Earlier this month, the 2019 Minnesota Football Showcase took place at the U.S. Bank Stadium. This showcase featured the 47th annual an all-star football game that recognized the best high school football players in Minnesota. 

Two of Benilde-St. Margaret’s students, seniors Louis Hyde and Joe Marinaro, were selected to participate in this year’s all-star game. Hyde and Marinaro have put a lot of work towards their football careers over these past few years to earn themselves this honor. “It felt super good to nominated and to be considered one of the best players in the state,” senior Marinaro said. 

The players are first nominated by their coaches and then put into another pool of names. All of the Minnesota coaches then come together to pick the rosters and finalize the teams. “I was very honored to be nominated by Coach Hanks. It felt good that all of my hard work paid off,” senior Hyde said. 

The week prior to the game, the players spent their time bonding and preparing for the big game. They had two practices a day for three days and spent their nights in a hotel getting to know one another better. Players from all over the state, with all from different backgrounds, got to get to know each other and share their bond of football. “I think it was super cool that I got to meet a lot of new kids. It was people from all over so it was interesting to see how everyone was different,” senior Marinaro said. 

One afternoon, the team took a break from the field and spent a little time giving back.  The team spent the day volunteering at the Minnesota Cancer Research Hospital. They heard the stories of different cancer patients and tried their best to make their day a little bit better. “I was paired with the adult patients, and I think it was a very good experience that I wouldn’t have done otherwise,” senior Hyde said.