Bee’s Best: Meet The Sacramento Bee’s 2024 All-Metro Football Players of Year and the teams
When it was over — a high school football season that started in the heat of July conditioning in California’s capital and ended in the chill of the setting sun in Orange County — Jeremiah Tuiileila managed to collect himself for a moment amid.
He was surrounded by a celebration scene on the football field at Saddleback College to reflect on a season to cherish, and the Grant Pacers senior defensive end/linebacker offered this simple line: “It starts and ends with The G!”
Tuiileila was referring to Grant, otherwise known in Del Paso Heights where fans for decades celebrate their student-athletes as “The G.” Tuiileila was leading G Man for the only Sacramento-area team to cap the exhausting season with a CIF State championship.
Because Tuiileila led a defensive charge as a one-man wrecking crew who delighted in ransacking backfields, and because he was the best player on the state’s best CIF State Division 2-AA team, he is The Sacramento Bee’s Player of the Year.
Tuiileila was The Bee’s Defensive Player of the Year in 2023 as a junior, with 23 sacks for a team that reached Saddleback College to compete for a CIF State crown, a loss in the final seconds to La Serna of Whittier, and he was even better this season even if he didn’t record as many sacks.
The 6-foot-2, 230-pound San Diego State-bound stalwart drew double- and triple-teams and was still a load to deal with. Tuiileila finished with a CIF Sac-Joaquin Section-leading 17 sacks to go with 117 tackles, 30 for loss, and he was on a mission right to the final snaps against Pacifica of Oxnard in the state finals on Dec. 13. He had 12 tackles, 10 solo, and five for loss, including four sacks, one in the closing seconds to seal a 35-28 victory and cap a 12-3 season.
Grant’s only losses were to state-ranked powerhouse programs De La Salle of Concord, which played for the CIF State Open championship, state champion Lincoln of San Diego and Clovis East of Fresno, which went 12-1.
Isn’t it unusual for a defensive ace to be The Bee’s Player of the Year? Well, yes, but this is no ordinary player.
“If you look at his body of work, it’s incredible,” Grant coach Carl Reed said.
Said Pacers assistant coach Devan Cunningham: “I’ve never seen a high school player draw so much attention in terms of blocking, and every team we faced had to deal with Jeremiah. The whole side of the line had to focus on him, and he still wreaked havoc. He’d beat three guys on a play to get to the quarterback or running back. He’s the ultimate team-first guy, a leader.”
Added Reed: “He doesn’t toot his horn, but we do it for him. A great, great player.”
Folsom’s Lyons leads area’s best team — again
A year after being named The Bee’s Player of the Year as a sophomore in powering the Folsom Bulldogs to a CIF State crown with a dramatic last-minute drive, Ryder Lyons again directed the section’s top team, this time as a 6-foot-3, 225-pound junior 5-star quarterback wiz. He is The Bee’s Offensive Player of the Year.
By passing and running and showing no quit, Lyons led the Bulldogs to a Division I section four-peat and back to a Northern California championship. It took all of the Pittsburg Pirates of Contra Costa County to slow him down in the Division 1-AA NorCal title game and to prevail 28-27. Lyons passed for 3,011 yards and 46 touchdowns and he rushed for 585 and 14 scores for Folsom, which went 12-2 this season with no losses in section play.
Typical for Lyons, he credited his teammates and coaches after victories and he faulted himself after the losses. He will be the section’s No. 1 recruit next season.
“Best player in the section, again,” Folsom coach Paul Doherty said.
Folsom’s Greule, Christian Brothers’ Campbell are defensive aces
Theo Greule was known as “Mr. Folsom” by his coaches and teammates and fans who appreciated the senior efforts in the trenches, and Josiah Campbell of Christian Brothers was known as the heart and soul of his injury-ravaged determined Christian Brothers team.
They are The Bee’s co-Defensive Players of the Year for making life so difficult for opposing teams who had no answer for them.
Greule was a rare four-year starter on the defensive line, which just doesn’t happen for powerhouse programs such as Folsom, but his motor was always revved up, and he was the focal point for opposing offenses who had to figure out ways to prevent the 6-2, 240-pound University of San Diego-bound signee from ruining their game plan and night. The Defensive Player of the Year from the best league in the section in the Sierra Foothill League, Greule drew double teams and still recorded 8.5 sacks in leaving foes with a lot of welts and bruises.
“Great player, great career with more than 50 career starts here, and that’s just amazing,” Folsom coach Paul Doherty said. “Just loved his effort and leadership.”
The 6-1, 215-pound Campbell, a senior, earned similar praise from his Christian Brothers coach, Larry Morla. Campbell averaged 15.5 tackles a game, second most in the state, and had 166 for the season for the Capital Valley Conference champions. Campbell showed his worth in the annual Holy Bowl against rival Jesuit, crunching ball carriers on blitzes.
Morla described Campbell this way after an midseason victory: “We call him ‘The Terminator.’ No one could block him. Any college around here, they’d be lucky to have him. He has no offers right now, but he’s proven he’s one of the best defensive players in the state.”
Campbell remains unsigned — for now — even though he pops on film. He’s an example of just how difficult it is to land a full athletic scholarship.
Alabama-bound Edwards starred for Oak Ridge
There are guys who try to look the part in shoulder pads, strutting and clucking, and then there is the say-little, play-big Kaleb Edwards. The 6-foot-7, 245-pound Oak Ridge senior tight end/defensive end looked and played the part for the Trojans of El Dorado Hills, and is The Bee’s Large School Player of the Year.
