Southern Columbia's Brad Fegley did everything but drive the bus this season.
What Fegley did have the keys to was a Tigers' offense that averaged 41 points en route to a District 4 championship, the team's 20th in 21 years, the 13th appearance in the PIAA state title game and the seventh runner-up finish in school history.
While being the starting quarterback for a team that plays in the state finals is a feat, that alone wasn't what made the biggest impression in football circles this year.
Fegley was one of the few quarterbacks in recent memory at any school to play both ways fulltime, coming off the edge to harass his offensive counterparts.
Because he couldn't be dragged off the field, because when the Tigers needed him most he provided a spark and because his toughness was unparalleled, Brad Fegley is the 2011 News-Item Player of the Year.
Top honors on the offensive side of the ball go to Line Mountain running back Kyle Troutman, and arguments were nonexistent that Mount Carmel's Cody Shustack wasn't the best defensive player in the area this year.
In a year that featured three District 4 titles for area teams, another three league or conference titles and a grand total of 52 wins, it was extremely difficult to whittle all the outstanding individual performances down to one team.
Making the cut are seven players from Southern Columbia: Fegley, Tyler Levan, Keith Day, Bryan Gedman, Tom Schetroma, Matt Moore and Jamie Slotterback; six Line Mountain players: Troutman, Marty Beninsky, Alex Karlovich, Luke Erdman, Kenny Rothermel and Dylan Michael; five Mount Carmel Red Tornadoes: Shustack, Meyrick Lamb, Eric Joraskie, Brett Przekop and Jacob Kleman; four players from Shamokin: Devin Madara, Cameron Pensyl, Andrew Hasuga and Jarrod Shurock; and Jonathan Green from North Schuylkill.
Many of the players, like Fegley, starred on both sides of the ball for their respective
teams, but Fegley was the very steady rock in the middle of so many things for the Tigers.
A first-year starter at quarterback, Fegley completed more than 61 percent of his passes (111-of-181) for 1,770 yards (the fourth best in Southern history) and 14 touchdowns.
What hasn't been mentioned all season in Fegley's statistics are interceptions, because through 16 games, Fegley was extremely careful with the ball, going an entire season without throwing even one.
"It's something to be proud of, but I don't like to think too much about individual stuff," Fegley said on Tuesday, after having a couple days to digest the Tigers' loss to Clairton.
"I just tried to be relaxed, like it was a practice situation, every time I stepped onto the field. A lot of people get nervous, but being around my friends calmed me down."
That Fegley was able to step onto the field at all this year, let alone play as many snaps as he did, is a testament to his will to play. Before this season, Fegley's career was defined as much by his injuries as his promise.
"I knew my time on the field was limited, and knowing all the time I lost I tried to play every play like it was my last," Fegley said.
"I wanted to play every play I could."
When he wasn't dropping back to pass or handing the ball to one of the Tigers' two 1,000-plus-yard rushers, Fegley ran for nearly 400 yards and six touchdowns.
On defense, he registered 72 tackles, five sacks, six hurries, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery.
But for Fegley, the accomplisments and stats will always be a little bittersweet.
"Looking back, second in the state is obviously an accomplishment," Fegley said. "We would have liked to finish better, but only losing two games it was a very successful season for a group of first-year starters."
Offensive MVP
Watching Troutman run was enjoyable for a variety of reasons. He was quick through the hole and had the breakaway speed to take any handoff the distance. More importantly was that if anyone happened to have an angle on the Line Mountain senior, he punished them with a stiffarm that left them stunned as he continued toward the endzone.
Troutman, just like Fegley and many others on the team, was a first-year starter who made the most of his opportunity, and for it, Troutman will go down in history with the best single season rushing the ball in school history, edging out Dave Zerbe's 1,701 from 1986.
By the way, Troutman had just 159 carries, mainly because on so many of his carries he was off to the races.
Defensive MVP
Shustack is just one of six players on this year's team to be a repeat all-area player, but the Mount Carmel senior got better with age.
He was all over the field on defense this season, recording 128 tackles and securing his place in Red Tornadoes' history by tying the single season record for fumble recoveries with five.
Shustack also more than held up his end of the bargain in pass protection with two interceptions, and was the player that teams couldn't find a way to get around. He played sideline to sideline and seemingly never took a bad angle.
Marty Beninsky Quarterback Line Mountain, sr.
The Eagles' senior was a true dual threat. He completed 80 of 150 passes for 1,148 yards while rushing for exactly 1,000 yards as Line Mountain captured its second-straight Twin Valley Conference championship. Beninsky accumulated more than 5,500 yards of total offense for his career and had a hand in 89 total touchdowns (36 as a senior).
Tyler Levan Running back Southern Columbia, sr.
Levan put himself in a position that with one 64-yard touchdown run in the Tigers' win over Penns Manor, he jumped three spots higher on the Southern Columbia all-time list. With 1,934 yards this season, Levan finished sixth. He scored 29 touchdowns on the ground and added nine receptions for 126 yards and one score.
Kyle Troutman Running back Line Mountain, sr.
Troutman set a new standard for running backs this season at Line Mountain, breaking a 25-year-old school record. Nothing short of explosive, Troutman rushed for 1,776 yards on just 159 carries. That's 11.2 yards per carry. Add to that 26 touchdowns and you have a bonafide first-teamer. Troutman also caught nine passes for 137 yards and another touchdown, and tacked on another touchdown with a kickoff return.
Meyrick Lamb Running back Mount Carmel, sr.
With 1,353 yards, Lamb finished with the sixth best individual rushing season in Mount Carmel history. He scored 17 touchdowns along the way, and added three interceptions with one returned for a touchdown as a defensive back. He accumulated 36 tackles.
