Offense
Linemen
Lucas Breniser
Teays Valley senior
Coach Mark Weber on Breniser: “Lucas is one of the biggest guys on the field every week, he plays hard and he played injured most of the year. He showed his toughness and was able to produce eight-to-nine pancakes a game. His knowledge of the game really progressed in his second-year starting.”
Kade Kirkpatrick
Teays Valley senior
Coach Weber on Kirkpatrick: “Kade was our brain of the offensive line, calling out all the protections and run plays. He was the QB of the offensive line. He didn’t start all 10 games last year, but he really committed to the weight room, lost 50 pounds and really flourished on the offensive line this season.”
A.J. Moniaci
Teays Valley sophomore
Coach Moniaci on Weber: “A.J. is going to be one of the biggest kids in the league the next two seasons. He plays hard and he really picked up and did well on pancakes and taking on double teams as the season progressed.”
Joey Truman
Westfall junior
Coach Brad Smith on Truman: “Joey played every snap at left tackle. He just started out pretty good and continually got better as the season progressed.”
Evan Valentine
Logan Elm senior
Coach Terry Holbert on Valentine: “Evan had a major impact on our team this season. He was a young man we counted on to play both ways, which sometimes is challenging, but Evan is mentally tough and made a big impact on both sides of the football.”
Michael Clark
Circleville sophomore
Coach Luke Katris on Clark: “Michael is a kid who came on really strong and got a lot better as a blocker. He was on the right side of the line and we ran behind him a lot. Michael is a kid we are going to lean a lot on over the next two seasons, because he has very good leadership skills and he’ll continue to get stronger and even more physical.”
Quarterback
Tristan McDanel
Teays Valley senior
Stats: 172 carries for 983 yards and 11 touchdowns; 37 of 72 passing for 570 yards and six touchdowns
Coach Weber on McDanel: “Over the last two seasons Tristan has been the guy who grinds in the weight room, both morning and night. He’s loyal to his coaches, his teammates and gets those tough, gritty yards on game night.”
Conner Robinson
Logan Elm junior
Stats: 116 of 239 passing for 1,568 yards and 15 touchdowns; 306 yards rushing and six touchdowns
Coach Holbert on Robinson: “Conner is a football player and that’s evident by how hard he plays on Friday night. Transitioning from defensive back to middle linebacker and doing it well goes to show his mindset. He’s a leader and he’s committed to doing everything he can for the team. He loves the game of football.”
Marcus Whaley
Westfall junior
Stats: 71 of 120 passing for 817 yards and 11 touchdowns; 49 carries for 226 yards and three touchdowns
Coach Smith on Whaley: “Marcus’s impact is pretty obvious, considering we can look at the games he played to the ones he didn’t. His ability to read a defense and get the football going in the right spot, whether by run or pass, makes him a very special player, along with his athletic ability.”
Running back
Riely Weiss
Teays Valley senior
Stats: 77 carries for 734 yards and 11 touchdowns
Coach Weber on Weiss: “Riely is lightning in a bottle. He’s coachable, has good vision and plays on that edge. If he gets to the edge then he can take it to the house.”
Trent Davis
Westfall junior
Stats: 151 carries for 937 yards and six touchdowns
Coach Smith on Davis: “Trent’s a running back who makes defenders look foolish when they’re trying to tackle him. He can run away from defenders, around him and, when he needs to, he can run through them.”
Colin Michael
Circleville sophomore
Stats: 108 carries for 504 yards and five touchdowns
Coach Katris on Michael: “Colin is a kid I really enjoyed coaching, because he played very hard on both sides of the football. He was a fullback in our offense who blocked a ton and did it very hard. When he got some touches carrying the football, he was a hard runner. I’m glad we’re going to have him for two more years.”
Wyatt Thatcher
Circleville sophomore
Stats: 78 carries for 458 yards and three touchdowns
Coach Katris on Thatcher: “Wyatt was our wing back on offense and every time he got a carry, he seemed to have a big play running the counter. What I really love about Wyatt is he doesn’t weigh a ton, but he’s physical and took on blocking a lot of bigger kids this season and did a nice job. I’m glad we’ll have him for two more seasons.”
Receiver
Dale Hubbard
Teays Valley senior
Stats: Nine receptions for 251 yards and four touchdowns
Coach Weber on Hubbard: “Dale is fast. He’ll be looking to go back to state in track again this season. Opponents had to respect him, even though we don’t throw the football a lot, because he could take it to the house. He also played most of the season injured.”
Donte Dryden
Logan Elm senior
Stats: 31 receptions for 408 yards and four touchdowns
Coach Holbert on Dryden: “Donte is a playmaker, so we tried to move him around as many ways as we could to get the ball in his hands. He can be electric whenever he gets the football in his hands.”
All-purpose
Clayton Knox
Teays Valley senior
Stats: 11 receptions for 135 yards; 15 carries for 130 yards and 17 returns for 260 yards with three total touchdowns
Coach Weber on Knox: “Clayton came out for his senior year, and he’s another one of those guys who’s production is pretty good, including on special teams with returns. He’s quick catching those bubbles and he drew a guy out of the box, which was big for our run game.”
