Four Delta Husky football players received All Conference recognition for their play this 2009 season. Josh Bialik received Honorable Mention at defensive end and First Team All Conference at tight end. Justin “Hitman” Hjelm also received First Team honors at defensive back. Eathan Gebauer was selected to the Second Team All Conference both as an offensive guard and as a long snapper on punts. He also received Honorable Mention for middle linebacker. Darin Robertson was selected Second Team on both the offensive and defensive lines. Bialik, Gebauer, and Robertson are seniors, while Hjelm is a junior.
Four other players were also considered. Mark Jackson, Chad Fellman, and Caleb McLaren missed Honorable Mention by one vote. Jackson was considered at offensive tackle, Fellman at defensive back, and McLaren at quarterback. Jake Gebauer was considered at defensive lineman and utility player (played many positions) but didn’t play the required amount of games.
Bialik had a breakout year, leading the team with 31 receptions for over 500 yards and five touchdowns. He also had two interceptions playing free safety.
Hjelm’s hard hitting and consistency on defense earned him First Team. The Gebauer brothers and Hjelm were the hardest hitters on the team.
Robertson’s intensity on the field got him recognized by other coaches. The Gebauers, Hjelm, and Robertson consistently led the team in tackles. Bialik, the Gebauers, Hjelm, Robertson, Jackson, and Fellman played offense, defense, and all special teams every game. They never left the field for three hours. When these guys were done with a game, it was obvious they had been in a battle. They were the heart of this team.
Jake Gebauer and Fellman are juniors and also had big years. Gebauer played center, fullback, linebacker, defensive lineman, and even back up quarterback. He was a good problem to have – never knowing exactly where to put him, just knowing he had to be on the field.
Fellman had three interceptions, two of the biggest coming in the team’s 22- 2 victory over Valdez. He also had a big running game against a very tough Eielson team, gaining 101 yards on 21 carries.
Jake Gebauer, Hjelm, and Fellman will be the leaders of next year’s team, along with sophomore quarterback McLaren.
McLaren also had a big year, throwing for over 800 yards and seven touchdowns. Most football coaches’ biggest worry is their number-one quarterback getting hurt. But that was not a concern on this team. First, McLaren’s pass protection was very good this year. Second, he proved he could take a hard hit and get right back up. He didn’t miss a snap all year. McLaren has gotten such a comfortable feel for the game that he can call plays on his own. He also had three interceptions as free safety.
There were several notable performances this year.
After a sluggish start the first two games, the team came together against Ketchikan. McLaren had 287 yards passing and three touchdowns. Bialik had 227 yards receiving and three touchdowns. Robertson, with 11 tackles, terrorized their offensive line. Bialik hurled a Ketchikan running back through the air like a rag doll. Valdez: 22-2 victory. After getting pummeled 63-0 last year, the team’s entire defensive effort holds Valdez to two points in a mud bowl. Valdez got first and goal at Delta’s one-yard line. Four successive plays gained 0 yards. The Valdez coach was quoted as telling Jake Gebauer, “Thanks for making our line look like a bunch of idiots.” Hjelm got 96 yards, 19 carries, three interceptions, and five fumble recoveries.
Barrow: the entire team went swimming – twice – in the Arctic Ocean, first the day before the game in their underwear, and then after the game in full uniform. Then they ganged up on the coach and hurled him into the freezing surf.
Seward: McLaren threw two touchdown passes to Bialik and Andrew Carey. Hjelm made a touchdown run.
Nikiski: Bialik returned a blocked field goal 75 yards for a touchdown.
Eielson: Mark Jackson, in his only carry at running back in his high school career, had Delta’s longest touchdown run of the year at 31 yards. The team went crazy, Mark had a huge smile, and the coach laughed.
There will be a big void to fill on next year’s team with the absence of the five seniors. In a season short on coaches, these five stood up to the occasion and were basically player/coaches. While the coach worked with one group, they would be running another.
Heath Gebauer, not playing due to an injury, went out of his way to help in so many ways.