Signed to play on scholarship with the powerhouse Alabama Crimson Tide as the Sacramento region’s top senior recruit, Edwards caught 44 passes for 729 yards and nine touchdowns. He also made 66 tackles as a defensive end, including 13.5 for loss to go with 8.5 sacks for a team that reached the CIF section Division I finals for the third consecutive season.
Oak Ridge coach Casey Taylor raved about Edwards during the playoffs, saying, “He could be an NFL guy. He’s a monster. He’s off the charts. The best thing about Kaleb is he’s so humble. He’s genuine. No ego. Some kids believe all the hype and it gets to them. Not Kaleb. Great student, great young man. Everyone on campus likes him. He’s great with everyone, including our youth football players. They love him.”
Edwards had a chance to graduate early at Oak Ridge to enroll at Alabama but elected to remain put, to play basketball and to graduate with his teammates.
Cool-Hand Luke led Grant’s playoff thrillers
With poise and seemingly without breaking a sweat, Luke Alexander quarterbacked Grant to a third consecutive section championship and to his second NorCal crown and his first CIF banner a year after a concussion denied him that opportunity at the end of the 2023 season in earning The Bee’s Medium School Player of the Year honors.
The 6-foot, 185-pound senior was masterful in driving the young Pacers in dramatic, last-minute victories in the playoffs. There was the 98-yard drive to stun top-seeded Rocklin in the section Division II finals at Hughes Stadium capped by Alexander’s winning touchdown pass in the final 35 seconds to Zo Edwards. Then there was the 75-yard drive in Mountain View in Santa Clara County to set up the game-winning field goal for Jose Romero in the final seconds to beat Saint Francis in the NorCal finals.
And in the state championship against Pacifica, there was Alexander again, finding Koby Shabazz for the winner late to cap a 72-yard drive.
“I just love playing quarterback and being a Grant Pacer,” a thrilled — if spent — Alexander said after the game. “Last year, I couldn’t help my team win this game because of the concussion. I’ll never forget this.”
Alexander passed for 3,462 yards and 41 touchdowns, and he hopes his skill set, leadership ability and 4.0 grade-point average will land him a college roster spot.
“Cool as ice,” Grant coach Carl Reed said of Alexander.
Ward leads the state in TDs for Twelve Bridges
A year after reserve duty for the upstart Twelve Bridges team of Lincoln, Braeden Ward was given his chance and handed the ball this season.
The 5-foot-11, 195-pound senior running back delivered, leading the state with 44 total touchdowns and leading the Sacramento region with 2,749 rushing yards and 41 scores, averaging 183.3 yards a game for a Raging Rhinos team that thundered its way to the CIF State Division 2-A finals and a 14-1 record in earning The Bee’s Small School Player of the Year honor.
Palos Verdes of Los Angeles County defeated Twelve Bridges 55-19 in the state championship at Saddleback College, but Ward never stopped plugging away, rushing for 178 yards and two scores on 24 carries, and then speaking like a team captain in expressing gratitude for his teammates, coaches, family and fans for a memorable season.
Ward has fielded small college recruiting interest and vows to keep on running next season.
“It was a dream season,” he said.
Ward was also the “People’s Choice” winner for 2024, tallying the most votes in a Bee reader poll published in November, before the playoffs.
Mojica is the Pride of Bradshaw Christian
If there’s one word that describes Mato Mojica, it’s this: Relentless.
The 5-foot-9, 210-pound senior didn’t just produce another banner season for the Bradshaw Christian Pride of South Sacramento. He cranked out quite a career, capped by earning The Bee’s Smallest School Player of the Year. A four-year starter, Mojica rushed for 1,402 yards and 18 touchdowns this season in powering the Pride to the section Division VI finals and a 12-1 record.
For his career, he rushed for 4,700 varsity yards and 48 touchdowns. His final game saw him rush for 111 yards and a score in a 23-20 loss to Sonora at Hughes Stadium. As a linebacker on defense with a nose for the ball, Mojica this season had 111 tackles, including 11 in the section finals. He finished his prep career with 297 tackles.
“Great player, great career, great kid,” is how Bradshaw Christian coach Drew Rickert described his anchor.
Bean coaches Twelve Bridges to history
He doesn’t wear headsets or have a laminated play sheet to pore over, but wow, Chris Bean can sure coach and lead a program.
In his 25th season as a teacher and coach in the Sacramento region, the early 1990s three-sport star athlete for Colfax High led a team that defied odds and is The Bee’s Coach of the Year.
With just his second senior class at the Placer County school, Bean had to replace 18 starters who produced a 12-1 season in 2023. The Raging Rhinos were even better, going 14-1, winning the section Division IV championship and stunning longtime Central Coast Section powerhouse Wilcox of Santa Clara in a down-to-the-wire NorCal title game before the dream ride took a jolt.
Admitting that his team had some big-game jitters, Bean explained: “Next-level football is the real deal here — next-level players, coaches, everything.” Twelve Bridges lost the CIF State Division 2-A title game to Palos Verdes, 55-19, but it wasn’t for a lack of effort. The Raging Rhinos ran into a better team, and Bean stressed that reality to his heart-broken team afterward in showcasing leadership and class in defeat in a playoff run that saw losing teams blame referees, the CIF and whatever and whoever else they could find.
Under Bean, Twelve Bridges made regional history, becoming fastest “new school” to win a CIF State championship. Granite Bay in 1999 under coach Ernie Cooper went 13-0 and won a section championship with the program’s first four-year class and second group of seniors when seasons ended after section title games. The state championships began in 2006.
“I wouldn’t trade this season and experience for anything,” Bean said of the magical season. “The sadness isn’t that we lost. It’s that everyone has to turn in their equipment. It’s been one incredible ride.”
This story was originally published December 28, 2024 at 5:00 AM.