GAINESVILLE, Fla. – After a successful 2021 season, FloridaHSFootball.com is happy to announce the award winners for the following awards in Class 8A.
CLASS 8A OVERALL PLAYER OF THE YEAR
QB Ryan Browne, Sr., Venice
Went 175-of-290 passing in 15 games throwing for 2,636 yards, 31 TDs and only having 7 passes intercepted. Also rushed 106 times for 534 yards and 8 more touchdowns leading the Indians to the Class 8A State Championship.
CLASS 8A OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
QB Collin Hurst, Jr., Davie Western
Had an impressive junior year campaign for the Wildcats, going 223-of-317 passing for 3,267 yards, throwing 35 touchdowns and only 2 interceptions while leading Western to the Class 8A Regional Finals. Hurst also had 32 carries for 325 yards rushing and three touchdowns.
CLASS 8A DEFENSIVE PLAYERS OF THE YEAR
DL Damon Wilson, Jr., Venice
A dominant force for Venice’s nasty defense that led them to the Class 8A State Championship, Wilson collected 90 tackles, 23 tackles for loss, racked up 15 sacks, intercepted a pass, batted down 3 more passes, and recovered 1 fumble in 15 total games played this season.
CLASS 8A COACH OF THE YEAR
Irvin Jones, Port St. Lucie Treasure Coast
Jones, who has been the head coach at Treasure Coast since 2010 has been transforming the Titans into a perennial powerhouse program to be reckoned with over the last decade and the fruits of the labor are showing now as Jones guided the Titans to the first-ever trip to the Class 8A state semifinals in 2021, Jones led his team to a 10-2 record that included wins over then-defending Class 5A State Champion Plantation American Heritage in Week 1, another win over Vero Beach to clinch the District 8A-6 Championship, and a win over Class 8A-Region 2 No. 1 seed Palm Beach Central in the regional finals.
FAN VOTE RESULTS
Hurst slides by with the fan vote poll for Offensive Player of the Year
Davie Western quarterback Collin Hurst slid by with 31.8% of the fan vote poll for first place for Offensive Player of the Year. Hurst 223-of-317 passing for 3,267 yards, throwing 35 touchdowns and only 2 interceptions while also having 32 carries for 325 yards rushing and three touchdowns during the 2021 campaign. Venice wide receiver Jayshon Platt took second place with 28.2% of the vote after having an impressive season with 1,070 yards receiving on 62 catches and hauling in 12 touchdowns. Rounding out the rest of the vote included Platt’s teammate, quarterback Ryan Browne who finished with 19.7% of the vote for third place while Port St. Lucie Treasure Coast running back Eden James and Vero Beach wide receiver finished with 14.1% and 6.1% of the vote respectively.
Wilson wins fan vote by a landslide for Defensive Player of the Year
Venice defensive lineman Damon Wilson won the fan vote for Defensive Player of the year with 50.4% of the vote. Coming in second was Deerfield Beach defensive lineman Deshawn Willoughby who racked up 40 tackles, 24 tackles for loss, and amassing 18.5 sacks, with 16.3% of the vote. Miami Palmetto defensive back Mike Jackson finished third in the vote with 12.1% of the vote. Rounding off the vote was Sanford Seminole athlete Demari Henderson with 11.6% of the vote and his twin brother, Ja’Cari, with 9.6% of the vote.
Granato wins fan vote for Coach of the Year
Winter Garden West Orange Head Coach who led the team to one its of best seasons since 2015 finished with 44.4% of the vote while Venice head coach John Peacock came in second with 31.6% of the overall vote. Apopka head coach Jeff Rolson took third place with 13.2% of the vote with Port St. Lucie Treasure Coast head coach Irvin Jones finishing fourth with Miami Columbus head coach Dave Dunn finishing fifth with 5.5% and 5.4% of the vote respectively.
