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ALL-AREA FOOTBALL TEAM
OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR SAM VAUGHN
All-Area First Team
All-Area First Team
Jean Alexis
Josh Ayala
Alex Ogle
Jason Pierre
Sam Burg
Nick Cooper
Stewart Reese
Dalton Stokes
Uzziah Davis
Will Dawkins
Edwin Thomas
Reche Thomas
Donald Delahaye
Andrew Guthart
Alquawn Vickers
Cody Walker
Adrian Minondo
Jimmy Williamson
JEAN ALEXIS
Jensen Beach senior receiver Stats: 781 yards, 6 TDs on 29 catches (26.9 yards per catch)
JOSH AYALA
John Carroll senior offensive lineman Stats: Helped Rams to area-best 47.2 points and 428.8 yards per game
SAM BURG
South Fork senior offensive lineman Stats: Helped Bulldogs average 296.4 yards per game
NICK COOPER
Sebastian River senior running back Stats: 1,038 yards, 9 TDs on 205 carries
UZZIAH DAVIS
South Fork senior running back Stats: 1,000 yards, 13 TDs on 121 carries; 285 yards receiving, 2 TDs on 19 catches (15.0 yards per catch)
WILL DAWKINS
Vero Beach senior receiver Stats: 568 yards, 5 TDs on 38 catches (14.9 yards per catch)
DONALD DELAHAYE
Port St. Lucie junior kicker Stats: Top kickoff specialist; 4 for 8 on field goals, long of 46; 15 of 16 on extra points
ANDREW GUTHART
Fort Pierce Central junior offensive lineman Stats: Helped Cobras average 361.0 yards, 33.6 points per game
ADRIAN MINONDO
Okeechobee junior running back Stats: 1,237 yards, 6 TDs on 233 carries
ALEX OGLE CHRISTOPHER ARNOLD/TREASURE COAST NEWSPAPERS
Fort Pierce Central quarterback Sam Vaughn is 2013 All-Area Football Offensive Player of the Year.
The record-setter
Quarterback Sam Vaughn set Central records for passing yards and touchdowns while leading the Cobras to the regional final
By Laurel Pfahler
Offensive Player of the Year
laurel.pfahler@scripps.com 772-978-2282
FORT PIERCE — It was a year of milestones and records for Sam Vaughn, but his consistency was what translated into his best season and yet another successful run for the Fort Pierce Central High School football team. The senior quarterback set school records this season for passing yards (2,648) and passing touchdowns (23). For his career, he also has the record for TD passes (45) and topped 5,000 all-purpose yards. In the process, he threw only four interceptions this season — none through his first seven games — to help carry the Cobras to their fifth consecutive district title, a third consecutive regional final and four wins against state-ranked teams. Vaughn is the Scripps Treasure Coast Newspapers All-Area Football Offensive Player of the Year for a second year in a row. “When you look at quarterbacks, you measure them first in wins and then in turnovers,” Central coach Josh Shaffer said. “You look at a guy like (Dallas Cowboys) Tony Romo, and he is a great quarterback, but in the fourth quarter he throws interceptions. Sam never made those mistakes, so that’s why we were able to pull out a lot of games — because of Sam’s ability to play under pressure, Sam’s ability to play in the clutch moment and Sam’s ability to not turn the ball over. “With all those tools, you can win a lot of games.” Vaughn, of course, passed the credit for his success to those around
SAM VAUGHN
Fort Pierce Central senior quarterback Stats: 2,648 yards, 23 touchdowns on 170 of 274 passing (62.0 percent) with 4 interceptions; 376 yards, 4 touchdowns on 87 carries in 12 games Coach Josh Shaffer: “You can’t say enough about him with his collection of tools and the way he is able to remain calm under pressure. With all the things people were saying this year about wanting to rattle him by putting him on his back, I don’t think people realize just how competitive he is. Those things only motivated him more. No matter how many times he hit the ground, he got right back up and made a throw. I think that’s his biggest attribute is that competitiveness.”
him — a typical response for a humble player. “I just think it was the familiarity with the system and with what we were trying to do,” Vaughn said. “We also had a great group of receivers and a great offensive line, and that’s always great to have.” But Vaughn wasn’t so sure what this season would be like after all but one of his receivers graduated last year. Best friend Alquawn Vickers was a solid player who returned, and ended up being the teammate Vaughn could count on to make big plays.
