2023 Super Six Standouts

Six teams participated in the 2023 Super Six State Championships at Wheeling Island Stadium but only three could leave victorious. Class AA got us started with likely the best state championship game ever to be played in West Virginia in a 49-48 thriller that saw Fairmont Senior triumph in the end on a 2-point conversion defensive stand at the goal line. The Class A and AAA games weren't quite as thrilling but there were still plenty of standout performers from all three games. Here were the biggest standouts from the 2023 Super Six games.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Williamstown vs Greenbrier West</h2>   [player_tooltip player_id='370324' first='Maxwell' last='Molessa'] - Williamstown '24 QB/ATH   Senior Williamstown quarterback capped his prolific high school career with a memorable performance and his second state championship ring. Molessa showed early and often why he's a future D1 college athlete where he'll play baseball at West Virginia University. He rushed for 160 yards and two touchdowns in the 42-12 win over Greenbrier West while also completing 8 of 9 passes for 96 yards and a third touchdown. He broke the Super Six record for longest play from scrimmage on a 98-yard jaunt after a Greenbrier West interception at the Williamstown 2-yard line. Molessa has rushed for nearly 600 combined yards in three straight state championship appearances for the Yellowjackets as they earn back-to-back titles.   [player_tooltip player_id='1015094' first='Lynken' last='Joy'] - Williamstown '25 RB/LB   Junior running back [player_tooltip player_id='1015094' first='Lynken' last='Joy'] wasn't far behind Molessa's stellar performance who was the second-leading rusher and leading tackler for the Yellowjackets. Joy carried the ball 20 times for 156 yards and two touchdowns including a 48-yarder that went the distance. He totaled 9 tackles on defense including two for a loss for a complete effort on the state's biggest stage.   [player_tooltip player_id='1096610' first='Louis' last='Goodnow'] - Williamstown '24 WR/LB   Williamstown's Big 3 on offense were as advertised with the third of that group being senior receiver [player_tooltip player_id='1096610' first='Louis' last='Goodnow']. Goodnow took an end around 59 yards for a touchdown early in the game breaking several tackles on his way to the end zone on his only carry of the game. He also hauled in 4 passes for 64 yards and had a 33-yard punt and 14-yard kick return in the game. Goodnow caught the 2-point conversion on Williamstown's second touchdown of the first quarter to put the Yellowjackets up 16-0 and seize complete momentum of the game.   Moses Gray - Greenbrier West '24 RB/LB   Greenbrier West actually moved the ball pretty well, especially in the first half and was led by senior running back Moses Gray with [player_tooltip player_id='1096621' first='Jake' last='Pate'] still banged up. Gray led the Cavaliers in rushing with 95 yards on 11 attempts and averaged 8.4 yards per carry for the game. Greenbrier West finished with a respectable 272 rushing yards against a stout Williamstown defense.   [player_tooltip player_id='893391' first='Ethan' last='Holliday'] - Greenbrier West '24 ATH   Senior Greenbrier West do-it-all athlete [player_tooltip player_id='893391' first='Ethan' last='Holliday'] was also admirable in defeat for the Cavaliers. He rushed for 79 yards on 7 carries while averaging 11.3 yards per carry. He also caught the lone completed pass of the game for the Cavaliers and was a two-way starter on defense.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Fairmont Senior vs North Marion</h2>   [player_tooltip player_id='370355' first='Dylan' last='Ours'] - Fairmont Senior '24 ATH   Senior Fairmont Senior Polar Bear [player_tooltip player_id='370355' first='Dylan' last='Ours'] had about as good of a game as you can have in a state championship game of this caliber. Ours was simply dominant on the ground in the Polar Bears' running game scoring six touchdowns and totaling 188 rushing yards on 27 carries. North Marion had no answers for him and Fairmont Senior constructed a nice wrinkle for him taking direct snaps and running off tackle in short-yardage situations with a QB sneak look. Ours also caught two passes for 31 yards and totaled 8 tackles on defense and even had a 46-yard punt in the game.   [player_tooltip player_id='450993' first='Brody' last='Whitehair'] - Fairmont Senior '25 QB   Junior quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='450993' first='Brody' last='Whitehair'] was effective in the passing and running game and showed off his athleticism in more ways than one. Whitehair completed 9 of 15 passes for 169 yards and a touchdown while also rushing for 96 yards on 14 attempts. He also had a huge pass breakup and a near interception on defense when he played some safety for the Polar Bears and flashed his upper-tier athleticism in the game. Whitehair picks up his first state championship ring as QB1 with a chance to add another one next season for his senior year.   [player_tooltip player_id='866532' first='Aaron' last='Hoffman'] - North Marion '24 RB   For as good as [player_tooltip player_id='370355' first='Dylan' last='Ours'] was for Fairmont Senior, his counterpart [player_tooltip player_id='866532' first='Aaron' last='Hoffman'] was just as good for North Marion and even put up bigger rushing numbers for the game. Every time you blinked Hoffman seemed to be ripping off another long run and was playing at a different speed than most players on the field Friday night. He totaled 248 yards and four touchdowns on 22 carries while averaging over 10 yards per carry. Hoffman added 10 tackles on defense including 1.5 tackles for loss and was named MVP for his team.   [player_tooltip player_id='370356' first='Casey' last='Minor'] - North Marion '24 QB/LB   Senior North Marion QB/LB [player_tooltip player_id='370356' first='Casey' last='Minor'] set the tone early on with a big hit on the opening kickoff before he and the Huskie defense took the field. Minor, who rarely comes off the field, was very impressive in the 49-48 loss making an impact in all three phases of the game. Minor completed 8 of 19 passes for 113 yards and a touchdown but did what he does in the running game. He carried the ball 21 times for 151 yards and two touchdowns on the ground and tied for the leading tackler in the game with 12 total.   [player_tooltip player_id='884034' first='Landon' last='Frey'] - North Marion '24 WR/DB   [player_tooltip player_id='884034' first='Landon' last='Frey'] made the catch seen round the state and country when he snagged an acrobatic one-handed touchdown catch down the sideline of the end zone that you'd have to see to believe. Frey earned the #1 spot on ESPN's Sports Center Top 10 plays for his unbelievable effort which brought the Huskies within one of rival Fairmont State with 14 seconds left in the game. Although North Marion would inevitably fall after a failed 2-point conversion for the potential win, Frey made headlines everywhere for his catch and has made big-time plays like that his entire career.   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/MetroNewsPrep/status/1730810088657424817?s=20 </div></figure>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Martinsburg vs Princeton</h2>   [player_tooltip player_id='370309' first='Murphy' last='Clement'] - Martinsburg '24 QB/ATH   [player_tooltip player_id='370309' first='Murphy' last='Clement'] put himself at the forefront of the Kennedy Award conversation in a game filled with potential candidates for the Player of the Year honor. Clement relied on his legs in this game with 210 rushing yards on 14 carries and scored 4 touchdowns on the ground for the Bulldogs in the 57-13 win. He also threw for 82 yards and two more touchdowns to bring his total to six scores on the afternoon. Clement had scoring runs of 15, 31, 45, and 48 yards in the game on his way to earning the team MVP award and a state championship title.   [player_tooltip player_id='888165' first='Rashad' last='Reid'] - Martinsburg '24 DL   The best player on the field at Wheeling Island Stadium on Saturday afternoon may have been Martinsburg senior defensive lineman [player_tooltip player_id='888165' first='Rashad' last='Reid'] which is saying something given how many big-time players and performances there were in the game. Reid was dominant along the Bulldogs' defensive front and was a nightmare for Princeton's offense all game long. Reid finished with 6 tackles including 3 for a loss and sacked the Princeton quarterback twice in the win. The Martinsburg defense had 7 total sacks in the game and Reid led the way pestering the Tigers' offensive line and quarterback all afternoon.   [player_tooltip player_id='880798' first='Amar' last='Dover'] - Martinsburg '24 WR/DB   Martinsburg didn't need to air it out on offense in this game but senior WR/DB [player_tooltip player_id='880798' first='Amar' last='Dover'] showed why he's one of the best defensive backs in the state on its biggest stage. Dover picked off two passes in the state championship and helped limit a very potent Princeton passing attack. It would have been nearly impossible to shut down Princeton star receiver [player_tooltip player_id='880797' first='Dominick' last='Collins'] and he still got his numbers but Dover and the Martinsburg secondary did a nice job of containing their passing offense overall and made plays when they needed to.   [player_tooltip player_id='450989' first='Kash' last='Gedeon'] - Martinsburg '25 WR   Junior Martinsburg receiver [player_tooltip player_id='450989' first='Kash' last='Gedeon'] showed why he's a D1 prospect in the Bulldogs' biggest game of the season. Gedeon hauled in 4 catches and had 67 of the Bulldogs' 82 receiving yards. He caught both [player_tooltip player_id='370309' first='Murphy' last='Clement'] touchdown passes in the game including a pretty head top in the back corner of the end zone over a Princeton defensive back. The underrated part of his performance in this game was his blocks downfield that sprung a couple of touchdown runs in the game.   [player_tooltip player_id='908988' first='Nick' last='Busky'] - Martinsburg '25 RB/LB   Two-way starter [player_tooltip player_id='908988' first='Nick' last='Busky'] was very good on both sides of the ball for Martinsburg in their state championship win. The junior RB/LB started off the game slow along with the entire Bulldogs' offense but really got going after the first quarter. Busky rushed for 107 yards on just 6 carries and averaged 17.7 yards per carry. Needless to say, he was ripping off some big runs in the game and tied as the leading tackler for the Bulldogs with 6 total including a sack and TFL. He'll return as one of the nice pieces in Martinsburg's junior class.   [player_tooltip player_id='880797' first='Dominick' last='Collins'] - Princeton '24 WR   Many wondered if Princeton star receiver [player_tooltip player_id='880797' first='Dominick' last='Collins'] could have the kind of production against a team like Martinsburg as he's had all season and he proved that he could pretty quickly in the game. Collins got the scoring started with a 44-yard bomb for a touchdown and finished the game with 7 catches for 169 yards and two touchdowns. Collins flashed his 4.2-4.3 speed right before the half when he beat his defender by 10 yards and was fast enough to have to wait on the ball and still went into the end zone untouched. Martinsburg certainly doesn't lack speed themselves but Collins was playing in a different gear. The Bulldogs showed how much they respected Collins by doubling him most of the game and lining up two DBs within ten yards of him one on top of another. Hopefully, that performance wakes some D1 colleges up and gives Collins his first Division One offer.

Six teams participated in the 2023 Super Six State Championships at Wheeling Island Stadium but only three could leave victorious. Class AA got us started with likely the best state championship game ever to be played in West Virginia in a 49-48 thriller that saw Fairmont Senior triumph in the end on a 2-point conversion defensive stand at the goal line. The Class A and AAA games weren't quite as thrilling but there were still plenty of standout performers from all three games. Here were the biggest standouts from the 2023 Super Six games.