OLDS - Seven awards were presented and three all-stars were named during the 22nd annual École Olds High School Spartans football team banquet, held last in the high school commons.
The Rookie of the Year is Jesse Rylance; Lineman of the Year, Cayden Andrew; Player Contributing the Most, Tyler Honeyman; Top Defensive Player, Ryan Petersen; Top Offensive Player, Damien Pedersen; Most Valuable Player, Marcus Lorenz; Spartan Award, Lyle Krause.
The all-stars are running back Logan Wachtler, defensive lineman Nic Lonsbury, and receiver Damien Pedersen.
Head coach George Grant said Rylance improved immensely during the season.
He said Rylance was just one of many rookies who did well.
“A lot of the rookies earned themselves starting roles and they did an awesome job. Every game, every practice, we saw improvement,” Grant said.
“We really think that overall, this group of rookies that we have are going to be the strength of this team next year and definitely the year beyond.”
“The linemen need to be some of the smartest, most cohesive groups on the field, because they’re responsible for different combinations of problems that the opposing 12 coordinated members can cause,” defensive coordinator and defensive line coach Lyle Grover said.
“With the number of gaps and there are over 435,000 possible alignments a lineman has to deal with.”
He said Andrew really took to that job.
“He moves well. He’s open to coaching and had a very nice, quiet confidence in what he was doing. And he has demonstrated an excellent football IQ,” Grover said.
Grant said the award for the Player Contributing the Most with the Least Recognition goes to “a player who shows his dedication and isn’t looking necessarily for the limelight, but has the perseverance to continue to work to the best of his or her ability throughout the entire season.”
He said Honeyman did not miss a practice the entire season, which showed great dedication.
Grover said Petersen was named Top Defensive Player because he “led in so many ways, making sure he’d be ready to get in position to make the play and being able to approach us and express any concerns he had.
“Truth is that he has a really good deal of talent and he chose to speak with his actions on the field,” Grover added.
“He had a lot of memorable tackles and even a few shots at interceptions. I can’t wait to see what he brings next year.”
Offensive coach Yannick L’Abbe said the Top Offensive Player award usually goes to a player who is “the flashiest, makes the biggest plays.”
Pedersen may not be flashy, but L’Abbe indicated he’s very effective.
“He kind of reminds me of a squirrel. Squirrels are very small but very agile and very fast. And Damien, he did a great job getting open and getting around people,” he said.
L’Abbe also gave out the Team MVP award.
“There are a lot of reads at the quarterback position and Marcus did an amazing job at grasping that offence, which just goes to show the type of person that he is: very intelligent and loves the game of football,” he said.
Offensive coordinator Aaron Stramsmoe said the Spartan Award goes to a player who is the ideal teammate.
“They show up every day. They do their job. They help out the others,” he said, stressing it’s not an award that is presented every year. However, Krause kind of forced the coaches’ hand.
“This young man, he did something rather incredible in my personal opinion,” Stramsmoe said.
“Kyle played offence, Kyle played defence, Kyle played every special team.
“Kyle came off the field for – I think we counted about five downs of football, and that’s because he had a concussion, so we have to give him a pass on that one.
“Even once he got hurt, Kyle showed up every morning because, well, Kyle’s a teammate,” he added.
“Kyle is everything that exemplifies what a Spartan is and honestly, he’s everything that we should all aspire to be like in our own lives.
“This guy’s going to go amazing places and do amazing things in life.”
The crowd was told that all-stars haven’t been announced for years. The league, consisting of three teams, is very small.
However, this year, running back Logan Wachtler, defensive lineman Nic Lonsbury, and receiver Damien Pedersen got the nod.
Grant wrapped up the evening.
“If you look at the win-loss record, our season wasn’t great,” he said. The team had an 0-8 record.
“But if you take a look at the fun times that we had, the opportunities that we’ve had to laugh, there’s been an immense amount of growth in these young men, Grant said.
“This has never seemed like work. I enjoy getting here in the morning and working with these young men and having a great group of friends who are coaches with me.
“(I’m) always the optimist, there is next season. And we will be better next season.”
