a 6-2, 250 lb. offensive lineman-defensive lineman from Ozark High School in Missouri. Armstrong received first-team Class 4 all-state honors from the Missouri Football Coaches Association and was a second-team pick on the Associated Press all-state team this past season. He also received first-team all-district honors and was named to the All-Central Ozark Conference (COC) first-team and the Southwest Missouri Football Coaches Association team. Armstrong also earned first-team All-COC and first-team all-district honors as a junior and earned second-team All-COC laurels as a sophomore.
Marshall Barney, a 5-11, 190 lb. running back-linebacker from Logan, Iowa. Barney is a senior at Logan-Magnolia High School, where he earned first-team Class 1A all-state honors from the Iowa Newspaper Association (INA) as a running back and first-team Class 1A all-state laurels from the Des Moines Register as a linebacker this past season. Barney, who was also named to the first-team of the Omaha World-Herald’s All-Western Iowa team, rushed for 2,089 yards and 30 touchdowns in 257 attempts for an average of 8.1 yards per carry during his senior campaign. He also caught nine passes for 131 yards.
Barney was a second-team Des Moines Register all-stater as a linebacker and a second-team INA all-state running back as a junior. He was a first-team Omaha World-Herald All-Western Iowa selection as a junior and an honorable mention pick as a sophomore. Barney earned first-team all-district honors as both a junior and senior.
Caleb Caboth, a 6-1, 180 lb. wide receiver-defensive back from Estherville, Iowa. Caboth, a senior at Estherville-Lincoln Central High School, earned first-team Class 2A INA all-state honors and second-team Des Moines Register all-state laurels as a defensive back this past season. Caboth also earned first-team all-district and fourth-team Sioux City Journal All-Northwest Iowa honors. Caboth intercepted eight passes and returned the thefts for 83 yards during his senior campaign. He had 32 solos and 35 assists for 67 total tackles. Offensively he caught 13 passes for 317 yards and five touchdowns. He averaged a whopping 24.4 yards per catch. Caboth also had 27 punts returns for 238 yards for an average of 8.8 yards per return.
Chad Carlson, a 6-2, 200 lb. linebacker from Hornick, Iowa, who is a senior at Westwood High School. Carlson was a two-time first-team all-district linebacker. He had 67 solos and 49 assists for 116 total tackles, including 14 tackles for losses, during his senior campaign.
Jared Crawford, a 6-1, 190 lb. wide receiver-defensive back from Crofton High School in Nebraska. Crawford earned honorable mention all-district honors as a senior. He had 41 solos and 17 assists for 58 total tackles, including two stops behind the line of scrimmage for losses of five yards. Crawford had seven defensive takeaways with five interceptions and two fumble recoveries. He returned the interceptions 91 yards for an average of 18.2 yards per return. Offensively he caught nine passes for 121 yards and completed a 34-yard touchdown pass.
Derek Dougherty, a 5-11, 195 lb. quarterback-defensive back from Mapleton, Iowa, who is a senior at Maple Valley/Anthon-Oto High School. Dougherty earned Class 2A/1A All-Western Iowa honors from the Omaha World-Herald this past season and was a three-time second-team all-district selection. Dougherty passed for 536 yards and rushed for 500 yards for 1,036 yards total offense as a senior. Defensively he had 32 tackles and three interceptions.
Tyler Frank, a 6-1, 175 lb. quarterback-kicker from Hastings Senior High School in Nebraska. Frank earned honorable mention Class B all-state honors from the Omaha World-Herald and the Lincoln Journal-Star in addition to first-team all-district and first-team All-Greater Nebraska Athletic Conference honors as a senior. He completed 61 of 123 pass attempts for 1,011 yards and four touchdowns and threw only three interceptions during his senior season. Frank also rushed for 280 yards to finish the season with 1,291 yards total offense. As a kicker he made 30 of 36 PATs, kicked a 26-yard field goal, averaged 52.8 yards on kickoffs, and 34.7 yards on punts. Defensively he had 30 solos and 11 assists for 41 total tackles to go along with two pass breakups and one quarterback hurry.
Adam Fuchtman, a 6-0, 170 lb. wide receiver-defensive back from Creighton Community High School in Nebraska. He received Class C-2 honorable mention all-state honors from the Omaha World-Herald and honorable mention all-district honors as a senior. Fuchtman was an Omaha World-Herald and Lincoln Journal-Star honorable mention all-stater as a junior and earned all-district honorable mention honors as a junior and sophomore. He caught 41 passes for 703 yards for an average of 17.1 yards per catch and had 47 tackles, five interceptions, 14 pass breakups, and two fumble recoveries during his career. Fuchtman also had 18 punt returns for 178 yards for an average of 9.9 yards per return during his career.
