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The North Branch High School (NBAPS) Activities Department is pleased to announce the hiring of Justin Sawyer as the head football coach. Sawyer has been employed by the school district since 2005 and currently teaches math at the middle school. He is a graduate of Mora High School and was a linebacker on the state tournament team in 1995 and the state championship team in 1996. While attending Northwestern College, the football team was the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference Champions in 2000 and 2001 and the Victory Bowl Champions in 2000.

Upon completion of his playing career, Sawyer spent one year as an assistant coach at Northwestern College. His high school coaching background includes two years as assistant coach at Ortonville High School before accepting a job teaching and coaching at NBAPS. During his four years of coaching in North Branch, he has been a middle school coach, a linebacker and running backs coach, the defensive coordinator, and the special teams coordinator.

When asked about becoming head football coach, Sawyer shared his excitement and thoughts about the position. "I am very excited about the opportunity to lead the North Branch Football team. I come into the job with seven years of coaching experience including coaching at both the high school and college level. I look forward to helping mold our young men into better football players and better men.

"There is a strong nucleus of players and coaches returning and we hope to build on the progress that was made last year. I am impressed by number of players who have committed to the weight room during the off season and during the summer. To be competitive we need all players to commit to getting bigger, faster, stronger, and smarter. The captains have also stepped up and will provide great leadership over the summer and for the upcoming season. Next year's captains are John Morrison, Sean Franks, and Zack Smith."

Activities Director Becky Leuer commented, "He is a young coach with a bright future ahead of him. He will put together a quality coaching staff and continue to move our program forward."

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