5A Division I Top Player Performances of the Week
Congratulations to this week's top players! We're covering the best performances from Friday's football action (using all statistics entered as of the time of writing). Enjoy!
Derek Hurley Sets Career High in Rushing Yards
Starting off the list is Coronado's Derek Hurley, who we judged to be the best player in the league this week. On Friday Hurley rushed for 104 yards and two touchdowns, good enough to set a new career-high in rushing yards in the process. He is becoming a predictor of Coronado's success: when he posts at least two rushing touchdowns the team is undefeated (and 0-3 when he doesn't).
On the year, Hurley has run in 6 touchdowns while averaging 42.9 rushing yards per game. He's made a big improvement compared to last season: at this point last year, he was only averaging eight rushing yards per game.
Gamescore: 48.17
A Season-Best Effort from Ezra Sanelivi Leads Liberty over Foothill
On Friday, Liberty got the W thanks in part to Ezra Sanelivi playing the best football he has all season. Sanelivi rushed for 128 yards and three touchdowns on only eight carries. He has become a key player for Liberty: the team is 2-1 when he posts at least two rushing touchdowns, but 1-4 otherwise.
This year, Sanelivi has run in 8 touchdowns while averaging 79.4 rushing yards per game. He is looking even better than he did last year: after eight games last season, he had one rushing touchdown.
Gamescore: 40.40
Elijah Espinoza Delivers Best Effort of Season
On Friday, Liberty got the W thanks in part to Elijah Espinoza playing the best football he has all season. Espinoza threw for 222 yards and two touchdowns while picking up 10.6 yards per attempt, and also rushed for 37 yards and a touchdown. The effort marked the most rushing yards he has had since back in August.
For the year, Espinoza has thrown 5 touchdowns while averaging 131 passing yards per game. That doesn't tell the whole story though: at this point last year, he was only averaging 0.6 rushing yards per game. This year he is averaging 20.6 rushing yards.
Gamescore: 34.50
Isaiah Te'O put up the most rushing yards he's had since back in August on Friday. He rushed for 72 yards.
Desert Pines is on a three-game losing streak that has dropped them down to 2-7. Te'O and Desert Pines will take on Bishop Gorman at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday.
Gamescore: 31.85
JJ Buchanan Makes It Two for Coronado
Another Coronado player making an appearance on this list is JJ Buchanan. He picked up 114 receiving yards and two touchdowns. He has become a key player for Coronado: the team is 4-1 when he posts at least two receiving touchdowns, but 1-2 otherwise.
On the season, Buchanan has caught 9 touchdowns while averaging 84 receiving yards per game. He's made a big improvement compared to last season: at this point last year, he had one receiving touchdown.
Gamescore: 30.90
Other Notable Players
- Ocean Taufa: 11 total tackles (7.0 for loss) (Gamescore: 30.50)
- Aiden Krause: 231 yards passing; 24 yards rushing, 1 TD (Gamescore: 28.50)
- Prince Williams: 7 total tackles (6.0 for loss) (Gamescore: 22.50)
- Giovanni Criss: 73 yards receiving, 2 TDs (Gamescore: 19.55)
- Maika Eugenio: 136 yards passing (Gamescore: 18.47)
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
