By NICK BENES sports@norfolkdailynews.com
The 12th iteration of the Northeast Nebraska All-Star Football Classic started with something that had never happened in the first 11 times that the game was held. Everything after that simply solidified the established momentum.
Buoyed by a special-teams score, a pinpoint passing attack and a dominant first-half defense, the White Team left no doubt in a 42-22 decision that arguably wasn’t as close as the final score suggested.
“Those guys had a great week of practice. They’re great energy guys and super talented,” said White coach David Stoddard of Stanton. “It was just a great week. It was fun.”
The White Team’s construction of a 35-6 lead in the first half started immediately. Battle Creek graduate Aden Pochop jolted the Veterans Memorial Field crowd when he fielded the opening kickoff at his own 5, weaved through the coverage and sprinted down the opposing sideline for a 95-yard touchdown.
“Aden getting that kickoff return to start the game, that just kind of got things rolling,” Stoddard said.
In the process, Pochop etched his name into the record book for the game’s longest-ever kickoff return, breaking the old mark by 50 yards set eight years earlier by Grant Meyer of Logan View.
“It’s just such a deflator for any sort of energy that you have going into a game,” said Red coach Cody Volk of Pender. “One play in, 12 seconds off the board, and they’re already up 8-0. It’s hard to overcome that initially, and … everything snowballed pretty quickly for us.”
A coach-quarterback pairing that doubled as a father-son duo played a critical role for the White Team.
Oakland-Craig graduate Braylon Anderson, a Wayne State quarterback commit, completed 15 of 18 passes for 207 yards and two touchdowns on his way to being named White Team offensive MVP with Oakland-Craig coach Joe Anderson — Braylon’s father — serving as the offensive coordinator.
That passing attack coupled with Stanton’s power rushing duo of Barrett Wilke and Becker Pohlman. Wilke, who lined up as a running back alongside Braylon Anderson much of the night, rushed for 43 yards and two touchdowns, while Pohlman added 39 yards and another touchdown.
“Credit coach Anderson. He had a great game plan offensively,” Stoddard said. “The intricacies they put into their offense and the way they move the ball, and the weapons we had this week were unbelievable.”
Braylon Anderson threw two of those touchdowns to Oakland-Craig teammates, with Corbin Guill hauling in a 22-yard score to end the team’s first offensive possession for a 15-0 lead and Jeremiah Druckenmiller snagging a 15-yard pass on a slant route midway through the second quarter for a 28-6 lead.
“He’s a tremendous quarterback, and those receivers, they found their spots,” Volk said. “It was hard for us to keep up.”
In contrast, the Red Team managed a total of 3 yards in its first two possessions combined. That included a third-down sack by White defensive MVP Keaton Thiele of Summerland on the first drive that forced a punt.
By the time the first quarter ended, the Red Team was staring at a 21-0 deficit that included Pochop’s kickoff return, the Braylon Anderson-to-Guill touchdown and a 15-yard scoring run by Wilke.
The Red Team actually finished with more offensive yards, 361-350, thanks to its potent rushing attack. Tony Palmer of South Sioux City finished with 139 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries, and Wyatt Tramp of Crofton tacked on 97 yards on 13 carries.
“The game plan was to run the ball. We weren’t really going to go with a full house the way we did, but we did want to get Tony and Wyatt the ball quite a bit,” Volk said.
The Red Team finally got things going on its third possession with a 12-play, 80-yard drive that included 11 runs and ended with a sneak from quarterback Lincoln Konrad of West Holt.
But the White Team answered with a six-play, 75-yard drive that took less than two minutes off the clock and ended with Braylon Anderson zinging a pass to a wide-open Druckenmiller in the end zone, and the defense followed by forcing a turnover on downs with 2:46 left in the half.
In response, the White Team successfully completed its two-minute drill with more than a minute to spare, a drive that included three straight passes from Braylon Anderson to Alec Schindler of Summerland before Wilke’s pitch to Pohlman put it ahead 35-6 with 1:06 left before halftime.
