Elk Point-Jefferson's dominant ground attack powers Huskies’ second state football championship
Elk Point-Jefferson Huskies Brody Van Roekel (23) runs for a gain against St. Thomas More in the second quarter of the 11B state championship game Friday, Nov. 13, 2026 at the DakotaDome in Vermillion. (Rodney Haas / 605 Sports)
VERMILLION — Elk Point-Jefferson got it done the old fashion way en route to its second Class 11B championship.
The Huskies ran in its signature Wing-T offense to perfection in the Class 11B title with nearly 400 rushing yards as it cruised past St. Thomas More, 61-13, to capture its second football title.
“Our wing-T offense that we run, it’s been great for us,” said EPJ coach Jake Terry. “It’s something our kids believed in, they bought into the system. It’s a balanced offense, you can’t take away one guy. It’s driven by those offensive linemen up front; they’re everything for us.”
On Friday, the Huskies racked up 390 rushing yards on 40 carries, good for a 9.8 average, with eight rushing touchdowns as they rolled the Cavaliers for the title. EPJ attempted just one pass the entire game, with Levi Hanson’s second quarter attempt falling incomplete.
“We’re a run-first football team and I couldn’t be more proud of our kids to go out and execute a gameplan,” Terry said. “Offense, defense, special teams, you couldn’t ask for a better effort out of our kids.”
For a team that averaged just over 341 yards per game this season, EPJ had 241 rushing yards at half as it racked up 48 points in the first 24 minutes.
Senior Brody Van Roekel highlighted the rushing attack in the win with 12 carries for 178 yards and three touchdowns, adding a 30-yard pick six late in the second quarter.
“We know what we’re going to do and we’re the most physical team in 11B football and that’s what we live on,” Van Roekel said of the offense.
His counterpart is junior Aiden Hammitt, who rushed 11 times for 78 yards and three more touchdowns. Between the two, Van Roekel and Hammitt combined for over 2,400 yards and 38 touchdowns on the ground.
“We’ve just been splitting carries all year and today we both showed up,” Hammitt said. “It’s been a big season for both us.
“He really was a mentor for me. Me and him, we’re really good friends outside of football and that meant a lot. All these seniors, I love these guys.”
“It was awesome,” Van Roekel said of playing with Hammitt today. “Just to finish the season, and my career off, running with him.”
Terry describes the duo as a “two-headed monster” highlighted by their efficiency and unselfish play.
“You can’t take away both of them,” Terry said. “They’re both such unselfish players, they don’t care scores, who carries the ball, they just want to win at the end of the day.”
Hammitt added how important the offensive line was to their rushing attack this season, and came up big in the DakotaDome as EPJ set an 11-man championship scoring record with 61 points.
“Our O-line is excellent,” Hammitt said. “It’s the best O-line in the state. I honestly think they are top-10, top-5 regardless of class. Best O-line in the state.”
On top of Roekel and Hammitt’s rushing, Dawson Fullenkamp collected four carries for 39 yards and a score, Luke Swatek had two carries for 32 yards, Trey VanderWeerdt netted four carries for 32 yards, Grady Rozell had three carries for 21 yards while quarterback Levi Hanson’s lone rushing attempt was a one-yard touchdown run.
“I don’t know that we could play better than this one,” Terry said. “This was about as good as we can play. That was a heckuva game today.”