Chris Meidt made a difficult decision two years ago, deciding to take a job in Minnesota and move his family from their home in Cedarburg, Wisconsin.
“It’s tough to move kids going into junior year of high school,” he said.
Meidt was familiar with Becker, having faced the Bulldogs and head coach Dwight Lundeen in 1985 as a sophomore playing quarterback for Minneota. Thirty years later, Chris is now Becker's quarterbacks coach while his son, Alex, is a senior captain for the Bulldogs.
The move seems to have gone smoothly as Alex’s role on the team has developed along with the friendships he’s gained in the program, including his connection with fellow captain Andrew Stanger.
“Me and Stang have been tight since I first moved here last year in the summer,” Alex said.
Not having Alex at his disposal as an underclassman, Stanger made up for lost time. The Becker quarterback threw three touchdowns to Alex in the Bulldogs’ 42-6 win over Albany at Becker High School on Thursday night. The win clinched the inaugural East Central North subdistrict title for the defending Class 4A state champion.
“[Alex is] so fast and quick, he’s hard to stop,” Stanger said. “I missed him a few times -- I’m disappointed in myself -- but he made some great catches.”
Chris credits his son's ability to track deep throws from years of throwing the football around in the backyard.
“He’s been catching fades from me since he was 4,” Chris said. “I think it helps him catch those over the shoulder throws.”
This undefeated regular season was a first for Alex, but for many of Becker's seniors, it’s just another year under a dynasty program.
Regarded as one of the top coaches in Minnesota, Lundeen and his success have been a product of hard work, something that the community stands behind as the Bulldogs have never been defeated by their former Granite Ridge Conference opponents.
“On bad weather, good nights, bad nights, illness, and still our kids have found a way to win and I’m proud of them,” Lundeen said. “I don’t know an awful lot about football, but I know effort and we had great effort on all three phases tonight.”
Becker is ranked No. 1 in Class 4A in the latest Associated Press state high school football poll, but the Bulldogs may end up seeded No. 2 behind Orono in the Section 5 playoffs and play on the road should they make it to the championship game.
Despite the Bulldogs’ success this season, Lundeen thinks his team has something to prove.
“We’re No. 2, we’re not the best team. We gotta go show them that we are,” Lundeen said.
Andrew Stanger (15), the quarterback for Becker runs the ball down the field. Andrew threw 3 touchdowns to fellow senior captain Alex Meidt in the victory over Albany. Photo by Chris Juhn
First Report
Senior quarterback Andrew Stanger threw three touchdowns to fellow senior captain Alex Meidt as the Bulldogs clinched the inaugural East Central North subdistrict title following a 42-6 victory over previously undefeated Albany Thursday night at Becker High School.
Ranked No. 1 in Class 4A in the latest Associated Press state high school football poll, Becker finished undefeated in league play for the fourth consecutive year.
The Bulldogs (8-0) scored every possible way in the opening half.
Following a three-and-out on Albany’s opening drive, Meidt fielded the punt and handed off the ball to senior Tyler Thorson, who raced down the Bulldogs' sideline for a 75-yard touchdown.
On Becker’s following drive, Meidt shook his defender on a deep route and caught a 71-yard TD strike from Stanger.
The two connected again in the second quarter. Stanger scrambled right and threw on the run, finding Meidt in the end zone for a 26-yard touchdown.
Albany (7-1) tried to take back some momentum in the second quarter. The Huskies broke off a 30-yard gain for a fresh set of downs, but Bulldogs senior Beau Pauly scooped a muffed handoff and returned the ball 32 yards to the end zone.
Huskies quarterback Taylor Fourre scored on a 1-yard dive to set the score 28-6 at the half.
Senior Milan Kent blocked a punt on Albany’s opening drive of the second half, giving the Bulldogs possession in Huskies' territory. On the ensuing play, senior Gabe Dertinger took an outside run 35 yards to the end zone.
Stanger closed the third quarter finding Meidt for a third time, putting the Bulldogs ahead by 35 points and sending the game into running time.
