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INA all-state football picks four Bears
by Gregory R. Norfleet · Sports · November 30, 2017


West Branch football earned four spots on the Iowa Newspaper Association’s All-State list, the first statewide honor list released following the season.


Head Football Coach Butch Pedersen said all four players belong on the list, though he believes the INA’s selection system was flawed and at least one player deserved a higher spot. The coach has taken his concerns to the INA though, as of Tuesday, the talks have not led to a conclusion.

Senior Ben Thompson earned a spot on First Team for tight end/wide receiver and junior Beau Cornwell earned a spot on the same list for kicker. Senior Jacob Barnhart made it to the Second Team list for offensive lineman and senior Jacob Graves made it to that list for defensive back.

“It’s quite an honor,” Thompson said. “There’s a lot of great athletes on there and to be in the top tier is great.”

Thompson finished the season with 40 catches for 663 yards, or 16.6 yards per catch, and 11 touchdowns. After 10 games, he finished third among all of Class 1A and second in District 3.

Pedersen said Thompson, as a freshman, was significantly smaller and weaker than Thompson as a senior.

“Ben turned himself … into a gifted senior receiver,” he said. “He’s one of the best route-runners we had. He has excellent speed and soft hands as a receiver and had the ability to go up and get balls with a good vertical jump. He was a super weapon for us.”

Setting school records for receiving yards is “indicative of what kind of a person he is,” the coach said, saying Thompson should consider college football.

“He’s one of the best receivers we’ve ever had here,” he said.

Pedersen noted that receivers do not only catch what the quarterback throws their way. When he is on the field, he also must serve as a block for other ball-carriers, which also plays into “field vision.”

“He got this through good hard work and dedicaiton,” the coach said. “He’s gone to a lot of open gyms to help him become a great receiver.”

Thompson said he does not know if he wants to continue playing football in college, though he does know that Iowa State University is high on his list to continue in academics. He is considering either majoring in business or engineering.

Graves, who is now competing in wrestling, said he is “thinking about” and “leaning toward” trying to play football in college. The Bears team voted him “Mr. Versatility.”

“It’s a great honor,” Graves said of making the list. “It feels good to be known as one of the best players.”

The senior played both sides of the ball and at defensive back caught two interceptions, had 17 solo tackles and 26 assisted tackles.

Pedersen said Graves’ inclusion in the INA’s All-State list last year helped him get back to it in 2017.

“He’s even better this year as a senior,” the coach said, noting Graves played both corner back and safety.

While the list puts him in as a defensive back, Graves’ accomplishments on offense, primarily as the team’s No. 2 receiver, may have helped solidify his reputation with the group that comprised the list.

“He is also able to run the ball and catch — that did not go unnoticed — they saw his versatility,” Pedersen said. “It’s also his fierce competitiveness — he hits really hard — he’s able to lock on and play man to man so others can zone up.”

Graves said he is just starting to visit colleges – he mentioned Simpson College and Wartburg College – but has not looked at them enough to consider sports just yet.

Cornwell called it “pretty cool” to make First Team as a kicker. Most of his minutes on the field came as quarterback, where he set or tied school records. But he did so as a kicker, too, punting an average of 34.4 yards per attempt with his longest reaching 51 yards. Pedersen noted Cornwell’s field-goal kicking against Durant “won that ball game” — West Branch edged out the Wildcats 24-23 on a 42-yarder — his farthest distance — with a minute left.

The junior set a school record for field goals with eight, breaking the previous record of five set by Josh Griebahn in 2002.

“It shows all the hard work the team and myself put in,” he said. “I’ll really cherish it as we move forward.”

With another year of eligibility, Cornwell said he knows he must at least maintain his current level of play.

“I have to keep working and even outwork others,” he said. “I need to train more. Much more.”

Pedersen said the 2017 season proved Cornwell “can kick a football at the Division I level.”

“He’s extremely accurate and spent a lot of time working his trade as a kicker and quarterback,” the coach said.

Pedersen said Cornwell is also very good at basketball, which gives him two strong opportunities to pursue college scholarships.

“He richly deserves that” placement on the list, the coach said.

Barnhart said he was “happy to make the list.”

“It always means a lot, even if it’s not First Team,” he said.

He said he always tries to “play at the highest level,” and that he will not forget that.

“It’s something to be proud of,” the senior said.

Barnhart has visited Division I teams during games to get a closer look at the programs. He has been offered walk-on status at University of Iowa and Iowa State University and some partial scholarships at Division II schools.

“We’ll see where it goes,” he said. “I’m not in any hurry.”

He said he has until December to make his decision. Part of that has to do with deciding on a major, and he is interested in both business and agriculture.

The coach called Barnhart the best offensive lineman in the state of Iowa.

“He has had a great athletic career here,” Pedersen said. “He grew leaps and bounds from his sophomore to junior to senior year. He’s a leader and an excellent captain. He did everything we wanted him to do to reach is full potential.”

Pedersen drew back on that “full potential” comment just slightly, saying Barnhart will likely go much further.

“He’s a very coachable, physical and intelligent kid — he’s the whole package,” he said. “He’s one of the best drive blockers I’ve seen at West Branch.”

He told about the meeting of District 3 coaches talking about who deserves to go where on the all-district list. At least one other coach suggested skipping a vote to make Barnhart the MVP because he was the clear choice. They did, and he got it.

“It’s an honor he really deserves,” noting that the 6-5 senior weighed 300 pounds at the beginning of the season. “He’s a pretty imposing figure standing out there on the field.”

Pedersen said he was confused how Barnhart would not earn a spot on First Team since he earned that designation a year ago and is one of the few players being recruited to play college football as high as the top-tier Division I level, including Northern Iowa.

Taking a closer look at this all-state list, he noticed that Regina – a team that made it to the championship game – had no players make First Team while players from other teams who did not make the playoffs earned First Team status.

Further, he noted that all five offensive lineman who made First Team are from District 3, the same district that selected Barnhart as the unanimous offensive lineman for MVP. The 35-year coach said he has called on the INA to review how it selects all-state players.

“I understand that with all-state football selections, you’re not going to satisfy everybody,” the coach said. “But there should be certain criteria they need to follow, like to read the comments we gave to this committee.”

He called it “ludicrous” that Barnhart was not among the First Team selections.

“This is totally an error by the INA that is unacceptable,” Pedersen said. “They have to understand that they have a lot of kids who cherish these awards. … (the process) needs to be reviewed.”

Graves said Barnhart was a clear choice for First Team, saying his teammate “got screwed over.”

Cedar Rapids Gazette Sports Editor J.R. Ogden tweeted on Nov. 20 that “The INA changed it voting procedure for this year’s all-state football teams, a change that, in our opinion, led to too many discrepancies on the honor squad. For that reason, The Gazette will not publish the teams. We will, however, have our all-area teams on Dec. 9.”