A second honor as an All-State player came down a different route for Pella’s stellar senior quarterback to end his career. Luke Hardman was a 2nd team Class 4A All-State football player, as announced by the Iowa Print Sports Writers Association and Iowa Football Coaches Association this week. This is the second such honor for Hardman, who was recognized as a kicker on the third team in 2021 as a sophomore. After some struggles in both positions in 2022, Luke came into his own in his senior campaign, scoring 30 total touchdowns this year, which ranked 3rd in Class 4A heading into the dome and 2nd in the class during the 2023 regular season. Head Coach Jay McKinstrey says Hardman has joined some of the greatest Dutch players of all time with some of his individual performances this season — in particular, against Cedar Rapids Xavier and Bondurant-Farrar in the regular season. Luke finished with 2,575 total yards, which was 4th best in Class 4A at season’s end, with the 2nd most yards per game.