Jasper Korn named football’s Most Valuable Player

Scott Swanson

Jasper Korn was named Most Valuable Player for the Sweet Home football team at its awards dinner Tuesday, Nov. 19.

Head Coach Dustin Nichol said the senior wide receiver was one of five candidates for the honor, voted on by players.

Korn “ran away with the votes,” Nichol said. “There was no question of how this went.”

He and other coaches said Korn has always displayed talent, which was a reason he was a starter as a sophomore and junior.

“Last year he had a tough season,” Nichol said. “He just showed up to practice. He brought his lunchbox to work.”

Assistant Coach Ryan Adams told how, even as a freshman, Korn would get “pretty upset with himself” when he dropped a pass.

“This kid wanted to do well, he wanted to compete, he wanted to be successful. He never complained.”

That translated into a “super successful season” this year in which Korn caught “nearly every ball thrown his way,” Adams said.

Korn, who finished the season tied with Zach Luttmer for receptions with 26, was also fourth in tackles, with 15 in six games, all unassisted. He was also named Offensive MVP.

Assistant Coach Jay Horner introduced senior linebacker Iakona Howerton as Defensive MVP.

He said Howerton, who was third in tackles with 22, 14 of them unassisted, provided needed leadership on the field for the Huskies, who lost multiple two-way starters to injuries this season.

“He did a good job of finding (Ryan) Adams on the sideline for the play call and if he couldn’t find Adams, he’d look up at the booth to try to find me. If he couldn’t find me, he’d make the call.”

Horner said Howerton drew some “harsh criticism” early in the season, “but he learned from it.

“He made huge improvement form the Banks game to the end of the season.”

The Best Offensive Back award was shared by senior Gavin Nichols and junior Cade Gaskey, who were key members of a “running back by committee” arrangement that Nichol said he instituted because all his running backs were also defensive starters. Voting was tight, he said.

“One vote separated the two of these from the other players,” Nichol said.

Gaskey finished with 44 carries for 229 yards and Nichols had 195 yards on 50 carries for the Huskies, who totaled 960 yards on the ground for the season.

Best Defensive Back went to Howerton and Korn.

Assistant Coach Brent Gaskey, presenting the award, said Howerton has progressed from being “a little tentative” as a sophomore starter to, as a senior, handling “anything we could throw at him.”

“He did an awesome job in the middle. He kept things from turning into big players, which we would have been able to if we hadn’t had somebody of his caliber there,” Gaskey said.

Adams said Korn “was fun to watch” at the safety position as he improved throughout the season.

“Safety requires talent that not everybody has, the ability to read and react,” Adams said. “He came up and made hits. His improvement was cool. This is a well-deserved award.”

Howerton and senior Sevin Carson were named Best Offensive Lineman.

Assistant Coach Nathan Whitfield said Carson was “Mr. Reliable, that guy who isn’t affected by how the game went” in tough losses at Cascade and Estacada.

He said Howerton beame a leader on the offensive line, which included players whose sole experience in varsity football was this year.

Senior Carson Smith was named Best Defensive Lineman.

Smith skipped football as a sophomore and junior, but decided to try it again this season.

“It was a difficult thing to do,” Nichol said. “He came out, not knowing what was going to happen. All he did was just go.”

Most Inspirational Player was senior Tye Moore, introduced by Adams.

“This senior class was my first class – they were freshmen my first year of coaching,” he said. “This kid, it’s a well-deserved award. He’s a player always in the mix, always trying to motivate the team. He always wanted to win.”

Most Improved was junior Cole Baxter, who performed well as the season progressed, Adams said.

Practice Player Award recipients were junior Austin Marler and senior Isaac Schaffer, who, Brent Gaskey said, “gave everything on the field – stepping in, really getting the job done.”

The Richard Reynolds Coaches Award, which goes to players who may not make all-league or receive team awards, “but they come out to practice and give everything they’ve got,” went to seniors Smith and Zach Luttmer, juniors Austin Marler, Kyle Marler and Jake Fanning, and sophomore Tucker Weld.

Nichol said the honorees display good attitudes – “no back talk, no discussion, no debate. All they do is just go. They’re a ray of sunshine in sometimes dark situations. We’re getting most of these guys back. I can’t wait.”

He said he enjoyed coaching this year’s team, mostly because his own son and nephew played with them as far back as elementary school.

It was a difficult season, partly because the numbers and talent were there but it was a difficult season, marred by injuries to key players.

“These guys worked hard and did everything they could, but they just fell short,” Nichol said. “We were 6-3 last year and league champions. We were 3-6 this year. That’s just football.

“I’m proud of these guys. I’ve learned a lot from them, more than I think they learned from me.

“These guys are going to be good husbands, good fathers, good people going to work.”

Third-year letter winners were Kai Bryson, Sevin Carson, Paul Glyn, Iakona Howerton, Jasper Korn, David McMullen, Tye Moore, Gavin Nichols, Jackson Royer and Travis Thorpe.

Second-year letters went to Dax Ballinger, Cole Baxter, Kolton Ertsgaard, Cade Gaskey, Marc Kanngiesser, Isaac Schaffer, Owen Towry, Aiden Tyler, and Peyton Ullrich.

Earning their first letter were Jesse Burford, Trevor Carr, Jake Fanning, Keegan Fox, Camden Free, Colby Gazely, Russell Holly, Zach Luttmer, Austin Marler, Kyle Marler, Taylor Moore, Brayden Newport, Brock Nichols, Carson Smith, Tanner Waldrop and Tucker Weld.

Junior varsity certificate recipients were Kai Aiona, Kevin Banker, Charlie Crawford, Christian Dominy, Aiden Fox, Wyatt Hall, Jacob Ingram, Evan Jensen, Conner McMullen, Dakota Melkvik, Monte Johnston, Heath Nichol, Brady Nichols, Carson Perry, Morgan Sands, Jacob Sieminski, Dylan Spence, Trenton Smith, Josh Wilson, Micah Wright and Jeremy Zook.

The junior varsity team finished 5-3.

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