8-man football has talent, too. The top players made the 1A Division I All-Idaho team.
PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Cole Martin, Prairie
The 6-2, 190-pound junior running back was a man among boys at the 8-man level. He ran for 1,600 yards on the dot and 24 TDs, averaging 10.9 yards per carry as he ran over, through and around defenders. And the shutdown corner also broke up 19 passes, intercepted six and returned three for touchdowns.
“His stats would have been doubled if they didn’t blow almost everyone out in the regular season,” Notus coach Joe Woodland said.
COACH OF THE YEAR
Ryan Hasselstrom, Prairie
The Pirates rolled to a perfect season (11-0) and their third title in six years under Hasselstrom.
[Related: 5A All-Idaho team | 4A All-Idaho team | 3A All-Idaho team | 2A All-Idaho team | 1A Division II All-Idaho team]
FIRST TEAM
OFFENSE
QB: Chandler Jones, Oakley
The senior and former receiver made a seamless position change, finishing with 2,795 total yards and 40 TDs.
RB: Keyan Cummins, Lost Rivers
The 5-10, 175-pound senior led the Pirates ground game with 1,017 yards and 15 TDs at 10.3 yards per carry.
RB: Juan McFarlane, Idaho City
The 5-7, 140-pound senior surprised opponents with his toughness on the way to 1,474 yards and 16 TDs.
WR: Norman Gonzalez, Wilder
Nobody had an answer for the 6-4, 190-pound senior. He racked up 74 catches for 1,417 yards and 16 TDs.
WR: Derik Shears, Prairie
The 6-2 senior hauled in 30 catches for 509 yards and 12 TDs, finding the end zone on 40% of his catches.
OL: Dean Johnson, Prairie
The 6-foot, 225-pound junior was a weapon as a pulling guard, and he also set the edge for the Pirates’ sweeps.
OL: Dillon Sperber, Genesee
The Bulldogs’ valedictorian, the 5-11, 220-pound senior moves up to the first after second-team honors last year.
OL: Ryan Spaeth, Raft River
The junior had the size (6-1, 240) and intellect to make all the calls and anchor the line on both sides of the ball.
K: Jose Leon, Wilder
The junior proved to be the rare kicking weapon in 8-man football, nailing a 30-yard field goal in the playoffs.
DEFENSE
DL: Dean Johnson, Prairie
No one could block the nose guard one-on-one, evidenced by his 13 tackles for loss and 7.5 sacks.
DL: Kade Toribau, Oakley
The 6-foot, 215-pound senior was a terror who racked up 122 tackles and 12 sacks for the Hornets.
DL: Sereck Peterson, Lost Rivers
His nonstop motor made the senior defensive end unblockable. He had 74 tackles, 12 sacks and four forced fumbles.
LB: Owen Anderson, Prairie
The senior lived in the backfield, tallying 19.5 tackles for loss and six sacks while making four INTs.
LB: Justin Schumann, Raft River
The senior was a film junkie, using all that knowledge to pile up 112 tackles, 11 sacks and five interceptions.
LB: Keyan Cummins, Lost Rivers
A two-way, first-team pick, he attacked the ball en route to 100 tackles, three sacks and five forced fumbles.
DB: Chandler Jones, Oakley
The senior had 70 tackles, 15 pass breakups and six INTs to make the first team for the third time in a row.
DB: Sam Mager, Prairie
The brains behind the state champ’s defense, the senior flew downhill to make 45.5 tackles and 5.5 tackles for loss.
P: Josh Nyman, Oakley
The senior flipped the field over and over again for the Hornets, averaging 46 yards per punt.
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This story was originally published December 20, 2019 at 1:31 PM.
