Friday, November 2, 2012
Special teams and defense, two ingredients missing from the Elks' first two playoff wins, were the key in a 24-10 win over the Knights.
With a pass rush in his face, Cole Krutzig faded to fire from his quarterback position, deep in the St. Michael-Albertville end zone. He never saw the defender coming to read his intended throw. As Elk River defender Alex Plaisted grabbed the ball out of the air, he put the first nail into the coffin that was the STMA football season. The final nail came one play later, as Elk River punched in a 5-yard touchdown run, sealing a 24-10 victory in the Section 6-5A final. For the Elks, it was a "rising from the ashes" moment. The program was in complete turmoil just two years ago, when a hazing scandal saw a host of starters suspended from the team for an entire season, and the squad went winless in nine games (including a 50-12 loss to STMA…
Saturday, October 27, 2012
A second half defensive clinic has the Knights on the verge of its first State 5A Tournament birth.
Bennie Wilson broke through the offensive line, sized up Monticello quarterback Matt Bonk and sacked the Magic quarterback on fourth down, putting an exclamation point on a defensive clinic conducted by the Knights in the second half. St. Michael-Albertville topped Monticello 10-0 in the second game of its "Revenge Tour," earning a spot in the Section 6-5A finals this Friday night. The defense pitched a shutout, thanks to a front line that wrapped up Jake and Birk Olson of Monticello, and kept Bonk on his heels most of the game. When the Magic did get something going, the defense stiffened. And the day culminated with three sacks as the Magic were driving late in the fourth quarter. The Knights will now take on Elk River, who upended …
Thursday, August 30, 2012
In just his second year as head coach, Jared Essler has a conference contender on his hands. He'll need a bit of luck and a healthy squad to survive the new Mississippi 8.
It's been nearly a decade since St. Michael-Albertville football has seen the big spotlight, making their way through a playoff run, and feeling that articifial turf at the Metrodome. Now, the Knights are poised, under second-year coach Jared Essler, to return to the big dance. Two factors are pointing to signs of big success-one internal, the other external. First, the external. The Knights are part of the new Class 5A, with the top 32 team moved up to Class 6A. That means no more Maple Grove, Osseo or Wayzata standing in the way come playoff time. Instead, it will be more familiar foes in Section 6-5A, like Rogers, Monticello and North Suburban member (again) Elk River. Second, the Knights are simply loaded where it counts. They …
Saturday, January 21, 2012
An early route and late rally put the Knights in the driver’s seat for another Mississippi 8 Conference title, and the No. 1 seed in Section 7-3A
Bennie Wilson is used to making big plays on the football field. Thursday night, however, he took his talents to the wrestling mat, and came up big. Wilson, a junior in his first year of wrestling for the Knights’ varsity squad, filled in for STMA’s lone senior on Senior Night, and scored a major decision at 220 pounds. The big linebacker filled in for No. 1 ranked Nick Edling, who fractured a bone in his hand at the Kiffmeyer duals. With the Knights trailing 28-27 thanks to Mitch Eull’s pin at 195 pounds, Wilson was relentless in his match vs. Kyle Chromy, at one point chasing Chromy down and tackling him in the ring for a takedown. It was a microcosm of the night, which came down, as usual, to the last two matches. STMA rolled to a 21-3 …
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Carol Edling
10:28 am on Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Great article/coverage! more ›