Division champions St. Bernard's and Del Norte swept the top post-season honors for the Humboldt-Del Norte League, with Jack Rice and Tyus Francis of the Little 4 champion Crusaders taking home top honors in that division, while Del Norte's Dayton Skeen, Chee Shorty, and Korey Osborne shared the top honors for the Big 5 division.
Rice, who has scholarship offers from Sacramento State and the Air Force Academy, was an easy selection for the Little 4 Offensive MVP award. The senior orchestrated an offense which averaged 540 yards of total offense per game, despite sitting out the second half of most league games. The signal-caller completed 64 percent of his passes for 3,312 yards and 40 touchdowns, while also running for 1,514 yards and 19 touchdowns.
Behind Rice's offensive leadership, the Crusaders went 6-0 in league play, and defeated Big 5 champion Del Norte twice, with the latter victory coming in the Division 4 quarterfinals. St. Bernard's made it to the Division 4 championship game, downing Salesian in the semifinals.
Francis, meanwhile, was a force at outside linebacker for St. Bernard's, racking up 104 total tackles to go with 3.5 sacks, four forced fumbles, and an interception. The senior spear-headed a defense which held opponents to single-digit totals on four occasions, and allowed 21 or fewer points in its last seven regular-season games.
Skeen was one of the league's most explosive receivers, and was also utilized as a big-play threat on the fly sweep for the Warriors, resulting in the Big 5 Offensive MVP award for the senior. He played his biggest in the big games, scoring twice in a win over Fortuna and twice more in a key win over Eureka. He also had one of the scores which gave Del Norte a temporary lead against St. Bernard's in the section quarterfinals.
Shorty was a two-way threat for Del Norte at running back and linebacker, but was recognized on the defensive side of the ball, as the Defensive Co-MVP, along with Osborne, who played alongside Shorty at the linebacker position for the Warriors.
FIRST-TEAM LITTLE 4
Ferndale: Blaine Zanone (TE/LB), Ryan Earley (RB/LB), Andrew Richardson (OL/DL), Nathan Hansen (QB/DB), Harry Piazza (OL/DL), Wyatt Coppini (RB/DB)
Hoopa Valley: Tristan Perry (OL/DL), Ryan Reed (QB), Robert Masten (RB/DL), Andrew Stephens (WR/DL)
South Fork: Aaron Etherton (OL/LB), Scott Coffelt (RB/LB)
St. Bernard's: Jack Rice (QB/DB), Tyus Francis (OL/LB), Micha Fontenot-Cornely (WR/DB), Garrison Roach (RB/DL), Warren Freeman (OL/LB), Connor Chase (OL), TJ Campbell (LB), Raequan Washington (RB/LB)
FIRST-TEAM BIG 5
Arcata: Demitri Patterson (RB/DB), Geronimo Zuniga (TE/DE)
Fortuna: JB Lewis (QB/DB), Bailey Foley (RB/LB), Church Crenshaw (RB/LB), Collin Newman (TE/LB)
Eureka: Israel Tulmau (WR/DB), Maiachi Pratton (TE/LB), Raymond Atteberry (RB/LB), Hayden White (OL/DL), Sergio Manzo (RB/LB), Tanner Bell (QB)
McKinleyville: Bryce Peterson (OL/DL), Brendan Trice (WR/DB)
Del Norte: Dayton Skeen (WR/DB), Chee Shorty (RB/LB), Korey Osborne (RB/LB), Dakota Forkner (OL/DL), Ethan Price (QB/DB), Matt Jones (RB/LB), Angel Galindo (OL/LB), Ethan King (OL/DL)
HONORABLE MENTION LITTLE 4
Ferndale: Brandon Brazil
Hoopa Valley: Brett Robbins, Thomas Mosur, Shannon Albers, Gary Baugh, Ryan Moon, Tyler Hunt, William Reynolds, Kilagyah Hunsucker
South Fork: Ipo Savoie, Jr., Gabe Malley, Ryder Pfau, CJ Van Meter, Brad Kloiber
St. Bernard's: Kep Stauffacher, Bryce Gratz, Isaac Drake, Diego Perez, Jordan Clark, Connor Plevin
HONORABLE MENTION BIG 5
Arcata: Bjorn Cedergreen, Anthony McQueeney, Wyatt Coonrod
Fortuna: Sheaden Kadle, Brendon Harralson
Eureka: Dawson Scolari, Will Dilling, Ali Lee, Jerome Lee, Micah Moon
Del Norte: Lucas Murphy, Cole Harper, Aaron Young, Jeremiah Norbury, Garrett McAlexander, Diego Hernandez, Jason Wright, Levi Scribner
McKinleyville: Jared Smith, Dakota Bill, Cameron Conlin, Matt Hillegeist
