Among West Virginia's best

WAYNE — Top-ranked Wayne rolled through the 2005 regular season and the first two rounds of the playoffs before falling to Weir in the Class AA semifinals.

The Red Riders then proceeded to hammer Bluefield in the state title game one week later.

All three schools are well-represented on the Class AA all-state team announced Thursday by the West Virginia Sports Writers Association.

Each team had six players on the first and second units combined. Wayne received six first team selections, while Weir had four first team picks and a pair of second team honorees. Bluefield placed three players on each squad.

None of the three schools produced the co-captains of the first team offense. That honor went to Herbert Hoover running back D.J. Taylor and Magnolia quarterback Josh Sims, who made the team as a utility selection.

Taylor was the Huskies’ top threat, rushing for 2,216 yards and 32 touchdowns. He also had 10 receptions for 146 yards and another score while setting single-season school records for rushing yards, points (206) and rushing touchdowns.

Sims was the state’s leader in all-purpose yardage, leading the Blue Eagles into the quarterfinal round. The senior threw for 1,772 yards and 17 TDs, while rushing for 1,297 yards and 19 scores to eclipse the single-season school record for all-purpose yards held by two-time Kennedy Award winner Mark Cisar.

Joining Taylor in the backfield are Wayne quarterback Nick Newell and running backs Andrew Robertson of James Monroe and Tommy Newman of Liberty Raleigh. Robertson and Newman are returning first-teamers.

Newell completed 70-of-119 passes for 1,239 yards and 13 TDs and ran for 562 yards and nine scores. He threw just two interceptions.

Robertson had 1,350 yards and 20 TDs, including a 239-yard, five-TD effort in an opening round playoff win over Winfield.

Newman closed the season with 1,490 rushing yards and 17 scores.

In addition to Sims, the other utility spot is filled by Wayne’s Garry Roland. The senior tailback ran for 1,435 yards and 27 touchdowns and pulled in 21 passes for 284 yards and four more scores. He finished among the state’s top five scorers and set a new single-season school record for points.

Weir’s Jason Gatto (32 receptions, 785 yards, 12 TDs) leads a trio of receivers that also includes Magnolia’s Zac Snyder (49 catches, 898 yards, 10 TDs) and Mount View’s Eric Smith (31 catches, 651 yards, three TDs).

The offensive line includes Ravenswood’s William Workman, Herbert Hoover’s Aaron Beighle, Liberty Harrison’s D.J. Barberio, Bluefield’s Ryan Albert and Wayne’s John Dunkle.

First-team kicker B.J. Evans of Tolsia had three field goals, was 26-for-31 on extra-point tries and placed more than 80 percent of his kickoffs inside an opponent’s 5-yard line. He also finished among the state’s top five scorers with 25 touchdowns as a running back.

Defensively, the first-team captain is Wayne linebacker Trevor Marcum. The Marshall University recruit had 90 tackles, including 19 for losses, two sacks, two interceptions, two blocked kicks and a pair of forced fumbles.

Other linebackers are Weir’s Mike Buffo, James Monroe’s Jason Jackson and Lincoln’s Cody Lucas. Buffo had a whopping 213 tackles and 21 sacks.

Weir also was represented by utility picks Corey Lyons and Brandon Sperlazza.

Lyons had 70 tackles, including nine for loss, and six sacks from his linebacker position. On offense, he ran for 1,617 yards and 17 TDs. Sperlazza was a spot player in the Red Rider secondary, but he did most of his damage at quarterback, throwing for 1,148 yards and 19 touchdowns and rushing for 450 yards and four other scores.

Bluefield’s Matt Carter leads the four-man defensive front that also includes Wayne’s Eddie White, Tolsia’s Timmy Evans and Iaeger’s John Rowe. Carter topped the runner-up Beavers with 129.5 tackles.

The secondary includes Grafton’s Andy Leach, Bluefield’s Jonathan Payne, Herbert Hoover’s Austin Harper and Justin Rowe of Wayne. Rowe led the Pioneers in tackles (107) and tackles for loss (21), while Payne picked off 13 passes for the Beavers.

Roane County’s Evan Kendall is the first-team punter, averaging just over 34 yards per kick. He also threw for more than 1,000 yards as a quarterback.

The second-team captains are Weir tailback Josh Smith and utility selection Sean Combs of Independence on defense.

Among the local players on that squad were Mount View’s Adrian Thomas, Bluefield’s Jeff Hutchinson, Allen Carter and Mark Page, and Ben Preston and Heath Mullins from James Monroe.

The first-team selections will be honored at the annual Victory Awards Dinner in May, 2006.

Text Only