After that, the White Team had the ball for just 1:10 in the second half until a late turnover.
“It was awesome,” the younger Anderson said. “We ran our stuff that we ran all year. We brought our wide receivers, and there were two kids from Summerland who picked up on the offense well. I felt like we were going to score every single drive we had it.”
The Red Team’s rushing attack took hold much of the second half, starting with a 10-play, 65-yard drive for a touchdown to pull within 35-14.
After that, the Red Team received the ensuing kickoff thanks to an all-star game rule that allowed it to get the ball back after scoring while still trailing by more than 17 points.
But the Red Team couldn’t take advantage with a turnover on downs, and the White Team used a 31-yard run by Jack Molt of Riverside and a 25-yard pass from Braylon Anderson to Guill to set up its final touchdown.
The Red Team added another score early in the fourth quarter but again couldn’t take advantage of its extra chance when Thiele recovered a fumbled snap with 4:06 to play.
“You’re a little sore, but when you think about all the friendships that you made and all of that, it’s just truly something that’s unexplainable,” Thiele said. “You’re playing against people that you’ve played with all throughout your life, and now you’re on the same team, and there’s no hard feelings. It’s a true friendship right there.”
White 21 14 0 7 — 42
Red 0 6 8 8 — 22
Scoring summary
FIRST QUARTER
W: Aden Pochop (Battle Creek) 95 kickoff return, Becker Pohlman (Stanton) run, 11:46.
W: Corbin Guill (Oakland-Craig) 22 pass from Braylon Anderson (Oakland-Craig), Cole Fundus (Norfolk) kick, 7:14.
W: Barrett Wilke (Stanton) 15 run, PAT failed, 1:52.
SECOND QUARTER
R: Lincoln Konrad (West Holt) 2 run, PAT failed, 8:08.
W: Jeremiah Druckenmiller (Oakland-Craig) 15 pass from Anderson, Fundus kick, 6:12.
W: Pohlman 8 run, Fundus kick, 1:06.
THIRD QUARTER
R: Tony Palmer (South Sioux City) 2 run, Palmer run, 6:45.
FOURTH QUARTER
W: Wilke 2 run, Fundus kick, 11:31.
R: Brayden McCorkindale (Tri County Northeast) 3 run, Cole Heimes (Hartington-Newcastle) run, 9:15.
Congratulations to Dan McLaughlin who was recognized as our NEN All Stars Football Classic 2025 Lifetime Achievement Award recipient. This award is given to an individual who has contributed significantly to the sport of football, has had an outstanding coaching career, and continues to be an incredible inspiration for so many.
Congratulations to Larry Wells on being recognized as our NEN All Stars Football Classic 2025 Outstanding Contributors Award recipient. This is given to an individual who has made significant and impactful contributions to football, our youth programs, and Northeast Nebraska. This award recognizes going above and beyond expected duties to achieve notable results.
Pictured with Larry Wells is Board President Andrew Carlson. Both men were honored at halftime at this year’s game played Friday, June 13, 2025.
2025 All Star Classic Awards
All Star Team Captains
White Team: Barrett Wilke (Stanton), Braylon Anderson (Oakland-Craig), Jaxon Mettler (Battle Creek), Becker Pohlman (Stanton)
Red Team: Braeden Reifenrath (West Holt), Lincoln Konrad (West Holt), Hayden Kelley (Norfolk Catholic), Tony Palmer (South Sioux City)
Most Valuable Teammates
White Team: Barret Wilke (Stanton) with Coach Dave Stoddard
Red Team: Tony Palmer (South Sioux City) with Coach Cody Volk
Defensive Valuable Players
Defensive Red Team Most Valuable Player: Hayden Kelley (Norfolk Catholic)
Defensive White Team Most Valuable Player: Keaton Thiele (Summerland)
Offensive Red Team Most Valuable Player: Tony Palmer (South Sioux City)
Offensive White Team Most Valuable Player: Braylon Anderson (Oakland-Craig) (pictured with his coach & father Joe Anderson)
