Nearly every state football championship is memorable, but the Minnesota state title that Edina High School and senior quarterback Mason West, a Chicago Blackhawks’ 2025 first-round pick, won on Friday goes well beyond what’s normal.

Edina’s path to Minnesota’s Class 6A state playoff run included defeating three higher seeds, avenging two regular-season losses, rallying from three fourth-quarter deficits and winning four games that were decided by seven points or less, including two one-point games.

On top of it all, there was West’s fairytale story. West was selected by the Blackhawks as the 29th overall pick of the NHL Draft in June. But before he was drafted, West let the Blackhawks and every other NHL team know he intended to play one final high school football season at Edina before committing to hockey full-time. West felt he had unfinished business after losing in the state championship game as a sophomore and being eliminated earlier last season. West understood this season was in a lot of ways his last youth experiences before sports became something more.

“I think just being with my friends, my buddies, just keep being a kid,” West said earlier in the season. “I think obviously I got drafted as a junior in high school and I’m a senior now, so I kind of just try to still be a kid and still have fun. I think I kind looked at Anders Lee and he was able to play football in his senior year, so that kind of motivated me to play football another year and kind of gave me more confidence going into this year that I can kind of relax and know I can play my senior year of football and just have fun and try to chase the goal of winning a state championship.”

West played a major part in the state championship season, too. He completed 183 of 276 passes for 2,389 yards, 28 touchdowns and nine interceptions. He also rushed for 184 yards and five touchdowns and caught one touchdown pass for 12 years. He also performed punting duties for Edina.

In Edina’s 42-35 win over Moorehead in the state championship game, West was seven for seven passing for 78 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 20 yards. A round earlier in the state semifinal, he threw for 314 yards and four touchdowns and rushed for a touchdown.

Mason West and Edina have won the Minnesota state championship! Congrats @MasonWest2026! pic.twitter.com/g7XKIgWeUJ

— BHF (@BlackhawksFocus) November 22, 2025

Edina football coach Jason Potts was as hopeful as anyone that a state championship was possible this season, but he also recognized getting West back for his senior season alone was going to be special.

“It has been a dream,” Potts said of coaching West earlier this season. “I’m really, really lucky to coach him. I’m starting to think, wow, will I ever see another player like this in my career? He really has got the whole thing and to have him play one more year is we’re really lucky to have that and I’m super excited.

“I think if you watch his film or you see him play, or even if you watch him play hockey, you can see he’s 6-6, he’s 215 pounds, he’s fast, he’s strong, he can throw really well, he is accurate. But what you don’t understand, if you’re not on the team, is that he’s so coachable. I can tell him one adjustment and it could be a severe adjustment and he can get it down in one rep and he can  grow so fast, and that’s what I think is most impressive about him is how coachable he is.”

Blackhawks vice president Chris O’Hearn, who lives near Edina High School, attended the state championship game. Blackhawks general manager Kyle Davidson and other hockey operations staff members attended one of West’s games earlier in the season.

West, who plays forward in hockey, is expected to join the Fargo Force in the USHL in the near future. He is also committed to playing hockey at Michigan State next season.