“It definitely brought a big comfort level,” Vaughn said. “Even in practice, you know he’s going to do his job and get it done so it’s good to have someone like that out there with you.” Vickers aside, Vaughn wasn’t surprised by how well he threw the ball this year. After competing in several 7-on-7s during the offseason, he entered the fall “feeling really comfortable throwing the ball.” His composure and ability to bounce back after taking a hit also played into it, Shaffer said. As it got deeper into the season and Vaughn still had no interceptions entering the district championship game, the quarterback started to think he could finish without a single pick. At the same time, one of his college idols, Oregon’s Marcus Mariota, also had not yet thrown an interception — something Vaughn enjoyed keeping up with. “That was one of my goals this year was not to turn over the ball because we had a lot of playmakers and if we could keep the ball I knew we could win a lot of games,” Vaughn said. “ It was something I worked on, so I was glad it paid off for a while.” Vaughn said he was less concerned with breaking records. “Everyone that had read about it or knew about it was kind of counting down, and coach Shaffer talked about it and my parents talked to me about it a lot, but I just tried to focus on the game,” Vaughn said. “When you’re trying to break a record, it’s not really something you can think about during a game. “But I guess it was kind of fun when it happened.”
Jensen Beach senior quarterback Stats: 145 of 272 passing (53.3 percent), 2,297 yards, 22 TDs, 12 INTs
JASON PIERRE
Vero Beach senior running back Stats: 930 yards, 14 TDs on 123 carries; 454 yards, 5 TDs on 32 catches (14.2 yards per catch)
STEWART REESE
Fort Pierce Central sophomore offensive lineman Stats: Helped Cobras average 361.0 yards, 33.6 points per game
DALTON STOKES
Vero Beach senior quarterback Stats: 173 of 273 passing (63.4 percent), 2,461 yards, 24 TDs, 7 INTs; 155 yards rushing, 5 TDs
EDWIN THOMAS
John Carroll senior athlete Stats: 917 yards, 9 TDs on 64 catches (14.3 yards per catch); 657 yards, 9 TDs on 52 carries (12.6 yards per carry)
RECHE THOMAS
Vero Beach junior offensive lineman Stats: Helped Fighting Indians average 369.4 yards, 35.2 points per game
ALQUAWN VICKERS
Fort Pierce Central senior receiver Stats: 939 yards, 9 TDs, 67 catches (14.0 yards per catch); 264 yards rushing, 5 TDs on 57 carries
CODY WALKER
Okeechobee senior offensive lineman Stats: Helped Brahmans offense average 249.7 yards per game
JIMMY WILLIAMSON
Vero Beach senior receiver Stats: 669 yards, 8 TDs on 41 catches (16.3 yards per catch)
Honorable Mention TROY AILES Fort Pierce Central senior offensive lineman JAVONTE BAGLEY Vero Beach senior receiver DEVYN CONRAD St. Lucie West Centennial senior offensive line NEHARI CRAWFORD Fort Pierce Central sophomore receiver DAN CULUMBER John Carroll senior receiver
CHRISTIAN EAST Jensen Beach senior running back JAVID ELLIS SLW Centennial junior QB GREG GREEN John Carroll senior running back MANNY GUADALUPE Vero Beach senior offensive lineman COLTON HAGGERTY Martin County senior athlete
DIQWOUN HARRIS Treasure Coast senior running back AARON HOOVER Jensen Beach senior offensive lineman SCOTT HUSNANDER Martin County senior offensive lineman BILLY JOLIVERT Fort Pierce Central junior running back
MIKE MCINNIS Fort Pierce Central senior receiver BROCK MILLER St. Edward’s sophomore running back TYRELL MORING Port St. Lucie senior athlete MARCUS NORMAN Sebastian River junior offensive lineman EVAN PERCOCO John Carroll senior kicker
SHA-MAR PIERRE FP Central junior receiver LUIS SAEZ Fort Pierce Central senior offensive lineman JAD SHALHOUB St. Edward’s senior offensive lineman WALTER THOMAS South Fork sophomore receiver CORY VICKERS Okeechobee senior offensive lineman
JORDAN WATKINS John Carroll junior quarterback AUSTIN WHITEHEAD Treasure Coast junior offensive lineman NICK WOODWARD John Carroll senior offensive lineman JALEN WYATT Treasure Coast senior running back/receiver