Jackson County Central and Martin County West each have football players who are receiving recognition from the website Prep Redzone Next.
JCC has two players being noticed.
Freshman quarterback Roman Voss is on the National Watch List for the Class of 2026.
The 6-foot-3, 190-pounder is among 18 players from Minnesota on the list including four quarterbacks. Being named to the list is based on regular-season games, post-season events, and camp season performance.
Andy Wahl of Big Lake is a scout with Prep Redzone Next. He wrote this about Voss:
“It would surprise the average football consumer, but not me, as Roman started his work at the South Dakota State prospect camp by running the fastest pro agility among all quarterbacks that came out to the Jackrabbits camp in Brookings. The poise that Roman showed off inside the pocket in 1v1s was outstanding for a prospect his age as he showed a lot of upside with his accuracy on intermediate and deeper routes at SDSU. Even when I got to watch his tape with some off-balance throws after extending the play, Roman showed off an authentic release with a strong zipper on the football over the middle of the field. This young man shows so much grit at the quarterback position, as he shows a fearless demeanor to trust his instincts to thread the needle on higher-traffic throws he needs to make.
“I will second my colleague Al Popadines that Roman is a QB prospect college coaches should offer right now to assure they get in the mix first, not last as this young man is just starting his high school football journey and comes in as another high character kid for his age that I like off the field too.”
His older brother, Rudy, is a sophomore at South Dakota State.
Roman is also a second cousin of Rocky Lombardi, who started a handful of games at Michigan State and is now a senior at Northern Illinois. Lombardi was the Manning Award National Quarterback of the Week in 2020 when he finished 17-of-32 for a career-high 323 yards, with three TDs in a 27-24 win at No. 13 Michigan.
Also, JCC offensive lineman Cameron Scholten (6-0, 305) is on the Minnesota Watch List for the Class of 2023.
MCW has three players on the Class 1A preseason all-state team.
Max Olson (6-3, 225) is a selection on both sides of the football as he is first-team all-state on both the defensive and offensive lines.
Wyatt Williamson (6-3, 200) is on the first team as a linebacker, while Joseph Forsberg was a second-team choice at running back.
Jackson County Central opens its season Thursday, Sept. 1 at Maple River. Martin County West hosts St. James Area on Friday, Sept. 2.