Devin Madara Wide receiver Shamokin, sr.
Led the area for most of the regular season in receptions, more impressive due to the fact that he was predominantly the Indians' only down-field threat. Madara caught 35 passes for 436 yards and three touchdowns, including a high game of eight catches for 74 yards against Southern Columbia.
Keith Day Wide receiver Southern Columbia, sr.
Day finished with the second best individual seasons at wide receiver and defensive back in Southern Columbia history. His numbers were 44 receptions for 692 yards and six touchdowns, and nine interceptions with eight more pass breakups and 54 tackles.
Eric Joraskie Offensive line Mount Carmel, jr.
At 6-4, 265 Joraskie is no small fry, and neither does the Red Tornadoes' junior play like it. Led the offensive line that produced the first 1,000-yard rushing tandem at Mount Carmel since 1970. On defense, Joraskie registered 72 tackles, nine sacks and had one fumble recovery.
Jonathan Green Offensive line North Schuylkill, sr.
The answer to the question of how North Schuylkill could lose player after player in the backfield to injury and still go undefeated is the offensive line, to which the 6-3, 295 linemen was a big contributor. Defensively, Green made 53 tackles with a fumble recovery. He was rewarded with a full ride to Villanova University.
Bryan Gedman Offensive line Southern Columbia, sr.
Gedman has anchored a line that plowed the way for nearly 4,900 yards and 76 touchdowns, or a touchdown once every nine carries. He was a Heartland Conference Division II first teamer.
Cameron Pensyl Offensive line Shamokin, sr.
It didn't matter who was running the ball for Shamokin, the offensive line did as steady a job as any unit on the field. It was led by Pensyl, a Heartland Conference Division I first-team selection. The Indians gained over well over two-thirds of their offense on the ground.
Alex Karlovich Offensive line Line Mountain, sr.
Line Mountain ran the ball this year, and ran and ran, meaning there had to be holes opened up and Karlovich, at 6-1, 300 pounds, was a big reason why. On defense, he made 36 tackles, had one sack and one fumble recovery.
Luke Erdman Defensive line Line Mountain, sr.
The senior teamed up with Karlovich to man the left side of the offensive line, but did plenty of damage on his own on defense. He had 44 tackles, 7.5 sacks and two fumble recoveries for a defense that held four opponents to less than 100 yards rushing and pitched two shutouts.
Tom Schetroma Defensive line Southern Columbia, sr.
After missing his entire junior year with a knee injury, Schetroma came back with a vengeance to lead the defensive line with 57 tackles. He had 1.5 sacks with five hurries thrown in. Also split time on the offensive line.
Matt Moore Defensive line Southern Columbia, sr.
The biggest question all year was where to put an athlete as versatile as Moore. He ended up on the defensive line because of his explosiveness on the edge that teams had to be wary of. He led the team with 85 total tackles and had five sacks. That would be enough to get on any list, but he added 1,329 yards rushing, another 31 receptions for 588 yards and more than 300 return yards with a total of 24 touchdowns.
Brett Przekop Defensive line Mount Carmel, sr.
Sometimes a surprise is a good thing, and Przekop was a very welcome addition for the Red Tornadoes on the defensive line. He led the unit with 87 tackles and led the entire team with 10.5 sacks. He had one interception.
Cody Shustack Linebacker Mount Carmel, sr.
Shustack was all over the field for the Red Tornadoes, piling up an area-high 128 tackles in 14 games with two interceptions, five fumble recoveries and 3.5 sacks. More importantly, Shustack carried the Tornadoes some games and had 1,092 yards and 14 touchdowns rushing to prove it. He added 12 receptions and another three scores.
Andrew Hasuga
Linebacker
Shamokin, jr.
Hasuga seemed to shine when the lights were brightest. He caught the game-winning pass in the Indians' first win over Jersey Shore, and came up with a sack and forced fumble that allowed the Indians to build their lead against Shikellamy in the playoffs. He led Shamokin with 100 tackles, and had three sacks and eight tackles for a loss. Of his seven catches, three were for touchdowns.
Kenny Rothermel
Linebacker
Line Mountain, jr.
The Eagles' junior brought back memories of Jon Fausey with his dominant blocking on the offensive line despite weighing in at just 205 pounds, while also leading the defense with 101 tackles. He threw in 3.5 sacks, one interception and four fumble recoveries for good measure.
Jamie Slotterback
Linebacker
Southern Columbia, sr.
The Tigers defense, which posted three shutouts, really settled itself once Slotterback was put at inside linebacker, where he totaled 74 tackles. He was one of three players with five against Clairton in the state final. He had 5.5 sacks as an inside linebacker and contributed to the pass defense with two interceptions.
Jacob Kleman
Defensive back
Mount Carmel, sr.
Kleman roamed the secondary for Mount Carmel with one thought on his mind: interceptions. He picked off seven passes for the Red Tornadoes this season, including two in the District 4 title game against Bloomsburg. He was Mount Carmel's go-to receiever as well with 27 catches for 427 yards and three touchdowns.
Jarrod Shurock
Defensive back
Shamokin, sr.
The postseason is weighted more than the regular season in these parts, and Shurrock intercepted as many passes (two) in the postseason as he did in the regular season, and all were at important times for the Indians. He added five receptions for 75 yards in the playoffs.
Dillan Michael
Defensive back
Line Mountain, jr.
This year was a breakout campaign on both sides of the ball for the Eagles' junior. Michael led Line Mountain with three interceptions, including one returned for a 70-yard touchdown. On offense, he had 15 receptions for 163 yards and four touchdowns, and returned a kickoff 86 yards for a score in the Eagles' playoff win over Canton.