Wisconsin High School Sports | Wisconsin Sports Network | WisSports.net

Wisconsin Sports Network and WisSports.net are proud to announce Arrowhead senior Derek Landisch as the 2010 recipient of the John Anderson Award as the most outstanding senior linebacker in Wisconsin, part of the WSN Senior Football Awards.

Arrowhead tied for the Classic Eight title this season, and advanced to Level 2 of the WIAA playoffs before falling to Waukesha West. They allowed just 10.2 points per game this season, third best in Division 1, with Landisch being a big reason for the success.

One of the most explosive players in the state at the linebacker position, Landisch was a bit under the radar following last season when he missed significant time due to injury. That all changed when he was offered by and quickly committed to the University of Wisconsin over the summer. He played like he had something to prove still during the season however. Flying all over the field and exploding into ballcarriers and quarterbacks alike, Landisch impressed all those who had a chance to see him play.

Just this week Landisch was named not only a First Team All-State selection by the Wisconsin Football Coaches Association, but was chosen as the WFCA Defensive Player of the Year.

The senior received a strong recommendation from veteran head coach Tom Taraska who called him “a tremendous athlete, an outstanding player, and will be a great college football player.”

Finalists for the award were Landisch, Sam Arneson of Merrill, Jake Keefer of Baldwin-Woodville, Taylor Steinke of Monona Grove, and Derek Watt of Pewaukee.

The award is named after John Anderson, a former Waukesha South standout who received All-Conference and All-State recognition on both offense and defense for the Blackshirts. He would go on to star for the University of Michigan for four seasons where he twice earned All-Big Ten honors. Anderson would be selected by the Green Bay Packers in the first round of the 1978 NFL Draft and go on to a successful 12-year career. Upon his retirement he was the Packers all-time leader in tackles with 1,020 (the Packer only have stats compiled since 1975) and still holds that record today. He was named to the NFL's All-Decade team for the 1980's and the Packers Hall of Fame in 1996.

The voting panel for the WSN Senior Football Awards consisted of:  Nicholas Kartos, WSN President and Founder; Travis Wilson, WSN Content Manager; Dennis Semrau, Wisconsin State Journal; Justin Hull, AM 1570 The Score in Appleton; John Casper Jr., Eau Claire Leader-Telegram; Dan Barwick, WSN Associate Content Producer