Dan Johnson, a 6-5, 265 lb. offensive lineman from Spencer High School. Johnson earned first-team Class 3A all-district and first-team Sioux City Journal All-Northwest Iowa honors this past season. He was a two-year starter and helped lead Spencer to a combined record of 15-4 over the past two seasons.
Kyle Kepplinger, a 6-1, 210 lb. linebacker from Scotland High School in South Dakota, where he helped lead the team to Class 9-A state championships in 2006 and 2007. Kepplinger was a three-year starter and received South Dakota Football Coaches Association all-state and first-team All-Great Plains Conference honors following a senior season where he had 85 solos and 100 assists for 185 total tackles to go along with four blocked punts and two interceptions.
Ryan Klein, a 5-10, 175 lb. wide receiver-defensive back from Wakefield High School in Nebraska. Klein is the brother of Aaron Klein, who was one of the Mustangs’ starting cornerbacks this past season. He earned honorable mention Class C-2 all-state honors from both the Omaha World-Herald and the Lincoln Journal-Star this past season after he helped lead Wakefield to its second straight Class C-2 state championship. Klein averaged a whopping 10.5 yards per rushing attempt this past season with 77 carries for 807 yards and nine touchdowns. He caught 11 passes for 155 yards. Defensively he had 55 solos and 38 assists for 93 total tackles to go along with five tackles for losses, three quarterback sacks, and two interceptions.
Klein was also an honorable mention all-stater as a junior when he rushed for 640 yards and 12 touchdowns, caught 17 passes for 225 yards and two touchdowns, and had 66 tackles with nine stops behind the line of scrimmage and one interception.
Keaton Knake, a 6-2, 180 lb. tight end-linebacker from Norfolk Catholic High School in Nebraska. Knake received honorable mention Class C-1 all-state honors from the Omaha World-Herald and the Lincoln Journal-Star this past season and was a two-time all-district performer. He was Norfolk Catholic’s leading pass receiver this past season with 33 catches for 440 yards and six touchdowns. Defensively he collected 44 solos and 34 assists for 78 total tackles to go along with three interceptions, two tackles behind the line of scrimmage for losses of 11 yards, and a quarterback sack.
Austin Kube, a 6-2, 210 lb. linebacker from Crofton High School in Nebraska, where he earned Class C-1 honorable mention all-state honors from the Lincoln Journal-Star in addition to first-team all-district honors this past season. He had 39 solos and 32 assists for 71 total tackles, including four tackles behind the line of scrimmage for losses of 15 yards during his senior campaign. Kube also started at running back and carried the ball 179 times for 906 yards and 13 touchdowns for an average of 5.1 yards per carry. He caught 18 passes for 231 yards and two touchdowns. Kube scored 15 touchdowns and five two-point conversions for 100 points.
Tyler Lindstedt, a 6-2, 210 lb. linebacker from West Point, Neb., who is a senior at West Point-Beemer High School. Lindstedt earned honorable mention Class C-1 all-state honors from the Omaha World-Herald and first-team all-district laurels as a senior. He was West Point-Beemer’s leading tackler this past season with 96 tackles, including 21 for a loss, to go along with one interception. Lindstedt also topped the team’s tackle chart as a junior when he collected 89 tackles, including nine for a loss.
Benjamin List, a 5-9, 205 lb. linebacker from Crofton High School in Nebraska, who earned Class C-1 honorable mention all-state honors from the Omaha World-Herald and the Lincoln Journal-Star in addition to first-team all-district laurels as a senior. List was the third leading tackler in the state with 66 solos and 59 assists for 125 total tackles, including seven behind the line of scrimmage for losses for 34 yards. He intercepted two passes and had one fumble recovery. List also excelled in the offensive line for a Crofton team that ranked third in the state in rushing offense.
Curt Maassen, a 6-4, 280 lb. offensive lineman-defensive lineman from Avoca, Iowa. Maassen is a senior at A.H.S.T. High School, where he earned honorable mention all-district honors as an offensive center this past season.