Hayden Lemaster
Westfall senior
Stats: 43 of 70 passing for 601 yards and five touchdowns; 37 carries for 215 yards and five touchdowns; 25 receptions for 349 yards and six touchdowns
Coach Smith on Lemaster: “He scored touchdowns in four different ways, which is pretty amazing. He played quarterback, running back, wide receiver and defensive back, and did them all pretty well. It’s nuts to think a backup quarterback can complete 65 percent of his passes. Not too many kids are capable of doing that.”
Defense
Linemen
Zion Bowling
Teays Valley junior
Stats: 63.5 tackles, including 14.5 for loss, and eight sacks
Coach Weber on Bowling: “Zion led the team in sacks and is relentless. He plays with a passion for the game and he gets frustrated when teams are running away from him. He’s an anchor coming back for his senior year.”
Hunter Young
Teays Valley junior
Stats: 42 tackles, including two for loss, and two sacks
Coach Weber on Young: “Hunter is another younger guy on the defense. We moved him to the defensive line, which created some mismatches with his strength and quickness. He’s that scrappy nose guard on the line.”
Eli Burgett
Teays Valley junior
Stats: 39.5 tackles, including 12.5 for loss, and 1.5 sacks.
Coach Weber on Burgett: “Eli is very fundamental and a very coachable player. You don’t recognize he’s there during the game, because he does his job so well. He’s going to have a solid senior year.”
Linebacker
Gage Weiler
Teays Valley senior
Stats: 86 tackles, including 10 for loss, 3.5 sacks and an interception
Coach Weber on Weiler: “Gage is the hammer of our defense. He makes things happen as mike linebacker with energy and effort. He’s a statesman of the defense starting between 25-28 games in his career.”
Cooper Booth
Teays Valley junior
Stats: 78 tackles, including seven for loss, and an interception
Coach Weber on Booth: “He was a surprise starting the season at outside linebacker and Week 2 we moved him inside. He racked up the tackles and to be second on the team in tackles never playing that position before is special. He’s an athletic linebacker, who can go sideline-to-sideline.”
Michael Struckman
Teays Valley senior
Stats: 73 tackles, including 11 for loss, 1.5 sacks and an interception
Coach Weber on Struckman: “Michael’s not very big, so people try to run at him, but he tackles and tackles well. That’s impressive. He has a nose for the football and gets low. He’s fundamentally sound and a hard worker.”
Josey Kelly
Westfall junior
Stats: 167 tackles, two sacks and an interception
Coach Smith on Kelly: “Only player on our team that had a stat in every defensive category. He fills nicely and he continued to get better with that as the season progressed. He was a very valuable part of our defense.”
Trevor Sharon
Westfall senior
Stats: 81 tackles
Coach Smith on Sharon: “Trevor is, pound-for-pound, one of our hardest hitters and a young man who has a nose for the football. He did a lot of things really, really well for us.”
Peyton Bennett
Logan Elm senior
Stats: 45 tackles, including five for loss
Coach Holbert on Bennett: “Peyton is a high energy player who gives great effort and is relentless. He has a tremendous motor that makes him go. He had to play on both sides of the football. He was in great condition, mentally tough and a leader for us on the field.”
Isac Payne
Circleville junior
Stats: 65 tackles, including seven for loss
Coach Katris on Payne: “Isac is a great kid who started out at safety and moved to inside linebacker midway through the season. If he had played there all season, he would have had some really amazing stats, because Isac is a great kid who works hard and is tough as nails. I’m glad we’ll have him back for another season.”
Back
Camden Primmer
Teays Valley junior
Stats: 22 tackles and three interceptions
Coach Weber on Primmer: “Camden’s a tall, athletic kid who works hard. People try to throw at him, but he’s on their hip and makes the play. He just does his job every single play, and he’s very coachable. The team voted him as a captain, but he declined it so another senior could be captain. That says a lot about him.”
Peyton Weiler
Teays Valley sophomore
Stats: 60 tackles, including three for loss, two sacks and an interception
Coach Weber on Weiler: “Peyton is only a sophomore, but he had a nose for the football and was tough and relentless. We trust kids who are hard workers and that’s why he earned the opportunity to play.”
Chanston Moll
Westfall senior
Stats: 76 tackles and three interceptions
Coach Smith on Moll: “Chanston got hobbled by injuries later in the season and it took a toll on our defense. He was a quarterback on the field to make sure our defense was in the proper alignment. He’s just a flat out solid football player.”
Luke Blackburn
Westfall junior
Stats: 64 tackles and for interceptions
Coach Smith on Blackburn: “Luke was a real nice surprise coming out. We thought offensively he would do fine as a big, tall receiver. He had a lot of tackles playing free safety coming down hill, running the alley and sticking his nose into things. He also had some key interceptions and pass breakups.”
Mark Weber
Teays Valley
Coach of the Year
Weber guided the Vikings to a 7-3 season, including a share of their third consecutive Mid-State League Buckeye Division championship and fifth league title in six seasons.
