Photo Credit: Ryan Geer, GameFrame Photography
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1. Blake Shepherd, Salmon River
The senior quarterback completed ten passes in his team’s impressive opening-week win over Genesee, five of which went for touchdowns. He threw for 331 yards overall as Salmon River pulled away in the second half.
2. Grant Clemens, Coeur du Christ
Clemens completed 20 passes for 400 yards through the air, including four scoring plays in the Saints’ win over Lewis County on Saturday. He also snagged a pair of interceptions on defense.
3. Teagan Babcock, Butte County
Babcock was a two-way force in the Pirates’ win over Mackay on Friday. He rushed for 83 yards and a touchdown on offense. On defense, he had 14 tackles, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery as the Pirates held Mackay to 6 points.
Honorable Mention
Remington Crowell (Council)
Jarrett Keen (Deary)
Jackson Banks (Genesee)
Keathen Edwards (Grace)
Nathan Kimberling (Kendrick)
Jereese McCormick (Lapwai)
Jace Cronce (Lewis County)
Grayden Bruley (Mackay)
Jackson Stanger (Murtaugh)
Clay Johnson (North Gem)
Trey Magallon (Potlatch)
Payton Stamper (Prairie)
Payton Christensen (Troy)
Lennox Radford (Wallace)
The “3 Stars” Mantra
The goal with the Idaho8Man 3 Stars awards is to shine a spotlight on teams, players, and achievements that may not always get the headlines. We’re not only looking for gaudy stats – we’re rewarding impact based on the information we have available to us. We can’t be everywhere, and we can’t see everything, so we encourage coaches and ADs to submit information so we can share the great news!
Bruley Rules
Mackay sophomore Grayden Bruley did some serious heavy lifting for the Miners on Friday night, despite his team’s loss to Butte County. In a game that was interrupted twice by lightning delays, Bruley led his team in rushing yards (56), receiving yards (55), and all-purpose yards (115) on offense. Flip to the other side of the ball, and you’ll find that Bruley was credited with 21 tackles – 17 solo tackles – against the powerful Pirates ground game. The Miners go on the road next week to face the Castleford Wolves.
The “Other Miners” Hold On
There’s a pretty good football team that also has the nickname “Miners” at the other end of the state as well – the Wallace Miners of District 1 held on for a wild season-opening win over Potlatch on Friday, 44-42. Dynamic junior quarterback Cooper Miller did his thing as usual, throwing five touchdown passes (bringing his career mark to 76 scoring tosses already, with nearly two full seasons to go) to help stake his squad to a 44-28 lead midway through the fourth quarter. But Potlatch QB Trey Magallon tossed a pair of late TD passes to get the Loggers within two. Wallace’s defense stopped a potential game-tying two-point conversion attempt to seal the victory.