Eleven Pioneers Earn WIAC Postseason Awards
PLATTEVILLE, Wis. – Eleven members of the University of Wisconsin-Platteville football team received All-WIAC recognition on Thursday, highlighted by Kwik Trip Defensive Player of the Year winner Justin Blazek and Kwik Trip Co-Special Teams Player of the Year in Andrew Schweigert. Seven Pioneers earned First Team honors, tied for the most in program history, to along with one Second Team, two Honorable Mentions, and one All-Sportsmanship.
PLATTEVILLE, Wis. – Eleven members of the University of Wisconsin-Platteville football team received All-WIAC recognition on Thursday, highlighted by Kwik Trip Defensive Player of the Year winner Justin Blazek and Kwik Trip Co-Special Teams Player of the Year in Andrew Schweigert. Seven Pioneers earned First Team honors, tied for the most in program history, to along with one Second Team, two Honorable Mentions, and one All-Sportsmanship.
Justin Blazek (First Team Defense & Kwik Trip Defensive Player of the Year)
Blazek was named Kwik Trip Defensive Player of the Year for the second straight season following another impressive season for the Pioneers defensive end. The senior led the conference with 7.5 sacks and 14.5 tackles for loss, with six sacks and 11 tackles for loss coming in the final five games. The Naperville, Illinois native finished with 53 tackles (30 solo, 23 assist), including a season-high 10 against UW-La Crosse. Blazek tied for the WIAC lead with three forced fumbles (recovering one) and intercepted two passes. The Pioneers found other ways to get Blazek on the field as well, as he scored four rushing touchdowns in goal line situations and even threw for another score.
Andrew Schweigert (First Team Special Teams & Kwik Trip Co-Special Team Players of the Year)
Schweigert was one of the top kickers in the conference this season and finished inside the top ten in the WIAC with 63 points. The senior went 10-of-14 on field goal attempts, with a season-long of 44 yards, and was nearly perfect on extra points tries at 33-of-34. The Sussex native tallied a season-high 15 points in a win over UW-Stevens Point and went a perfect 11-of-11 on extra point attempts in the season-opening win against Lakeland. Schweigert also averaged a conference-best 44.1 yards per punt, including a long of 66 yards, while placing three inside the 20-yard line. Eight of his 24 punts went for at least 50 yards, the most in the WIAC.
Brandt Stare (First Team Offense)
Stare was named First Team All-WIAC following a season that saw him lead the conference in all-purpose yards (133.2 per game) and receiving touchdowns (13). The senior wide receiver was second in the WIAC in receiving yards (885) and receptions (61) and matched the UW-Platteville record for single season touchdowns with 16. The Naperville, Illinois native found the end zone in every game and even threw for a score in the win over UW-Eau Claire on October 21. Stare went over 100 receiving yards five times, including a season-high 179 against UW-Stevens Point.
Tyler Bacon (First Team Defense)
Bacon earned a spot on the First Team Defense after finishing second in the WIAC in both sacks (6.0) and tackles for loss (10.5). The senior joined Blazek to create a strong defensive end combo and totaled 41 tackles (18 solo, 23 assist). The Johnston, Iowa native posted a season-high three sacks and 3.5 tackles for loss in the win over Dubuque on September and added another three tackles for loss against UW-Eau Claire on October 21 to earn WIAC Defensive Player of the Week. Bacon recovered one fumble and broke up five passes.
Colton Ingram (First Team Defense)
Ingram finished second on the team with 67 tackles (32 solo, 35 assist) while starting all 10 games for the Pioneers at linebacker. The senior tallied three sacks and seven tackles for loss, both good for fourth on UW-Platteville. The Byron, Illinois native added two interceptions and recovered one fumble and was named WIAC Defensive Player of the Week following a 10-tackle, one sack performance against UW-La Crosse. He recorded a career-high 14 tackles two weeks later against UW-Whitewater.
Sam Smith (First Team Defense)
Smith was second in the conference with 83 total tackles (43 solo, 40 assist) and was a key piece in the Pioneers conference-best rush defense from his linebacker position. The senior lived in opponents' backfields as he recorded career-bests in sacks (5.5) and tackles for loss (10), good for top three marks in the WIAC in both categories. The Pewaukee native intercepted one pass and reached double digit tackles in four games, including a season-high 13 twice against UW-Whitewater and UW-Oshkosh. In that win over the Titans, Smith posted 2.5 sacks and three tackles for loss, both of which were single game career bests.
Aidan Tyk (First Team Defense)
Tyk was third on the team with 62 tackles (46 solo, 16 assist) from his spot in the Pioneers secondary. The senior paced the Pioneers with three interceptions and tied for the conference lead with three forced fumbles. The Manhattan, Illinois native finished with 5.5 tackles for loss and broke up another six passes, while also blocking a kick. Tyk tallied a season-high nine tackles against Dubuque on September 9 and forced a pair of fumbles a week later against Michigan Tech.
Samuel Tausz (Second Team Defense)
Tausz finished fourth on the team with 54 tackles (33 solo, 21 assist) while starting all 10 games amid the UW-Platteville secondary. The senior made plays all over the field, tallying two sacks to go along with two interceptions and two fumble recoveries. The New Berlin native recorded a season-high nine tackles twice and posted three tackles for loss on the season.
Ryan Pearson (Honorable Mention Offense)
Pearson started all 10 games along a Pioneers offensive line that was one of the best in the conference. UW-Platteville allowed just 10 sacks on the season, the second fewest in the WIAC, and averaged 4.4 yards per carry, which was tied for the third-best mark.
Jack Dietzen (Honorable Mention Defense)
Dietzen played in all 10 games, finishing with 21 tackles including five tackles for loss. The senior was a part of the conference's top rush defense that allowed just 73.7 yards per game and 2.3 yards per attempt. The Omro native added half a sack on the year and closed the year with a tackle for loss in four of the final five games.
Gerrit Schomaker (All-Sportsmanship)
Schomaker was named to the All-Sportsmanship team for the second straight year and posted 15 tackles across nine games played along the UW-Platteville defensive line. The senior had a season-high five tackles against UW-Whitewater on October 28.