MIAC Release

COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. – Fifty-five Saint John's University football student-athletes earned 2024 Fall Academic All-MIAC recognition on Thursday, Jan. 23.

Those honored (listed alphabetically) include: 

-Junior wide receiver Owen Amrhein (Waconia, Minn.), an exercise and health science major with a 3.69 GPA;
-Junior safety Noah Arneson (Independence, Minn./Orono), a global business leadership major with a 4.0 GPA;
-Sophomore linebacker Henry Bendickson (St. Louis Park, Minn.), an accounting major with a 3.51 GPA;
-Senior linebacker Jack Bjork (Mahtomedi, Minn.), an economics and mathematics double-major with a 3.75 GPA; 
-Senior defensive lineman Jordan Borgeson (Rochester, Minn./Lourdes), a biochemistry major (pre-medicine emphasis) with a 3.92 GPA;
-Sophomore offensive lineman Michael Bougie (South St. Paul, Minn./Cretin-Derham Hall), a global business leadership major with a 3.53 GPA;
-Sophomore linebacker Jackson Carlson (Duluth, Minn./East), an accounting major with a 4.0 GPA;
-Senior running back Quinn Christoffersen (South St. Paul, Minn.), an exercise and health science major with a 3.57 GPA;
-Senior defensive back Mateo Cisneros (Shoreview, Minn./Mounds View), a biology major (pre-medicine emphasis) with a 3.88 GPA; 
-Senior linebacker Ben Dahl (Otsego, Minn./Rogers), a global business leadership major (pre-chiropractic emphasis) with a 3.93 GPA;
-Junior defensive lineman Riley DeRosier (Baxter, Minn./Brainerd), an accounting major with a 4.0 GPA;
-Junior quarterback Zander Dittbenner (Mankato, Minn./West), an elementary education major with a 4.0 GPA;
-Senior defensive lineman Zach Frank (Lino Lakes, Minn./Centennial), an accounting major with a 3.89 GPA;
-Junior tight end Joey Gendreau (Shorewood, Minn./Minnetonka), an exercise and health science and global business leadership double-major with a 3.50 GPA;
-Senior offensive lineman Spencer Gustin (St. Cloud, Minn./Tech), a global business leadership major with a 3.59 GPA;
-Sophomore kicker Matt Hansen (Longmont, Colo./Niwot), a global business leadership major with a 3.59 GPA;
-Sophomore defensive back Dylan Hanson (Savage, Minn./Prior Lake), a biology major (pre-medicine emphasis) with a 3.92 GPA;
-Sophomore tight end Andrew Harren (Rice, Minn./Sauk Rapids-Rice), an accounting major with a 4.0 GPA;
-Junior wide receiver John Hawkins (St. Cloud, Minn./Cathedral), a communication major with a 3.51 GPA;
-Sophomore linebacker Zach Helfmann (St. Louis Park, Minn.), a nursing major with a 3.65 GPA;
-Senior offensive lineman Tommy Hessburg (Grosse Pointe Park, Mich./Grosse Pointe South), a biochemistry major (pre-medicine emphasis) with a 3.96 GPA;
-Sophomore wide receiver Thomas Jacobs (Lakeland, Minn./Stillwater Area), a global business leadership major with a 3.67 GPA;
-Senior defensive lineman Travis Johnson (Murrieta, Calif./Vista Murrieta), a political science major with a 3.58 GPA; 
-Sophomore linebacker Eric Jurek (Stillwater, Minn./Stillwater Area), an accounting major with a 3.69 GPA;
-Senior defensive lineman Riley Kangas (Faribault, Minn./Bethlehem Academy), an exercise and health science major with a 3.92 GPA;
-Sophomore running back Dylan Kirchner (Andover, Minn.), a physics major with a 3.80 GPA;
-Junior linebacker Jayden Leach (Bayport, Minn./Stillwater Area), an accounting major with a 3.60 GPA;
-Senior defensive lineman Alex Lundebrek (Otsego, Minn./Rogers), an accounting and economics double-major with a 3.59 GPA;
-Sophomore defensive lineman Will Mahowald (Sartell, Minn./Sartell-St. Stephen), an elementary education major with a 3.80 GPA;
-Sophomore running back Wyatt McCabe (Mayer, Minn./Watertown-Mayer), an accounting major with a 4.0 GPA;
-Sophomore linebacker Aiden McMahon (Maple Grove, Minn.), an accounting major with a 3.73 GPA;
-Junior defensive lineman Andrew Molenaar (Shoreview, Minn./Mounds View), a communication and global business leadership double-major with a 3.80 GPA;
-Senior kicker Conor Murphy (Sioux Falls, S.D./O'Gorman), an accounting major with a 3.97 GPA;
-Senior linebacker D.J. Myles (Dayton, Minn./Champlin Park), a global business leadership major with a 4.0 GPA;
-Sophomore wide receiver Sam Nolan (Lakeville, Minn./North), a biology major with a 3.84 GPA;
-Sophomore offensive lineman Isaak Nowak (Andover, Minn.), an accounting major with a 3.67 GPA;
-Senior offensive lineman Grant Peroutka (Rosemount, Minn.), a global business leadership major with a 3.85 GPA;
-Junior defensive back Isaac Potter (Waseca, Minn.), a global business leadership major with a 3.77 GPA;
-Junior offensive lineman Eddie Reece (Hudson, Wis./Hill-Murray), a global business leadership major with a 3.51 GPA;
-Sophomore defensive back Caden Renslow (Inver Grove Heights, Minn./Simley), a global business leadership major with a 3.66 GPA;
-Junior defensive back Charlie Ryks (Maple Grove, Minn./Breck), an accounting major with a 3.95 GPA;
-Senior linebacker Hayden Sanders (Brooklyn Park, Minn./Champlin Park), an accounting major with a 3.98 GPA;
-Senior defensive back Ryan Sanvik (North Branch, Minn./Chisago Lakes), an exercise and health science major with a 3.89 GPA;
-Junior wide receiver Wyatt Sawatzke (Monticello, Minn.), a global business leadership major with a 3.61 GPA;
-Sophomore wide receiver Riley Schwellenbach (Woodbury, Minn./East Ridge), a global business leadership major with a 3.96 GPA;
-Junior defensive back Blake Simonson (Waconia, Minn.), a global business leadership major with a 3.57 GPA;
-Senior quarterback Aaron Syverson (Minnetonka, Minn.), an accounting major with a 3.70 GPA;
-Sophomore offensive lineman Barrett Van Deun (Omaha, Neb./Millard West), an accounting major with a 3.57 GPA;
-Senior wide receiver Brady VanErp (Battle Lake, Minn./Ottertail Central), a communication and global business leadership double-major with a 3.53 GPA;
-Junior defensive back Evan Wahlin (Sartell, Minn./St. Cloud Cathedral), an accounting major with a 3.82 GPA;
-Sophomore linebacker J.P. Weber (Dubuque, Iowa/Wahlert), a global business leadership major with a 3.88 GPA;
-Junior running back Caden Wheeler (Andover, Minn.), an accounting major with a 3.59 GPA;
-Junior wide receiver Dylan Wheeler (St. Paul, Minn./Mounds View), an accounting major with a 3.59 GPA;
-Junior offensive lineman Luke Wright (Woodbury, Minn.), an accounting major with a 3.66 GPA;
-Senior linebacker Cooper Yaggie (Breckenridge, Minn.), a global business leadership major with a 3.58 GPA.

