By Frank Rajkowski, SJU Writer/Video Producer

COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. - The first season of Fan Controlled Football is in the books.

And former Saint John's University All-American quarterback Jackson Erdmann emerged as one of the league's brightest stars, both on and off the field. 

Meanwhile, his team ended up winning the whole thing.

Erdmann and the rest of the Wild Aces defeated the Glacier Boyz 46-40 in the People's Championship March 20 on a game-winning touchdown run by Erdmann's fellow quarterback Ed Crouch as time expired.

Erdmann – better known in league circles as @jerdydude on Twitch and Twitter – was the starter, but he and Crouch (who played at NAIA McPherson College) rotated at quarterback and both played key roles as their team rattled off 20 unanswered points in a come-from-behind victory.

"That was crazy," Erdmann said. "It was such a super-fun game to be part of. I'm just glad we ended up on top. In a way, it reminded me of the Wheaton game (in the NCAA playoffs) my senior year (which the Johnnies won 34-33). In both games, I was on the sideline down the stretch and I was just pacing around going crazy.

"(Crouch) did a great job on that last play. It was supposed to be a hand-off, but he saw what the defense was doing and kept it himself. Thank goodness it was him in there and not me because he's a much better runner than I am."

Erdmann made quite an impact himself, though. He was selected to be the Wild Aces' franchise-tagged player for the team's inaugural season. And he threw a highlight-clip touchdown pass late in the first half of the People's Championship.

In the postgame video clip tweeted out on the Wild Aces team account, Erdmann was all smiles, yelling out "The Ace is Wild Baby! Let's Goooo!"

It was a fitting ending to an adventure that began when he reported to the FCF bubble in the Atlanta area Jan. 11 to begin preparations for the start of play in the new league in which fans control virtually everything – right down to the plays Erdmann and the other quarterbacks run – through online voting.

The four-team league – whose games were streamed on Twitch, the popular gaming platform – featured celebrity owners like Vikings running back Dalvin Cook, other current and former NFL stars like Richard Sherman and Marshawn Lynch,  former Minnesota Twins, and now New York Mets, pitcher Trevor May and WNBA standout Renee Montgomery, who won two titles as a member of the Minnesota Lynx.

Among the owners of the Wild Aces are San Diego Chargers running back Austin Ekeler, humorous online personality Greg Miller and Rachel Lindsay, the star of the 13th season of The Bachelorette.

Legendary quarterback Joe Montana was an advisor to the league. And among the league's players were high-profile names like former Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel.

"FCF did a great job of drawing people from all these different areas," Erdmann said. "And that really did a lot to increase visibility."

Including for Erdmann, who with his fun-loving jerdydude persona, drew a ton of attention on social media, including the creation of the hashtag #TagJerdy. 

That, in turn, led to a ton of interview requests and appearances on the league's podcasts.

"The league helped so much when it came to building our own brands," Erdmann said. "They had Twitch workers in the hotel where we were staying to teach us all the ins and outs. Now, because of the league, I've been able to monetize my Twitch account and people subscribe to watch my streams.

"One of the images of me that really took off was a picture (former SJU wide receiver) Will Gillach '19 took at a party in St. Joe. It's me in a headband wearing sunglasses. A lot of fans took it and photoshopped me into different places. I made t-shirts and sold them. 

"So there was so much support."

But Erdmann said that would not have been possible were it not for the base of SJU football supporters he already had.

"I owe all of those people so many thanks," he said. "This is a league where you have to show you can connect with fans off the field before you even get on it. So having all that support from fans of Saint John's helped a lot."

And now that he has won a championship in FCF, Erdmann is once again turning his attention to getting a look in the NFL or the Canadian Football League. To that end, he will take part in the Pro Day at the University of Minnesota on April 1, throwing passes to Gophers standout wide receiver Rashod Bateman – a projected first-round pick – among others.

"Hopefully some opportunities will come from that," Erdmann said. "I know there will be a lot of scouts there. I'm just happy to be having a Pro Day. I was supposed to be part of (the U of M Pro Day) last year, but it was called off because of the (COVID-19) pandemic.

"So now I have another shot and we'll see what comes next."

But if an opportunity fails to materialize in the NFL or CFL, Erdmann said he would be excited about returning for a second season in the FCF next year.

"My experience in FCF blew all of my expectations out of the water," he said. "There were so many great people involved and they really take care of the players. They are building a league the right way and I would be honored to come back if they'd have me."