ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) announced the recipients of the 2025 football awards on Thursday. The awards are nominated and voted on by the UMAC football head coaches. Only conference statistics are taken into consideration for the awards.
Jamarrius Courtney of Crown was named the Offensive Player of the Year. The sophomore quarterback led the UMAC in rushing yards (1,039) and 13 TDs. He added 558 passing yards to rank second in total offense (1,597 yards).
Jeremiah Belizaire of Westminster was named the Defensive Player of the Year. The sophomore defensive lineman led the league in TFLs (18.5) and sacks (12) and added 40 total tackles (26 solo and 14 assisted.)
LaShawn Williams of Greenville was named Special Teams Players of the Year. He had seven kick returns for 196 yards and one TD for an average of 28.0 yards/return in conference games.
Donovan Quinzy from Crown was selected as the Offensive Lineman of the Year. This is the first season the lineman of the year was awarded to an offensive and defensive player. Quinzy was part of a unit that only gave up six sacks over the seven conference contests. He also helped pave the way for the Polars’ running attack which averaged 208.9 yards/game.
Belizaire and Jakalyn Roy from Crown were voted as the Co-Defensive Linemen of the Year. Belizaire’s accomplishments are listed previously. Roy, a freshman, was second in TFLs (16.0), third in sacks (6.5) and had 47 total tackles in UMAC games.
Crown head coach Anthony Franz was named the Coach of the Year. In his fifth season, Franz led the Polars to a 6-1 record in conference play to win the UMAC Championship for the first time in program history.
Martin Luther won the team sportsmanship award, an accolade that is selected by the UMAC coaches and awarded to the team that best represents sportsmanship throughout the entire season. Each team also had one representative earn All-Sportsmanship honors.
Offensive Player of the Year: Jamarrius Courtney, Crown
Defensive Player of the Year: Jeremiah Belizaire, Westminster
Special Teams Player of the Year: LaShawn Williams, Greenville
Offensive Lineman of the Year: Donovan Quinzy, Crown
Defensive Lineman of the Year: Jeremiah Belizaire, Westminster
Defensive Lineman of the Year: Jakalyn Roy, Crown
Coach of the Year: Anthony Franz, Crown
Team Sportsmanship: Martin Luther
First-team All-Conference (offense)
| OL |
Donovan Quinzy |
Crown |
Jr. |
Orlando, Fla./Lake Nona |
| OL |
Terry Janssen |
Greenville |
Sr. |
Metropolis, Ill./Massac County |
| OL |
Robert Perry |
Martin Luther |
Jr. |
Bruce, S.D. /Great Plains Lutheran |
| OL |
Robbie Hussey |
Northwestern |
So. |
Bay Village, Ohio/Westside Christian Academy |
| OL |
Timothy Manning |
Martin Luther |
Sr. |
New Ulm, Minn./Luther Prep |
| OL |
Jonathan Martin |
Crown |
So. |
Zimmerman, Minn./Zimmerman |
| WR |
LaShawn Williams |
Greenville |
So. |
Eustis, Fla./Eustis |
| WR |
Thomas Koelpin |
Martin Luther |
Sr. |
Folsom, Calif./Luther Prep |
| WR |
Jude Pederson |
Martin Luther |
Jr. |
Andover, Minn./Luther Prep |
| TE |
Cooper Tillman |
Greenville |
Gr. |
Pea Ridge, Ark./Pea Ridge |
| QB |
Jamarrius Courtney |
Crown |
So. |
Minneapolis, Minn./Chaska |
| QB |
Brady Turriff |
Martin Luther |
So. |
Lancaster, S.C./Sun Valley |
| RB |
Terrel Graves |
Greenville |
So. |
Roxana, Ill./Roxana |
| RB |
Arthur Robinson |
Martin Luther |
So. |
New Ulm, Minn./Luther Prep |
First-team All-Conference (defense)
| DL |
Jeremiah Belizaire |
Westminster |
So. |
Miami Gardens, Fla./North Miami Beach |
| DL |
Jakalyn Roy |
Crown |
Fr. |
Lafeytte, La./Carencro |
| DL |
DJ Fowler |
Westminster |
Jr. |
Jonesboro, Ark./Westside |
| DL |
Greg Reese |
Greenville |
Sr. |
Hume, Ill./Shiloh |
| DL |
Chayce Meyer |
Minnesota Morris |
Sr. |
Osakis, Minn./Osakis |
| DL |
Samual Tillman |
Greenville |
Sr. |
Pea Ridge, Ark./Pea Ridge |
| LB |
Gregory Ohman |
Minnesota Morris |
Sr. |
Lake Nebagamon, Wis./Northwestern |
| LB |
Elias Velasquez |
Greenville |
Sr. |
Orange City, Fla./University |
| LB |
Ian Ahrendt |
Northwestern |
Jr. |
Nevis, Minn./Nevis Public |
| LB |
