Blake Kragnes (L) and Rylie Sheridan were named MIAC Offensive and Special Teams Players of the Week.
Blake Kragnes (L) and Rylie Sheridan were named MIAC Offensive and Special Teams Players of the Week.
Posted: Nov 06, 2017

Kragnes & Sheridan Earn MIAC Honors

MOORHEAD, Minn. (11/06/17)---A pair of underclassmen earned MIAC Player of the Week honors after helping Concordia beat St. Olaf 54-12 to retain possession of the Troll Trophy in the annual Lefse Bowl.

Sophomore quarterback Blake Kragnes and freshman return man Rylie Sheridan earned conference player of the week honors for the first time in their careers and became the third and fourth players this season to earn the weekly award. Chad Johnson won MIAC Offensive Player of the Week honors on two occasions and Dallas Raftevold was named the MIAC Defensive Player of the Week on Sept. 11.

It's the first time since Sept. 11 that the Cobbers have had multiple players earn MIAC Player of the Week honors in the same week.

Kragnes was named the MIAC Offensive Player of the Week after rushing for three touchdowns, including the game-winning score, and throwing his first collegiate TD pass against the Oles. Kragnes also posted his first collegiate 100-yard rushing game as he ran for 107 yards on 13 carries.

Kragnes was also 9-for-15 for 97 yards through the air and he connected on a 20-yard scoring strike to Michael Heitzman.

Kragnes helped the Cobber offense gain 508 total yards which included 411 rushing yards. It marked the fourth straight game that CC has gained over 400 yards in total offense and 330 rushing yards.

Sheridan was the surprise impact player of the game against St. Olaf. He was named the MIAC Special Teams Player of the Week for his electrifying kickoff return where he sprinted 80 yards for a touchdown. Sheridan's return to the end zone came in the fourth quarter after St. Olaf scored its first touchdown of the game.

Sheridan's kickoff return for a TD marked the first time since 2013 that the Cobbers have returned a kickoff for a score.

Sheridan had two kickoff returns in the game and amassed 100 return yards. He helped the Cobbers jump into first place in the MIAC in kickoff return average. CC is now averaging 23.1 yards per kickoff return this year.

Kragnes and Sheridan will hope to continue the team's success when they travel to Collegeville to take on No.6-ranked St. John's on Saturday, Nov. 11 at 1 p.m.