Senior Spotlight

For the past three years, Iola-Scandinavia High School has been home to a rare football talent and multi-sport athlete. Now, Korz Loken is stepping into a season where he’s expected to help guide Thunderbird football forward. As a top recruit, Korz has faced big decisions recently, from choosing a college to navigating changes in the school’s athletic program.

 

Korz is a four-star tight end prospect in the class of 2027. Many consider him Wisconsin's best player, one of the nation’s top tight ends, and among the top 300 football talents in the country, according to ESPN.

 

That being said, Korz had a big decision to make about his college future, garnering offers from Arkansas, Auburn, Florida State, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kansas State, Kentucky, Minnesota, Mississippi State, Purdue, Stanford, Northwestern, and Notre Dame, among others.

 

Beginning football at a young age, Korz instantly took to the sport,” I started playing football in elementary school around the age of 8, playing for the Iola - Scandinavia Firebirds peewee football team.”

 

Loken decided to stay in-state and committed to the University of Wisconsin to play for the Badgers after his time at Iola-Scandinavia is done.

 

Korz’s parents were instrumental in his growth and where he is now in his football journey,” My parents were the ones who first introduced me to football; they would play catch with me in the backyard, take me to Badger games, and support me to work at football and follow my dreams.”

 

Over the last year, Korz’s time at Iola-Scandinavia has been uncertain, including an injury early in the 2025 season that sidelined him for the rest of his junior campaign, and this past spring, when the Thunderbirds moved from Division 7 to eight-player football.

 

Still, Loken will stay the course with the T-birds as he will help the team make the transition on the field.

 

In 2024, during Korz’s sophomore year, he had 28 catches for 425 yards and hauled in nine touchdowns, and was named a first-team all-conference tight end, as well as being selected first-team on the defensive side at the outside linebacker spot.

 

Korz looks to bounce back in the 2026 football season, as Loken did return for his junior year of basketball, securing a spot on the first team in the Central Wisconsin Conference-East after nearly averaging a double-double with 14.1 points per game and 9.7 rebounds, and competed at the WIAA state track and field meet in the discus throw.

 

Loken has been a star not only in athletics, but in the classroom as well, planning to major in finance investment banking at the University of Wisconsin. “Academics are really important to me alongside my athletics; I really make sure that I keep my grades up and work to be the best I can be. Over the years, my classes have gotten harder, and I slowly have to keep increasing my effort in school, trying to maintain my 4.0 GPA. I am a big believer of how you do something is how you do everything, so I am always striving to be the best no matter if it is on the field or in the classroom.”

 

The passion Korz has for the sport is undeniable: “I love football because it never gets boring. There is always new plays, new drills, new lifts, new work that you can be putting in. I love learning about football, trying to study film on defenses and learn different effective route combinations. There is never a time where you have learned everything, so when you play football, you are always learning and never not getting better. I can’t wait to be back on the field; the adrenaline rush when you run out to play with your boys is something that no other sport can recreate.”

 

The ability to succeed from any spot on the field has been Korz’s calling card during his tenure. “The biggest thing about my game is just the versatility; I can catch the ball, I can block, that’s the biggest thing that allows me to succeed. As a tight end, you need to be able to be on the field at all times, so being able to beat a corner one-on-one and then block a defensive end one-on-one is the best possible skill. I feel as if I excel at both of these things, and that is what allows me to do well on the field.”

 

“Looking back on high school, it just felt like it went so incredibly fast. I have grown from just a scrawny freshman to the person I am today, and there are so many amazing things that helped me get to this point. Whether it was winning big games or losing and feeling that horrible dread of defeat, each experience shapes you into a new person, and that person is always fighting towards a new cause.” Loken says of his time with the Thunderbirds.

 

Korz’s appreciation for his teammates through all his accolades has been a key part in why he loves playing for Iola-Scandinavia, “My most memorable experience of high school has just been being around the great people that sports lead you to. I am so thankful that I have had such amazing people as teammates and coaches, and those bonds that are built through sports are something that cannot be replicated. You never truly feel like someone is your brother until they go through two practices a day at fall camp with you, they grind in the weight room every morning with you, and they show up every Friday to fight with you.”