10 Huskies Named All-District Football

After winning their fifth straight section title and finishing second in the Red Division of the Big Southeast District, Owatonna High School football landed ten players on the All-District list. Huskies coach Jeff Williams included a few comments on each player in an email sent to the media this week.

Payton Beyer, senior wide receiver and captain, 49 receptions for 694 yards, six touchdowns. Beyer finishes at No. 3 on the OHS all-time receivers list. He had three interceptions and three pass breakups. Beyer's 38.1-yard average on punts was second best in school history.

"Payton is one of the most naturally gifted players to ever put on a blue jersey."

-Williams

Zach Stransky, senior defensive back and captain, 45 total tackles, a fumble recovery, a forced fumble, a safety, 2.5 sacks. He led the team in defensive points.

"Zach is a multifaceted defensive back for us. He is strong in coverage, but also has the ability to come up and make a bruising tackle."

-Williams

Brayden Trueslon, senior quarterback and captain, 103-for-171 for 1,186 yards and 11 touchdowns. He finishes his career with the second-most career passing yards in school history with 3,753. He has 41 career TD tosses. Truelson's 62-percent completion rate is also second best all-time.

"Brayden has been everything you would ever want in a quarterback. He is smart and understands everything we are trying to do. He is hard-working and spends a tremendous amount of time studying video."

-Williams

Tanner Hall, senior running back, 157 carries for 715 yards and six touchdowns.

"Tanner really came into his own this year as our go-to back...This year, he knew the expectations were going to be high and he exceeded them...His 43 carries against Mayo in the section championship set the tone in the ground game and kept the chains moving."

-Williams

Nate Smith, senior defensive line, 20 total tackles, a pass deflection, a fumble recovery, a-half of a sack, fourth on the team in defensive points.

"Nate was a full-time two-way starter and that is very difficult to do in the line...He was a big-time playmaker on defense and finished fourth on the team in points. That's tough to do as an interior lineman."

-Williams

Gavin Rein, senior offensive line.

"Gavin was the anchor of both our offensive and defensive lines. As a second-year starter at nose, he ate up blocks and made plays. Teams did not move the ball we between the tackles. As the center, Gavin was the quarterback of the line."

-Williams

Connor Budach, senior outside line backer, 30 total tackles, two fumble recoveries, three pass deflections, one interception, 3.5 sacks, finished second in defensive points.

"Connor was a game-changer from the outside linebacker position. He was disruptive on every snap and made some huge plays for us on the edge...Connor also did a great job at tight end and had an uncanny ability to get open in scramble situations and bail us out."

-Williams

Grant Achterkirch, junior linebacker, 50 total tackles to lead the team, a sack and two forced fumbles.

"We have a tradition of great 'mike' linebackers and Grant has elevated himself into that position as well. A very sure and tough tackler, he also takes great angles and puts himself in a position to make big plays. That was never more apparent than his huge forced fumble on fourth-and-two in the waning moments of the section championship game."

-Williams

Matt Seykora, senior outside linebacker and captain, three sacks, a fumble recovery, a forced fumble, a pass deflection (honorable mention).

"No one worked harder this off-season to prepare than Matt. He had a superb first half of the season...It was tough to lose him to injury in the Monticello game."

-Williams

Eli Spurgeon, junior lineman, one safety, one sack (honorable mention).

"Eli was another one of our two-way starters in the line. His ability as both a run and pass blocker improved significantly throughout the season. He also did a superb job on the left side of our defensive line and made it tough sledding to run in that direction."

-Williams