The Wayne State College football team had seven players named to the 2024 Northern Sun Conference All-Conference Football Team announced Thursday morning by the league office in Burnsville, Minnesota with four players earning First Team honors and another three receiving Second Team recognition.
            First Team selections were senior offensive lineman Jett Janssen, senior linebacker Dexter Larsen, sophomore defensive end Carter Sitzman and senior punter Trevor Marshall while Second Team honorees were sophomore wide receiver Kendrick Watkins-Hogue, sophomore running back Latravious Boyd and senior defensive back Jacob Byrd.
            Janssen, a 6-4, 280-pound senior left tackle from Lincoln (East HS) was named All-NSIC First Team for a third straight season anchoring the Wildcat offensive line.  He started every game in his Wildcat career at left tackle, leading an offensive line this season that allowed the third-fewest sacks in the NSIC (13). 
            Larsen, a 5-10, 215-pound senior linebacker from Blair (Blair HS), earned All-NSIC First Team honors for a second straight season after leading the Wildcats in tackles with 78 stops.  He ranked eighth in the NSIC in tackles per game this season with 7.1, highlighted by season-highs of 11 tackles vs. #11 Minnesota State (9/14) and Minot State (10/5).  Larsen had a 20-yard interception return for a touchdown in the Wildcats' 44-17 win at MSU Moorhead (9/5).  He also recorded eight tackles for loss (30 yds) and 2.5 sacks (15 yds) with one forced fumble and one fumble recovery.
            Sitzman, a 6-4, 260-pound sophomore defensive end from Lincoln (Lincoln Christian HS), received All-NSIC First Team honors after helping a Wildcat defense post two shutouts in a season for the first time since 2006.  He led the NSIC in tackles for loss this season with 15.5 for 57 yards and was tied for second in sacks with 7.0 for 37 yards.  Sitzman was third on the Wildcat defense in total tackles (54) and had one forced fumble, three quarterback hurries and two pass breakups.  He had a season-high 10 tackles with 3.5 tackles for loss (17 yds) and two sacks for 10 yards against Sioux Falls (10/26).  Sitzman also recorded 3.5 tackles for loss with 1.5 sacks (11 yds) and six tackles at UMary (10/19).
            Marshall, a 6-2, 220-pound senior from Gretna (Gretna HS), was voted All-NSIC First Team on special teams at punter after leading the NSIC in numerous punting categories this season.  He led the league in punt average (44.1), punts over 50 yards (15) and punts inside-the-20 with 16.  Marshall had 48 punts this season with only two touchbacks.  He also recorded 23 kickoffs and averaged 59.7 yards per kickoff with nine touchbacks and just one kick out of bounds.  Marshall was named NSIC Special Teams Player of the Week September 23^rd after averaging 44.7 yards on seven punts at Winona State with a long kick of 65 yards and three punts over 50 yards.
            Boyd, a 6-1, 200-pound sophomore from Orlando, Fla. (Jones HS), was named All-NSIC Second Team this season after First Team honors last year.  Despite missing 3 ½ games due to injury, Boyd led the Wildcats in rushing with 476 yards on 77 carries with six touchdowns ranking eighth in the NSIC with 59.5 yards per game.  He gained a season-high 141 yards on just seven carries and two TD's vs. Missouri S&T in the season opener that included a 95-yard TD run that is the second-longest run in school history.  Boyd also had 10 catches for 175 yards and four TD's and his combined 10 touchdowns were tied for seventh in the NSIC.
            Watkins-Hogue, a 6-0, 180-pound redshirt sophomore from Dubuque, Iowa (Dubuque Senior HS), received All-NSIC Second Team honors after First Team recognition last year.  He led the Wildcats in receiving this season with 48 catches for 665 yards and seven TD's, averaging 66.5 yards per game that ranked eighth in the NSIC.  He was also ninth in the league in receptions and tied for fifth in receiving touchdowns.  Watkins-Hogue had two 100-yard receiving games this season, highlighted by a 10-catch, 142-yard performance in a 44-17 win at MSU Moorhead (9/5) and had seven receptions for 103 yards and two scores in a 28-21 win at Winona State (9/21).
 
            Byrd, a 6-0, 195-pound senior strong safety from Sioux Falls, South Dakota (O'Gorman HS), collected All-NSIC Second Team honors for a second straight season after ranking sixth on the Wildcat defense with 42 total tackles.  He led the Wildcats with five pass breakups this season and had 4.5 tackles for loss for nine yards.  Byrd had six tackles in four different games this year and had a season-high three breakups in the season-ending 21-0 win over Concordia-St. Paul.
            Wayne State finished the 2024 season with a 7-4 overall record and tied for fifth in the NSIC with a 6-4 league mark.