The TF Football Awards

• Kirkpatrick: Player of the year
• Hoffman: MVP
• Loy: Best Quarterback
• Wynford: Best Team

BUCYRUS – Instead of the traditional all-TF football team, this year it will be the TF Football Awards in effort to make things a bit more interesting. Instead of just names on a page, area football players will be given awards for their efforts in 2015. Let’s take a look at who the award winners are:

Player of the year

The obvious choice for the TF player of the year is Colonel Crawford quarterback Will Kirkpatrick. He was more of a do-it-all offensive threat than a true quarterback and his stats proved that. On the year, Kirkpatrick ran for 2,003 yards and threw for 1,302. He had a total of 3,305 yards and 42 touchdowns. He led the Eagles to the school’s first ever playoff win and nearly earned them a trip to the regional final after a heartbreaking five-point loss to Tinora.

Most Valuable Player

Wynford quarterback Zach Hoffman is the pick for MVP. He may not have had the stats Kirkpatrick had, but no one was more important to their team’s success than Hoffman. The Royals graduated a quarterback who threw and ran for over 1,500 yards each. Just a junior, Hoffman had to step in and perform for the Royals. He did just that throwing for 1,197 yards and running for 1,311 more. He scored 38 touchdowns. His play this season was what determined the type of season the Royals would have and it took them to another undefeated Northern 10 championship.

Best Quarterback

This award is going to the best true quarterback, and that is Buckeye Central senior Grant Loy. Widely regarded as the best throwing quarterback in the area, Loy threw for 1,884 yards and 17 touchdowns. Crawford County was full of great quarterbacks, but Loy seemed to stand out among all of them because of his arm strength and ability to complete the deep ball.

Best Running back

Galion running back Drake Barnett had this award wrapped up about Week 5. He ran for 1,652 yards and 31 scores. Barnett led the Tigers to a quick and dominating 3-0 start while quarterback Chase Cooke found his groove. He remained consistent all season long and was even a force on defense with six sacks. He led the Tigers to the playoffs for the fourth year in a row.

Best Receiver

This award came down to two candidates that cannot be separated. The TF has co-receivers of the year. They are Buckeye Central senior Brice Brenneman and Colonel Crawford senior Owen Adams. Brenneman led all of the N10 with 762 yards and nine touchdowns. He did it with just 31 receptions. Adams was right behind Brenneman in yards with 708 and eight touchdowns. Adams had 41 catches. He was the target on 41 of Kirkpatrick’s 68 completions on the year.

Best Lineman

The Wynford Royals have a knack for producing great linemen and their success directly reflects that fact. James Ort anchored a line that allowed the Royals to run for 285 yards a game. Ort earned Northwest District lineman of the year honors with his 94 percent blocker grade. He did not allow a sack all season long and was the highest vote-getter among offensive linemen in the N10 voting. He possessed tackle size but played guard because of his ability to pull and lead runners.

Best Team

The best team award came down to two teams – the Colonel Crawford Eagles and Wynford Royals. Even though the Eagles advanced further in the playoffs, their 41-14 loss to Wynford was the deciding factor in awarding the Royals with the best team award. The Royals were an unstoppable force through the regular season. They averaged 40.4 points on offense while giving up eight points a contest. They were the undefeated N10 champions for the second year in a row and have yet to lose a conference game in the N10’s existence.

Best Freshman

The Bucyrus Redmen had a down year, but they were able to see a bit of the future. Their future includes freshman Harley Robinson. The speedy receiver caught eight balls for 207 yards and two scores. He returned 27 kicks for 596 yards and a touchdown.

jfurr@gannett.com

419-610-5034

Twitter: @JakeFurr11