Ronan, Polson standouts earn All-Northwest A, All-State football honors

Lake County athletes made their mark on the postseason awards lists, as three Polson Pirates and two Ronan Chiefs earned All-Northwest A Conference nods — with Polson senior Holden Emerson also being selected All-State. 

Emerson, along with teammates Cody Haggard and Brody Bulette, was voted first-team all-conference. Ronan seniors Layton Burland and Cooper Wayman received honorable-mention recognition for their contributions to the Chiefs’ 2025 campaign. 

Polson 's Holden Emerson made the All-State team after being a proven playmaker for the Pirates, even after switching positions to tight end. After two seasons running the offense at quarterback — where he threw for more than 2,000 yards — Emerson shifted to a tight end/receiver role while remaining a defensive leader in the secondary at safety. 

Emerson hauled in over 350 receiving yards this fall as Polson’s primary target and continued to shine as a run-after-catch threat. His career totals reflect a rare, three-way impact: more than 1,300 rushing yards, nearly 300 completions for 2,128 passing yards, and a career scoring mark just shy of 200 points, recording double-digit touchdowns in each of the past three seasons. 

Teammate Cody Haggard earned first-team honors for defensive end play. The senior disrupted backfields all season — and all career — piling up more than 16 tackles for loss, half-a-dozen sacks, and three interceptions, including a memorable 41-yard pick-six against Butte Central during his sophomore campaign. Even after missing time with injury this year, Haggard still turned heads league-wide. He has earned all-conference football honors in back-to-back seasons and was recently selected to compete in the Indigenous Bowl in mid-December. 

Listed at 6-foot-7 and 285 pounds, you could say Brody Bulette is a cornerstone on the line, whether it be offense or defense, which is why he was selected as All-Conference First Team. Montana State University also secured his commitment to play college ball.  

Bulette’s prep highlight reel includes the pivotal block on a Whitefish extra-point attempt in overtime two seasons ago, and he continued stacking up pancake blocks and key protections throughout his senior year. This marks his second straight all-conference selection, improving from second-team last fall. 

For the Ronan Chiefs, Layton Burland was an Honorable Mention selection for outside linebacker as a senior. It was his second-straight postseason honor. Offensive lineman Cooper Wayman was also an honorable mention on the offensive line. The senior was selected to all-conference last season as well.