In order to qualify for MIAC Academic All-Conference recognition, student-athletes must be a sophomore, junior or senior with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.5 on a 4.0 scale. Transfers must have completed one academic year (full-time) at the institution prior to becoming eligible the following year.

Athletically, student-athletes must be a member of a MIAC-sponsored varsity team, utilize a season of participation (per NCAA and MIAC definitions) and have remained on the sports roster through the conclusion of the sport's season. The MIAC moved away from athletic-specific requirements (i.e. participate in 50 percent of the games, finish in the top 100 at the MIAC Championships, etc.) beginning with the 2021-22 academic year.

For the fifth-consecutive academic year and seventh in the last 10, SJU led the MIAC in male honorees for the fall.

The Academic All-MIAC distinction is the fourth-consecutive for Bjork and Cisneros, and the third for Borgeson, Christoffersen, Dahl, Gustin, Hessburg, Kangas, Lundebrek, Murphy, Myles, Peroutka, Sanders, Sanvik and Syverson. 

Arneson, Frank, Hessburg, Murphy, Sanders, Syverson, D. Wheeler and Yaggie also earned College Sports Communicators Academic All-District honors earlier this month. SJU has now had 75 Academic All-District selections over the last 20 seasons. 

SJU (11-1, 8-0 MIAC) won its MIAC-record 37th conference championship and made its 33rd postseason appearance (29th in Division III) this fall. The 10-win season was the program's 26th.