The Ponies Touchdown Club recently sponsored a special event for the current sophomore and junior football players who committed to a winter sport or lettered in winter strength and conditioning at the high school.  These young men will compete to become members of the Ponies' 2017 Varsity team.

The event, held at Heights Hall and Club in Oak Park Heights, featured an all-you-can-eat burger bar, fries, coleslaw, fruit, milk and chocolate milk, and finished with root beer floats.  Thirty-three of the 51 players who met the criteria for an invitation were in attendance.  Members of the PTC and the Elks Club were volunteer servers.

“We all had fun at last year's event, so we did it again, and I think this will probably become a fun annual event for us," said Ponies Footall Head Coach Beau LaBore. "Recognizing student-athletes' dedication and effort in the off-season is a good tradition to start."

The "burger king" was 6'3", 230 lb. junior Coler Jahnke, who consumed TEN 1/3-pound burgers -- besting Wyatt Blinkhorn's record of nine burgers set last year.

A brief message was shared by LaBore, who introduced keynote speaker Bryan Keister.

A 1995 graduate of Stillwater High School, Keister was a Ponies all-conference defensive lineman in 1994 who went on to play for  the University of St. Thomas.  Now an insurance salesman at the Stillwater firm Keister and Keister, he also coached the Ponies varsity defensive linemen from 2003-2011.

In his comments, Keister echoed a popular sentiment that still carries in the Ponies football program:  "Champions are made in the off-season."

He related stories of his and his teammates' dedication to their team in the winter, spring, and summer that paid off for them in the fall.  In particular, he noted that their workouts not only made them physically stronger, but also helped create a foundation of unity that helped the players perform better as a team.

LaBore noted that the best Ponies teams of Keisters' era had leadership beyond their captains because team members managed their dedication, effort, and production both on and off the field.

Keister related the importance of not only working hard, but working smart and doing things the right way. "If you do it the right way, fellas, you can eliminate regret," he said.

Keister’s message was well-received.

“Every team will be in the weight room, but what defines a team is how hard they are willing to work in the weight room,” said 2017 Ponies Football Captain Ben Peterson.

Players eligible to attend due to their winter sports achievements included:

Juniors Mitch Banken, Hayden Bates, Lucas Braun, Austin Dowdall, Jackson Dunleap, Alex Helgeson, Pete Hodnefield, Grayson Hosch, Carson Humphrey, Fischer Jakupciak, Graham Laubscher, Charlie Meier, Austin Murr, Nathan Novotny, Lucas Olson, Alex Oshin, Logan Patzner, Garrett Pavel, Ben Peterson, Ryan Roehl, Aidan Steeves, Connor Weiss, and Nels Woods.

Sophomores Tony Adami, Anthony Alvarado, Christian Anderson, Matt Baxter, Connor Cole, Johnny Coleman-Cotton, Matt Crowell, Tyler Cullen, Tommy de St. Aubin, Nathan Doely, Mason Green, Devontae Hatcher, Devin Jacoby, Coler Jahnke, Manny Jingco, Adam Knapp, Eric Larson, Eric Lentz, Matthew McGinley, Noah Ness, Charlie Richman, Mark Roettger, Mason Schwerzler, Luke Simcik, Kevin Thole, Carl Tomlinson, Cody Venske, Andrew Weisbrod, and Andrew Wilcek.

LaBore also extended a special thanks to owner Ed Kivel, his staff, and The Elks who served the burgers. The event was coordinated by Jenn Wille who was assisted by Terri Rose Anderson, Tim and Deb Jahnke, Lynn Larson, Liz McGinley, Deb Simcik, and Ann Venske.