Collin Mann, a 5-9, 150 lb. wide receiver-defensive back from Logan, Iowa. Mann is a senior at Logan-Magnolia High School, where he earned second-team Omaha World-Herald All-Western Iowa honors and first-team all-district laurels as a senior. Mann caught 13 passes for 252 yards for an average of 19.4 yards per catch and returned 12 punts for 192 yards for an average of 16.0 yards per return this past season.
Nate McDonald, a 6-4, 225 lb. defensive end from Underwood High School in Iowa. McDonald earned Class 2A/1A All-Western Iowa honorable mention honors from the Omaha World-Herald this past season.
Joel Nixon, a 6-0, 170 lb. quarterback-defensive back from Wakefield High School in Nebraska, where he led the team to back-to-back Class C-2 state championships as a junior and senior. Nixon finished his career as Wakefield’s all-time leading career rusher and passer with 1,999 yards rushing and 1,973 yards passing. He also set school records with 29 career rushing TDs and 19 career passing TDs.
As a senior, Nixon passed for a school-record 1,092 yards and 10 touchdowns and rushed for 859 yards and 14 touchdowns en route to first-team Class C-2 all-state honors from the Omaha World-Herald and the Lincoln Journal-Star and was named Huskerland Prep Report’s Class C-2 Player of the Year. Nixon averaged 7.2 yards per rushing attempt and completed 57 of 109 pass attempts for 52.3 percent with only two interceptions. Nixon also had six interceptions for Wakefield’s defensive unit. Nixon completed 10 of 13 passes for 120 yards, rushed for 59 yards and a touchdown, and had an interception in Wakefield’s 19-0 victory against Blue Hill High School in the Class C-2 state championship game.
Nixon was also an Omaha World-Herald and Lincoln Journal-Star first-team all-stater and the Huskerland Prep Report’s Class C-2 Player of the Year as a junior. That season he rushed for 1,043 yards and 14 touchdowns in 120 attempts for an average of 8.7 yards per carry, completed 55 of 107 passes (51.4 percent) for 777 yards and nine touchdowns, and intercepted nine passes.
Willie Pfau, a 5-11, 195 lb. running back-linebacker from Grafton, Iowa. Pfau is a senior at St. Ansgar High School, where he was a three-year letterwinner. Pfau was a first-team all-district running back this past season when he carried the ball 145 times for 921 yards and nine touchdowns and averaged 6.4 yards per carry. He also had 49 tackles for St. Ansgar’s defensive unit.
Colby Rohde, a 6-3, 210 lb. quarterback-defensive lineman from Wathena High School in Kansas, where he earned honorable mention Class 2A-1A all-state honors from the Wichita Eagle and Topeka Capital-Journal in addition to first-team All-Delaware Valley League honors as a defensive end this past season. Rohde had 36 solos and 12 assists for 48 total tackles to go along with five quarterback sacks, four pass breakups, one interception, and one fumble recovery during his senior campaign. He also rushed for 298 yards and five touchdowns and passed for 663 yards and 11 touchdowns. Rohde completed 51 of 95 pass attempts for 53.7 percent.
Brandon Sklenar, a 5-10, 180 lb. wide receiver from Omaha, Neb., who is a senior at Millard West High School. Sklenar received honorable mention all-division honors as a senior when he caught 11 passes for 215 yards and two touchdowns for an average of 19.5 yards per catch. He also handled the team’s kickoff duties and averaged 49.2 yards per kickoff.
Matt Thayer, a 6-4, 225 lb. tight end from Bellevue East High School in Nebraska. Thayer caught 14 passes for 133 yards and two touchdowns and had 51 knockdown blocks during his senior season. Thayer also had 12 tackles as a defensive end.
Corey Woslager, a 6-3, 205 lb. tight end-defensive end from Pierce High School in Nebraska. He earned first-team all-district honors and was a first-team Class C-1 all-state selection of both the Omaha World-Herald and the Lincoln Journal-Star as a defensive lineman this past season. Woslager had 14 solos and 29 assists for 43 total tackles to go along with three quarterback sacks and seven tackles for losses during his senior campaign. Offensively he caught seven passes for 105 yards and three touchdowns.
The recruits will join a Morningside football program that has ranked among the nation’s finest in the NAIA ranks over the past four seasons. The Mustangs have been NAIA National Playoff participants each of the past four seasons and have advanced to at least the quarterfinals each of the last three years. Morningside posted a 9-3 record last season and has a 38-10 record for a .792 winning percentage over the past four campaigns.
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