When a team wins a football state championship game with a 47-0 blowout, you can bet that there are some talented individuals on that squad. That is the case with Dell Rapids, as the Quarriers placed six individuals on the Class 11A All-State Team to lead all squads.
Those players include five seniors who guided Dell Rapids to an 11-1 record and their third state title in a row, along with sophomore sensation Riley Schmidt. Schmidt was selected as the special teams player, as he averaged over 32 yards on kick returns and nearly 22 yards on 12 punt returns.
"Riley is an electric player and made big plays in all aspects of the game - offense, defense and special teams," Dell Rapids head coach Steven Hansen said.
Schmidt led the Quarriers in all-purpose yards (1407) and touchdowns (15).
State runner-up Harrisburg placed four individuals in the All-State squad, while Dakota Valley and Tea each had four players named. West Central and Spearfish rounded out the teams with three apiece.
Teams are chosen by the South Dakota football coaches Association and released by the South Dakota Sportswriters Association. Twenty-six of the 28 individuals selected are seniors, with Schmidt (So.) and Tea Area's Cooper Hansen (Jr.) the lone non-seniors chosen.
|OFFENSE|
Quarterback: Andrew McCuen, Harrisburg. McCuen led the Tigers to the DakotaDome with 1,600 yards passing and 891 yards rushing along with 28 total touchdowns (16 passing, 12 rushing).
Fullback: Cole Langer, Dell Rapids. The 245-pound bruiser rushed 91 times for 800 yards - 8.8 average - and 13 touchdowns for the state champion Quarriers. 2012 is the third consecutive year that Langer has been named to the 11A All-State team.
Running Back: Tanner Lambert, Dakota Valley. Lambert led the Panthers with 1,759 rushing yards on 255 attempts - 6.9 average - and also scored 17 touchdowns. He is a repeat 11A All-State selection.
Running Back: Nate Rotert, Spearfish. Rotert led the Spartans to the 11A semifinals with 15 touchdowns. He had 127 carries for 1,245 yards (9.8 average) and 19 receptions for 199 yards (10.5 average).
Wide Receiver: Mitchell Nissen, Tea Area. He led the Titans with 26 receptions for 517 yards (19.9 yard per catch) and three touchdowns.
Wide Receiver: Trevor DeSchepper, Harrisburg. DeSchepper caught 39 passes for 840 yards (21.5 average) and 12 touchdowns.
Tight End: Bryce Koch, Dell Rapids. Koch caught 16 passes for 470 yards (29.4 average) and seven touchdowns.
Offensive Tackle: Nick Buckley, Dakota Valley. Buckley was a key blocker for over 3,500 yards of total offense for the Panthers.
Offensive Tackle: Ryan Radzak, Harrisburg. He anchored the line for an explosive Tigers team that reached the 11A state finals.
Guard: Cole Jorgensen, West Central. Jorgensen led an offensive line that helped the Trojans to put up 32.4 points and 237 rushing yards per game in 2012.
Guard: Nate Schroeder, Tea Area. Schroeder played a key role in the Titans' winning season.
Center: Ryan Kornely, Todd County. A four-year starter, Kornely made all line and protection calls and was the leader of an offensive line that helped Todd County rush for over 2500 yards this season.
|DEFENSE|
Defensive End: Mitch Brockhaus, West Central. Brockhaus recorded 36 tackles - 13 for a loss - and had seven sacks.
Defensive End: Lane DeBrun, Dell Rapids. Recorded 14 tackles on the 11A state champion squad that shut out Harrisburg 47-0 in the title game.
Defensive Tackle: Carson Creel, Harrisburg. Creel recorded 72 tackles - 20 for loss - and also posted two sacks and one interception.
Defensive Tackle: Jackson Entringer, Dell Rapids. He recorded 28 tackles this season.
Linebacker: Taylor Lambert, Dakota Valley. Lambert recorded a team-record 120 tackles and had five sacks as well as two fumble recovers and two blocked punts.
Linebacker: Jacob Dancler, Tea Area. Dancler led the Titans in tackles for the fourth year in a row with 92.
Linebacker: Wade Lockhart, Hot Springs. Lockart led Hot Springs with 77 total tackles and also recovered four fumbles and had two interceptions.
Linebacker: Mike Deichert, Spearfish. Deichert led the Spartans defensively with 102 total tackles and two sacks along with four blocked punts and two fumbles forced and recovered.
Defensive Back: Eric Krizan, West Central. Krizan recorded 23 tackles, one interception and one fumble recovery for the Trojans.
Defensive Back: Andrew Reiff, Dakota Valley. Reiff recorded 36 tackles and caught eight interceptions while posting seven pass break-ups.
Defensive Back: Jacob Morris, Dell Rapids. Morris recorded 28.5 tackles and had two interceptions.
Defensive Back: Zack Koosman, Lennox. Koosman recorded 32 tackles and had five interceptions.
|SPECIAL TEAMS|
Kicker: Cooper Hansen, Tea Area. Hansen converted two field goals with a long of 36 yards and also was 26-33 on extra points.
Punter: Mason Kaitfors, Spearfish. Kaitfors averaged 36 yards on 24 punts with a long of 60 yards. He put 11 of the 24 punts inside the 20 yard-line and seven of those inside the five yard-line.
Special Teams Player: Riley Schmidt, Dell Rapids. Schmidt scored three touchdowns on 21 kick returns, averaging 32.7 yards per return. He also averaged 21.9 yards on 12 punt returns. Schmidt led the Quarriers with 1,407 all-purpose yards and was selected Outstanding Back and Joe Robbie MVP of the 11A state title game this year as a sophomore.
Long Snapper: Andy Buchele, Milbank Area. Buchele played a big role in Milbank Area's success the past three years and is a repeat selection as a Class 11A All-State performer, having been selected in 2011 as a wide receiver.
|HONORABLE MENTION|
Anthony Hopkins, Little Wound; Gunnar Ensz, Tea Area; Joe Hendrickson, Lennox; Hehaka Nunpa, Todd County; Jesse Trueblood, Pine Ridge; Brandon Joffer, Tea Area; Logan Radtke, Dakota Valley; Clyde Colombe, Todd County; Nick Jensen, Vermillion; Luke McFarland, Spearfish; Jacob Ricke, Madison; Jami Walters, Chamberlain; Shane Hansen, Hot Springs.