6A All State Team

[RoverNation05]

Player of the Year: Charlie Foulke, SJP
Coach of the Year: Calvin Everett, Harrisburg

Weird choices, right? Foulke is probably going to be great, but was he the best player in the state, or just the quarterback for the best team? Sacca (my vote) or Smith feels like the better choice, but I guess we don’t consider non-QBs?

And I will die on the hill that Matt Senneca needed to be coach of the year. From 3-8 (6-16 the last two years) to 11-2 is an incredible coaching job. I’m sure Calvin Everett did great things, but this one feels like a no brainer.

Onto the team.

Quarterbacks
Gavin Sidwar, LaSalle
Charlie Foulke, SJP
Peyton Falzone, Nazareth
Eddie Corkery, State College
Jy’Aire Walls, Pittsburgh CC

Seems like the right group? Three underclassmen in Sidwar, Foulke, and Falzone so lots of firepower comes back.

Running Backs
Khyann Billups, SJP
Aaron Beete, Freedom
TJ Lawrence, Parkland
Declan Clancy, Manheim Township

Solid, if not star studded group. Beete and Clancy both went over 1,700 yards on the year, Lawrence was far and away the best player on the D11 champs (though I think he’s a better linebacker) and Billups was impressively dominant with an increased role after the Isaiah West injury.

Wide Receivers
Ty Salazer, State College
Elias Coke, Harrisburg
Joey O’Brien, LaSalle
Santana Young, CD East

Salazar had a 1,000 yard season and has already broken the Centre County career receiving record. Young also broke the 1,000 yard barrier on the season. Coke is a big time recruit who had 980 yards and ten touchdowns. O’Brien is the best receiver in the state. My only surprise here was neither of the SJP receivers (Hardy or Harrison) who feel like they were the offensive separator against other playoff teams.

Tight End
Michael Glover, Wilson West Lawn

Big sophomore is a looming huge recruit, made 50 catches as a 10th grader.

Offensive Line
Jack Yatchenko, North Allegheny
Khalil Stewart, SJP
Luke Milito, State College
Spencer McClintock, Manheim Township
Owen Marks, Manheim Township
Matt Gaul, State College

Kind of a weird group here? Manheim Township landing 1/3 of the all state offensive line feels like an overshot, though I’m sure both kids are good. From up here, surprised at no Tanner Wheeler from Freedom, Richmond bound offensive/defensive tackle who was the best offensive lineman in D11.

Offensive Athletes
Tyson Scott, George Washington
Madyx Gruber, Wilson West Lawn

Went with two dual-threat quarterbacks, and Gruber is also an excellent safety.

Defensive Line
Messiah Mickens, Harrisburg
Robert Edwards, Emmaus
Joseph Sondah, Imhotep Charter
Lincoln Hoke, North Allegheny

Mickens as a defensive end, rather than running back, is a fun choice. Edwards was a shoe-in, he dominated. Sondah another huge defensive tackle. Hoke also a shoe-in. Statewide, telling that Zahir Mathis from Imhotep didn’t make it. As an Easton guy, slightly disappointed for Kurtis Crossman and Algee Macon that neither got a sniff at defensive end. Both will be back next year.

Linebackers
Anthony Sacca, SJP
Cameron Smith, SJP
Bradley Gompers, PCC
Michael Gaul, State College
Jayden Ransom, Williamsport
Nate Szydlik, Council Rock South

The top here is the most star studded group, from Sacca down to Gaul. A kid from CRS over Ryan Clemens feels like a war crime. Jayden Ransom’s 20 sacks are quite impressive. From D11, Justin Peluso (Freedom) felt like a shoe-in before he tore his ACL in week 5. Reilly Bechtel (Emmaus) and Mehki Grant (Easton) also would have been viable candidates from up here.

Defensive Backs
Xxavier Thomas, PCC
Quincy Brannon, Harrisburg
Donovan Rodriguez, Manheim Township
Tommy Miller, Downingtown West

I don’t feel like I have a handle on DBs to form a solid opinion.

Defensive Athletes
Will Day, Easton
Michael Scott, Dallastown
Hakeem Cooper, Abraham Lincoln

So thrilled for Will Day. He was the engine of the Easton turnaround, and putting a kid with 1,100 yards rushing, 20 touchdowns, plus 80 tackles and a handful of interceptions for an 11-2 team feels like a no brainer, but I was worried he’d get overlooked because he didn’t have just one thing he excelled at. Particularly after losing his whole junior season to a broken foot, very happy for the kid.

 

[HSFB99]

As far as D1 is concerned, I was shocked Clemens wasn’t on the team on O or D. I have no clue how Syzdlik from CRS made it (dad or uncle is the coach I believe). Was that deserving. I didn’t see much CRS this year. I never really heard much about him. Surprised me.

 

[bucksftball]

Foulke was the third best QB in the PCL? Not even a top 5 player on his own team this year. Coach of the year hard to defend also, with a team that literally had no special teams.

State College and Manheim seem to have very (very) strong representation on this team every year.

