skip navigation

Al Toon Award Finalists for top senior wide receiver or tight end

10/29/2014, 5:30pm CDT
By Travis Wilson

The Al Toon Award is given annually to the state's top senior wide receiver or tight end as part of the WSN Senior Football Awards. The award is named after former University of Wisconsin athlete Al Toon, who went on to play in the NFL for several very successful seasons before multiple concussions ended his career early. Toon is an active member of the community in the Madison area both in the business world and in various charitable endeavors.
 
The pre-season watch list was trimmed down to 15 semi-finalists, and five finalists for the award have now been selected. Winners are announced the week of the state finals.
 
Al Toon Award Finalists:

Mitchell Dess, South Milwaukee - Dess was a contributor for the Rockets last season but really came into his own as a senior. The 5-11, 170-pound wideout hauled in 65 passes for 1092 yards and 14 touchdowns in 10 games for head coach Derek Hoff. "He gets the little technique things that most kind can't even comprehend," said Hoff. "Stemming and alignment on his routes, setting up defenders after the catch, catching the ball at its peak and not bringing it to your body right away, rather turning away before you do so." Dess has the most productive yardage day in the state this year, hauling in 10 catches for 317 yards and 4 touchdowns in a 56-41 win over Pewaukee in Week 8.

Matt Kinderman, Xavier - "Matt's performance has been best versus quality opponents," head coach Dave Hinkens said. "Versus Freedom we threw the ball to matt on three 4th down conversions in the fourth quarter. He played great versus the playoff teams on our schedule: Little Chute (5/151/1), Seymour (9/150/2), Freedom (8/103), Berlin (9/131/3), Waupaca (10/127/1)." On the season Kinderman had 71 catches for 1146 yards and 14 touchdowns, and over the past two years leads the state in catches, yards, and touchdowns.

Connor Konshak, West De Pere - Konshak showed great promise as a sophomore but missed much of his junior campaign with an injury. He showed he's back to being an elite playmaker in the Phantoms' high-powered offense, hauling in 54 catches for 1136 yards and 22 touchdowns this season, averaging 21 yards per catch. His 22 TD's tied a state record. "You have his statistics but they don't tell the entire story," said head coach Jack Batten. "Connor is an excellent blocker as well. He plays tight end in our two tight end set and is physical at the point of attack. He is also an excellent blocker in the open field and has made countless downfield blocks on Dom Conway's big runs." Konshak had 4 catches for a season-high 184 yards and 3 touchdowns in a 49-20 playoff victory over Luxemburg-Casco.

Jake Libal, Superior - Libal has been the favorite receiver for Dave Krieg Award finalist Nick Mehlum this season as the Spartans took home an outright Big Rivers title. He caught 69 passes for 1234 yards and 17 touchdowns in 12 games, adding a pair of touchdowns in the return game as well. In a three-game stretch to end the season and clinch the conference title, Libal hauled in 26 passes for 495 yards and 5 scores.

Jake Matkovich, Marquette - Matkovich has been at the top of the state's receiving leaderboard most of the season, and leads the way in catches, yards, and is tied for most in touchdowns heading into the state finals. "Jake runs routes that are hard for a defensive back to cover, and he high-points the ball like a player that has been in college for a couple of seasons. He rarely drops the ball, even in practice," said head coach Jeff Mazurczak. Matkovich caught 100 passes for 1725 yards and 22 touchdowns this season, with at least 6 catches, 80 yards, and one scoring catch in all but one game this year. Matkovich set a new state record with his receiving yardage total, and his TD number ties a state record.

Tag(s): News Archive  News  Travis Wilson  Senior FB Awards