2023 Small School State Finals Awards

<p>The 2023 State Championships did not disappoint. Of course, the majority of the viewership was dominated by the big-school teams in divisions 1-4, but Divisions 1-5 had some amazing games and stellar performances as well. In this article, I'd like to shout out a few teams, units, and players that really impressed me in divisions 5-8. </p>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Offensive Performance - Eli Graves</h2>   <p>Kingsley's Eli Graves had an absolutely phenomenal performance against a great Almont defense. Eli rushed for 210 yards and 4TDs on an insane 33 touches. Eli didn't win with insane athleticism or speed, but instead he won with obviously incredible conditioning, hard hitting, and an ability to always fall forward. Kingsley scored a touchdown on all but one possession, and Eli was a major part of that effort.</p>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Defensive Performance - [player_tooltip player_id='1122530' first='Trevor' last='Theuerkauf'] </h2>   <p>I'm going to be singing the praises of [player_tooltip player_id='1122530' first='Trevor' last='Theuerkauf'] for a while. Although Menominee lost the game, Trevor put up the best overall numbers of any player for the entire weekend. I'll talk about his offensive performance later, but defensively he had 17 tackles and 2 pass breakups. His 17 tackles ended up being the 2nd most of any player last weekend, and his 2 pass breakups tied a few others for 1st all weekend. Trevor had great reaction time and burst on his way to the ball, played fearlessly, and played in every offensive and defensive snap this game. </p>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Clutch Performance - [player_tooltip player_id='601038' first='Kadale' last='Williams']</h2>   <p>Kadale showed us why he's one of the best athletes in the state. Lumen Christi has a reputation of being a physical and extremely well-rounded team, but last weekend, Kadale was the entire offense. Yes, the blocking was good as well, but Kadale broke dozens of tackles and ended up with 276 yards rushing and 3TDs. There was a point in this game where he seemed to have gotten into a zone, and when he was in that zone, he was fed the ball and refused to go down. He put the team on his back, and proved to everyone that he should be regarded as a high-end prospect. I believe the only thing keeping him from being a Division 1 prospect is his speed. </p>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Best Game - Lumen Christi vs. Menominee</h2>   <p>This game was an absolute treat. Several lead changes and incredible performances on both sidelines, neither team was willing to accept defeat. Not many people watched this game because it was the morning game and it was D7, but I promise you it's worth a watch just to see KaDale Willaims and [player_tooltip player_id='1122530' first='Trevor' last='Theuerkauf'] ball out. </p>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Best Defensive Play - Game-Sealing Sack by [player_tooltip player_id='483197' first='Lundon' last='Hampton']</h2>   <p>Menominee had an opportunity to drive down the field and win the game on their last possession. Instead, Freshman [player_tooltip player_id='483197' first='Lundon' last='Hampton'] finally got to the quarterback on 4th down, sealing the victory for Lumen Christi. London was cycled in and out of the game, but when he was in, he made a huge difference. I'm extremely excited to see what Lundon will be able to accomplish moving forward! </p>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Best Offensive Play - Ubly's late 4th-down TD to extend lead </h2>   <p>Another game that wasn't viewed by many because of it being in the morning and D8 status, but this was legitimately a great watch. These teams went back and forth on defense, trading punts, 4th downs, and near-scores. </p>   <p>This offensive play came midway through the 3rd quarter. Ubly was up 7-6, and they were faced with a critical 4th and 7 from the 11 yard-line. 7 yards was hard to come by for either team all game, so Ubly had to draw up something good. That's when they opted to pass, and QB Evan Peruski threw a dot to WR Ryan Learman for the score. This play put Ubly up 14-6, and allowed some much needed breathing room for the rest of the game. </p>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Best Offensive Unit - Kingsley</h2>   <p>Five out of Six of Kingsley's offensive possessions ended in a Touchdown. Even more impressive, they did this against a team that only gave up 14.7PPG. The difference of this offense was their Offensive line and RB Eli Graves. The O-Line did an especially great job at blowing Almont back at the line of scrimmage and ensuring they get 4+ yards on every play. In such a run-heavy offense, the O-Line really came to play. Hats off to Kingsley for their superior efficiency. </p>   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepredzone.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/MG_4197.jpg?w=1024" alt="Kingsley Breaks the Huddle" class="wp-image-1099452" style="width:464px;height:auto" /></figure>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Best Defensive Unit - Grand Rapids Catholic Central</h2>   <p>Catholic Central imposed their will on a physical and athletic Corunna offense. From the press box, I saw some big hits, great reaction from the LBs, and sound tackling. What I didn't see until the postgame press conference was the toll it took on Corunna. Corunna openly admitted in the presser that Catholic Central hit them so hard that it affected their physical and mental performance for the entire game. Knowing how talented the Corunna offense is, it was shocking to see the head coach and multiple star players admit that they simply got beat up physically and mentally on the field. That said, hats off to Catholic Central for giving up 7 to an offense that averaged 45 PPG. </p>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">GRIT Award - QB [player_tooltip player_id='1122530' first='Trevor' last='Theuerkauf'] </h2>   <p>Trevor was my most memorable player from the entire weekend. In the other games, the top performers were mostly guys that I've watched a lot of film of. Even in this game, I knew several players on Lumen Christi, while Menominee was unknown. The talent on Lumen was admittedly a lot better than Menominee as a whole, but Trevor played so out of his mind that he almost won Menominee this game.</p>   <p>Offensively, Trevor threw for 199 yards, 2 touchdowns, and 0 interceptions. He also rushed for 111 yards and 1 TD on 15 carries (besides a sack on the very last offensive play). In total, Trevor accounted for 310 yards and 3TDs. This isn't accounting for all the plays he evaded pressure and made big 3rd and 4th down conversions. </p>   <p>Trevor also recorded 17 tackles and 2 pass breakups on defense. That's right- Trevor played every single offensive and defensive snap in this game. He was Menominee's best tackler, ran hard to the football, and defended the pass incredibly well. In the postgame presser, Head Coach Chad Brandt had a lot of good things to say about his QB. Trevor was pretty upset over the loss, but I'd honestly be concerned if he wasn't. I need to watch more film of Trevor's, but I have a feeling he's a sneaky-good player with great intangibles. </p>   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepredzone.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/MG_4860.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-1096497" style="width:548px;height:auto" /></figure>

The 2023 State Championships did not disappoint. Of course, the majority of the viewership was dominated by the big-school teams in divisions 1-4, but Divisions 1-5 had some amazing games and stellar performances as well. In this article, I'd like to shout out a few teams, units, and players that really impressed me in divisions 5-8.