Jason Colonius |
Westminster |
Fr. |
Eldon, Mo./School of the Osage |
| DB |
Rudy Criner |
Crown |
Gr. |
San Antonio, Texas/Cornerstone Christian |
| DB |
Carlis Wilson Jr |
Greenville |
So. |
Madison, Ill./Madison |
| DB |
Juan Garza |
Minnesota Morris |
Jr. |
Rupert, Idaho/Minico |
| DB |
Campton Hicks |
Westminster |
So. |
Edna, Texas/Edna |
| DB |
Jeremiah Stanton |
Martin Luther |
Sr. |
Milwaukee, Wis./Luther Prep |
First-team Special teams
| Kicker |
Micah Koschnitzke |
Martin Luther |
Sr. |
Waukesha, Wis./Wisconsin Lutheran |
| Long Snapper |
Cole Harrell |
Westminster |
Jr. |
Columbia, Mo./David H Hickman |
| Kick Returner |
LaShawn Williams |
Greenville |
So. |
Eustis, Fla./Eustis |
| Punter |
William Corley |
Westminster |
Jr. |
Tipton, Mo./Tipton |
| Punt returner |
Juan Garza |
Minnesota Morris |
Jr. |
Rupert, Idaho/Minico |
Second-team All-Conference (offense)
| OL |
Andrew Purcell |
Minnesota Morris |
Sr. |
Campbell, Minn./Tri-State |
| OL |
William Luce |
Greenville |
So. |
Ludington Mich./Ludington |
| OL |
Vince Howard |
Westminster |
Fr. |
St. Louis, Mo./Mehlville |
| OL |
Max Siegel |
Northwestern |
So. |
Rochester, N.Y./Maricopa |
| OL |
Phillip Torres |
Crown |
Jr. |
Fresno, Calif./San Joaquin Memorial |
| WR |
Keegan Zdybel |
Westminster |
Sr. |
Slater, Mo./Slater |
| WR |
Braeden Little |
Northwestern |
Fr. |
Ladysmith, Wis./Ladysmith |
| WR |
Conner Coffey |
Westminster |
Jr. |
Hermann, Mo./Hermann |
| WR |
Trey Ulmer |
Northwestern |
So. |
West Melbourne, Fla. Heritage |
| TE |
Carter Watnaas |
Minnesota Morris |
Sr. |
Osakis, Minn./Osakis |
| QB |
Basil Demco |
Northwestern |
Sr. |
Fontana, Wis./Big Foot |
| QB |
Trey Thomas |
Westminster |
Jr. |
Red Oak, Texas/Bishop Dunne Catholic |
| RB |
Trace Helsel |
Westminster |
Sr. |
Fulton, Mo./South Callaway |
| RB |
Keaton Sargent |
Northwestern |
So. |
Manhattan, Mont./Manhattan |
| RB |
Devin Williams |
Crown |
So. |
Osseo, Minn./Osseo |
Second-team All-Conference (defense)
| DL |
Jesus Medina |
Martin Luther |
So. |
Blue Mounds, Wis./Luther Prep |
| DL |
Andrew Esmay |
Martin Luther |
Jr. |
Temple, Texas/Luther Prep |
| DL |
Hakeem Anderson |
Northwestern |
So. |
Cuero, Texas/Cuero |
| DL |
Dylan Young |
Minnesota Morris |
Jr. |
Little Falls, Minn./Little Falls |
| DL |
Millicent Grear |
Crown |
Sr. |
Pflugerville, Texas/Connally |
| LB |
Alex Goly |
Westminster |
Jr. |
Sullivan, Mo./Sullivan |
| LB |
Luke Johnson |
Crown |
Sr. |
Eagan, Minn./Lakeville North |
| LB |
Jayden Goodwin |
Northwestern |
Sr. |
New Richmond, Wis./Saint Croix Central |
| LB |
Kevion Davis |
Crown |
So. |
Phoenix, Ariz./Cesar Chavez |
| LB |
Gideon Cruver |
Northwestern |
Jr. |
Fayetteville, Ga./Landmark Christian |
| DB |
Daronne Wright |
Westminster |
So. |
St. Louis, Mo./Hazelwood Central |
| DB |
Eddie Hallowanger |
Crown |
Jr. |
Cottage Grove, Minn./Park |
| DB |
Austin Ahrendt |
Northwestern |
So. |
Nevis, Minn./Nevis Public |
| DB |
Jaylen Gray |
Crown |
Fr. |
Monroe, La./Dallas Christian |
| DB |
Thomas Balge |
Martin Luther |
Sr. |
New Ulm, Minn./Luther Prep |
Second-team All-Conference (Special Teams)
| Kicker |
William Corley |
Westminster |
Jr. |
Tipton, Mo./Tipton |
| Long Snapper |
Gregory Ohman |
Minnesota Morris |
Sr. |
Lake Nebagamon, Wis./Northwestern |
| Kick Returner |
Juan Garza |
Minnesota Morris |
Jr. |
Rupert, Idaho/Minico |
| Punter |
Reichen Hoekstra |
Crown |
So. |
Forest Lake, Minn./Forest Lake |
| Punt returner |
Braeden Little |
Northwestern |
Fr. |
Ladysmith, Wis./Ladysmith |
| Punt returner |
Jaylin Morrow |
Greenville |
Fr. |
San Antonio, Texas/Davenport |
| Punt returner |
Aidan Szczodroski |
Westminster |
Fr. |
Hallsville, Mo./Hallsville |
All-Sportsmanship
| Crown |
Nico Herrera |
Sr. |
San Antonio, Texas/Saint Gerard Catholic |
| Greenville |
Caelab Webb |
Sr. |
Urbana, Ill./Urbana |
| Martin Luther |
Thomas Balge |
Sr. |
New Ulm, Minn./Luther Prep |
| Minnesota Morris |
Orion Knakmuhs |
Sr. |
Walnut Grove, Minn./Westbrook-Walnut Grove |
| Northwestern |
Cody Duffy |
Sr. |
Columbus, Ga./Chattahoochee County |
| Westminster |
Brandon Kertz |
Jr. |
O'Fallon, Mo./Liberty |