Bee’s Best: Breaking down Sacramento-area football Player of the Year candidates
At the midway point of the high school football season’s regular season, we ponder the top players who have made a significant impact.
Regular season means the schedule before the real season — the playoffs.
Our Sacramento Bee Players of the Year will be announced at the end of the season, after the CIF State championships in Southern California, and it will include an overall MVP. We will announce an Offensive Player of the Year and a Defensive Player of the Year.
In addition, The Bee will name a Large School Player of the Year right on down to the Smallest School Player of the Year.
These won’t be stat-driven awards, as we value playoff impact and championships won.
Here are names to ponder through five weeks of the regular season.
Ryder Lyons, QB, Folsom
The third-year starter seeks a fourth consecutive CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division I championship and second CIF state crown since winning one as a sophomore.
Never mind the stats. Who’s the best player in the section? This guy. Oh, Lyons has passed for 1,191 yards and 10 touchdowns in four games for The Bee’s No. 1-ranked team.
Jameson Powell, WR, Folsom
Is there a bigger game-breaker in the region than this Ole Miss-bound star? Powell electrifies as a deep-ball threat and as a special teams return ace.
He has 619 yards receiving and six touchdowns, and he has a fellow WR in Rob Larson who can also buckle defenses.
Isaiah Ene, RB/DB, Granite Bay
A fourth-year varsity starter known for his relentless playing style, his campus leadership and the shock of hair jetting out of his helmet, Ene is a load to bring down, and he brings it on defense, too.
He is the pulse of this program that seeks a Division II section championship, having rushed for 895 yards and has a section-leading 16 total touchdowns for a 4-2 team.
Jasen Womack, WR/DB, Oak Ridge
The senior is as versatile as he is driven, a game-breaker on offense and playmaker on defense, and the Trojans of El Dorado Hills have another all-purpose star on the roster in junior Isaac Pierce.
It’ll take both of them to power Oak Ridge back to the section Division I finals for the fourth consecutive season, the aim to finally toppled Folsom.
Chase Wyhlidko, RB/LB, Twelve Bridges
A key cog for a 14-1 team that played for a CIF State crown last season as a junior, Wyhlidko is a terror at linebacker and is also a full-time running back.
He has 683 yards and seven scores in a 5-0 start for the Raging Rhinos of Placer County, who seek another section and NorCal banner.
Josiah Melendez, QB and Trace Murchison, WR, Woodcreek
This is a dynamic 1-2 punch for the unbeaten Timberwolves of Roseville.
Woodcreek has ranked wins over Jesuit, Whitney and Roseville with eyes on competing for the section Division III crown.
Aidan Lopez, QB, Casa Roble
The senior has hit his groove for the Rams of Orangevale, a threat in the Division V section championship race.
He has passed for 1,246 yards and 13 touchdowns with two interceptions for a 4-1 team that eyes a showdown in Week 10 at Sutter to decide the Golden Empire League championship.
Zo Edwards and Koby Shabazz, WRs, Grant
We lump these two junior national-recruit stars together because it will take both of them to power the Pacers to a section and NorCal championship four-peat, of which they are fully capable.
Back in Division I for the section playoffs, these playmakers have the shared aim to reach the section finals, eager for a rematch with Folsom, which beat the Pacers in a season opener.
Reeve Slone, QB, Rocklin
A third-year starter, Slone will be the first to say that he wants to be better, and come playoff time, he will be one tough assignment for opposing defenses.
He has passed for 885 yards and 10 touchdowns for a Thunder team that expects a return trip to the section Division II finals.
Odie Jefferson, RB, Monterey Trail
He’s fast, he’s fun, and he’s the leading Mustang that loom as favorites to win the Delta League championship and to make a section Division I title run.
Jefferson has 563 yards rushing and eight scores for a 4-1 team.
Nolen Sauve, QB, Del Oro
Smooth, poised and greatly efficient, the senior has engineered the Golden Eagles’ bounce-back season with a 4-1 start. He has 893 yards passing and 14 touchdowns with no interceptions, and he regularly credits teammates for the success.
Del Oro aims to muscle its way to the section Division II finals.
Losi Asiata, RB, Sutter
Shifty, fast and strong, the junior averages 11.7 yards a carry and 133 yards a game, and his 12 touchdowns have set a fierce tone.
His quarterback, Braden Scritchfield, is equally as vital to the Huskies, having passed for 962 yards and 11 touchdowns for a 6-0 team that looms as the favorite in the section Division V race.
Cordell Radcliffe, RB, Sacramento
A 5-foot-10, 205-pound sophomore who hails from quite a football family, Radcliffe has bulled and sprinted his way to an area-leading 870 yards rushing with 11 touchdowns for a 3-2 team that seeks a trip to the section Division IV finals.
Radcliffe has a teammate in WR/DB Demarie Taylor who can stretch the field and is tied for the section lead with five interceptions.
Joe Lara, RB, Liberty Ranch
The junior is second in the section in scoring with 15 total touchdowns for the unbeaten Hawks of Galt. He averages 119.6 yards rushing and 4.2 tackles a game. Liberty Ranch is a threat in the section Division VI race.
Eli Duff, QB, Lincoln
A three-year starter, Duff took his lumps as a sophomore during a one-win season, vowed to return and get better, and he has. Now the Zebras of Placer County are 4-1 and a sudden threat in the section Division V race.
Duff has passed for 743 yards and 13 TDs, and he’s joined by a terrific runner in Brock Galer, who has 423 yards and seven scores.
Braylon Robinson, QB, Franklin
The junior has been the driving force for the upstart large-school Wildcats of the Elk Grove Unified School District, leading the Sacramento region in passing yards with 1,270 games for a 4-2 team.
Can Franklin rock the Division I playoff bracket?
Devion Corley, WR, Pioneer
The senior for the Patriots of Woodland is among the NorCal leaders in receiving with 39 catches for 774 yards and 12 touchdowns.
Pioneer is 4-2 and aims to make a run to the section Division IV finals.
Isaiah Hunt, QB, Woodland Christian
A four-year varsity player, Hunt has played a key role for this championship program rooted in Yolo County. He has passed for 1,217 yards and 16 touchdowns for the 4-1 Cardinals, a threat again in the section Division VI race.
His top target is another four-year varsity player in Noah Hinkle, who has seven receiving touchdowns and makes plays on special teams and defense.
- Who’d we miss? Is there a player of note worthy of this list? Email insight to jdavidson@sacbee.com