Wisconsin Sports Network and WisSports.net are happy to announce Bay Port’s Josiah Azure as the 2022 recipient of the John Anderson Award as the most outstanding senior linebacker in Wisconsin, part of the WSN Senior Football Awards.
Read more about the award HERE
Josiah Azure is a dominating two-year starter for Bay Port who has put up outstanding numbers once again as a senior. Through ten games, he had 106 tackles, 24 tackles for loss, eight sacks, and two forced fumbles for the Pirates.
Finalists for the award were Azure, Riley Fischer of Mukwonago, Blake Fletcher of Racine Horlick, Taylor Schaefer of Southern Door, Nolan Schopp of Kettle Moraine, and Keith Williams of Catholic Memorial.
Past winners include Arrowhead’s Derek Landisch (2010), Wisconsin Rapids’ Vince Biegel (2011), Green Bay Southwest’s Nathan Paup (2012), Mukwonago’s Dominic Cizauskas (2013), Wausau West’s Jake Whalen (2014), Menomonie’s Mason Stokke (2015), Bay Port’s Matt Lorbeck (2016), Catholic Memorial’s C.J. Goetz (2017), Grantsburg’s Leo Chenal (2018), Marquette’s Riley Nowakowski (2019), Xavier’s Mac Strand (2020), and Kaukauna’s Will Campbell (2021).
The award is named after John Anderson, a former Waukesha South standout who received All-Conference and All-State recognition on both offense and defense for the Blackshirts. He would go on to star for the University of Michigan for four seasons where he twice earned All-Big Ten honors. Anderson would be selected by the Green Bay Packers in the first round of the 1978 NFL Draft and go on to a successful 12-year career. Upon his retirement he was the Packers all-time leader in tackles with 1,020 (the Packer only have stats compiled since 1975) and still holds that record today. He was named to the NFL’s All-Decade team for the 1980’s and the Packers Hall of Fame in 1996.
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Author: David Keech
David Keech is a retired teacher and works as a sportswriter, sports official and as an educational consultant. He has reported on amateur sports since 2011, known as 'KeechDaVoice.' David can be reached at [email protected]