Clemens not getting anything is inexcusable. Especially with the Parkland back being a sophomore and having “only” 1100 yards and not a very high YPC. Same with the junior CRS LB, no way to justify that pick over Clemens, especially with the difference in level of competition. I thought he’d end up with one of the Athlete nods, along with Day. There are a lot of great players who excel both ways, but most end up on All-State teams and very very rarely are they also a stud kicker who goes something like 48/50 combined on the season. Hopefully the coaches’ poll recognizes him.

 

[RoverNation05]

Foulke was the third best QB in the PCL? Not even a top 5 player on his own team this year. Coach of the year hard to defend also, with a team that literally had no special teams.

State College and Manheim seem to have very (very) strong representation on this team every year.

Clemens not getting anything is inexcusable. Especially with the Parkland back being a sophomore and having “only” 1100 yards and not a very high YPC. Same with the junior CRS LB, no way to justify that pick over Clemens, especially with the difference in level of competition. I thought he’d end up with one of the Athlete nods, along with Day. There are a lot of great players who excel both ways, but most end up on All-State teams and very very rarely are they also a stud kicker who goes something like 48/50 combined on the season. Hopefully the coaches’ poll recognizes him.

I thought the Lawrence Parkland would make it as a linebacker - they almost always are going to have a representative from the district champs on the all state team, and Lawrence was the only viable candidate from Parkland (the problem with the fifth best team in the league gets hot and wins the title). As I was scrolling and I saw him as a running back and neither Easton kid, my blood started to boil a little. Calmed down when I saw Day.

The Manheim Township thing is weird. Good football team. Had about the same season as Easton (even lost in the same round, albeit by significantly more), but they’ve got four all state kids to our one? Each school probably each should have had a guy on the team. But teams get weird support, I remember even after Moncman left Liberty, they’d gave stretches where they’d get multiple all state kids when they’d go 6-4.

State College is another that gets 4-5 kids every year. That said, the older Gaul is very good.

I think the quality of this team has gone way down. Biggest factor is, there are so many fewer newspapers that thoroughly cover high school football, so the voting pool has shrunk tremendously. The Express-Times in Easton alone used to have six people who voted on the All State team, I think now they have one. Do papers like the Intelligencer in Bucks County even have a high school sports reporter in the Associated Press anymore? And as the voting pool has shrunk, the quality of the team has gone way down. Which is a shame, because in some ways, it’s easier to be familiar with the whole state than ever (you can watch Hudl highlights of every nominated player!). It’s too bad.

 

[Fletchster1]

Poll loses credibility with the 4 from MT and 5 (what?) from SC. 2 OL from each school. One would think that whoever put this together would have reviewed before hitting send.

 

[northalleghenytiger]

These writers need to figure it out

 

[4i tech]

Max Hiller from Coatesville is one of the best in the state freaking nasty Olineman who has offers from Michigan Ohio State Alabama Texas AM Syracuse Penn State Missouri Maryland Pitt Oklahoma he was not on the All State

 

[Stalker]

Coach of Year:
6A right?
* I'd go with Gordon but understand Coach Cal getting there with four consecutive District-3 titles. No small feat in that district vs conference foes State College, Cumberland Valley, Central Dauphin, Bishop McDevitt and Cedar Cliff with Central York, Wilson or Manheim Township challenging from York and Lancaster Leagues.
* Senneca at Easton had one of the best if not best turn around in the state going from 3-8 to 11-2. Best offense in eleven years, one of top point turnarounds in the state.

Quarterback:
* Everett pulled another one from his hat in junior Jaiyon Lewis throwing for 62%, 2050 yards with a 19/9 ratio and rushing for 594 yards. Got the call to start a week before the season began with last year's QB Shawn Lee ineligible; 2272 passing, 1451 rushing (!), 67%, 25/5 ratio. Would rather seen him and the Cougars vs SJP instead of Pitt CC!
* Hetrick at CB South!

EDITED to put this in proper order.

 

[RobberLucky]

Not sure how Brett Gordon wasn’t coach of the year?

No Max Hiller? No Alex Haskel? No Clemens? Hell, even Eddie Bowen at CB South.

Foulke grew a lot this year but the player of the year carries their team. He doesn’t have to do that.

Sidwar was first team all Catholic voted by coaches. He was Huck Palmer PCL mvp. Foulke was not recognized as all Catholic by coaches or Huck Palmer. Sidwar means more to his team than Foulke does to his.

I’m sure there are more omissions, but these are my 2 cents.

 

[ChesterStyle]

Look up, Connor Kelly from Ridley. 4 year Starter, 400+ tackles, multiple INT & Sacks each year. I hen plays Rb senior year and gains 1000 yds.

 

[yeez1001]

I only saw the 2nd lasalle st joe game live, but it sure seemed like they asked folk to carry the team. Seemed like every big long down was him making a play on the move. That was the difference in the game, him keeping drives going when the other team couldn’t. Didn’t see much of the playoff run but that was their last good opponent.

 

[RoverNation05]

Impressive that this is Everett’s fourth AP Coach of the Year since 2016. Ties him with Mike Pettine, George Curry, and Art Walker for the most Big School COY’s of all time.