OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Ambrose Wooden
Gilman
Wooden entered the year as one of the nation's most highly recruited players, and the quarterback/defensive back flourished under the pressure.
The 6-foot-1, 190-pound senior rushed for a career-high 1,635 yards and 22 touchdowns and passed for a career-high 1,217 yards and 13 touchdowns. Those numbers raised his career totals to 4,033 rushing yards and 46 touchdowns, and 3,228 passing yards and 30 touchdowns. Wooden's combined 7,261 total yards of offense are a state record.
He has visited Boston College and is also being recruited by Notre Dame, Maryland, Stanford, Penn State, Ohio State, Princeton and North Carolina.
FIRST TEAM
Joe Akers
Hereford
The 6-foot-1, 290-pounder was the first two-way sophomore lineman in Hereford history, displaying good foot movement in a wing-T offense that generated a state-record 5,878 rushing yards. Virginia, Boston College, Penn State, Connecticut and Michigan already are expressing interest.
Zach Armiger
Hereford
The 6-2, 225-pound tight end caught 20 passes for 432 yards and three touchdowns and was a strong blocker. Using his 4.7-second speed as a defensive end, Armiger had 10 sacks. Northeastern, Towson, James Madison and Norwich are interested in Armiger.
David Beach
St. Paul's
The senior made seven of 10 field-goal attempts with a long of 40 yards, converted 11 of 13 extra-point attempts and put 19 kickoffs into the end zone. Salisbury is recruiting Beach for football, and the All-Metro third baseman is being recruited by Lenoir-Rhyne, Wingate, Lynchburg, Elon, Furman, Marietta and McDaniel for baseball.
Antowan Bell
Overlea
The 6-5, 195-pound senior receiver had an area-high 57 receptions for 940 yards and 10 touchdowns, and, defensively, intercepted five of nine defended passes. Georgia, Maryland, Virginia, USC, Towson and North Carolina are interested in Bell, who will likely attend a prep school first.
Scott Burley
Woodlawn
The 6-5, 325-pound junior bench-presses 365 pounds, has good foot movement and did not allow a sack on his side of the offensive line. Possessing a 3.6 grade-point average, Burley has received interest from schools such as Penn State and Boston College.
Pat Butt
Hereford
The 5-11, 185-pounder bench-presses 290 pounds, runs a 4.5-second 40-yard dash and gained 1,314 yards rushing and 16 touchdowns. Butt, who also caught three touchdown passes and intercepted a pass as a defensive back, has schools such as William and Mary, Richmond and James Madison interested in him.
Adam Goloboski
Hereford
The 6-foot, 195-pounder bench-pressed 315 pounds, set single-season school records for rushing (2,187 yards), rushing touchdowns (31), total touchdowns (32), and, as linebacker, had nine sacks among his team-leading tackles. The 3.5 GPA student is being considered for lacrosse and football by Maryland, Richmond, Towson, Hofstra and William and Mary.
Antwan Johnson
Patterson
The 6-4, 280-pound senior lineman has long arms and is extremely agile for his size. He had 35 tackles on defense to help Patterson to an 8-2 record. Johnson has offers from Eastern Michigan and Temple, and also is considering Virginia, Maryland and Boston College.
Henry Julio
Hereford
The 6-2, 265-pound senior two-way lineman bench-presses 375 pounds and is an excellent power blocker. Defensively, he had five sacks. Julio lists William and Mary, Richmond, Delaware, Penn, Towson and Boise State among his college choices.
Keon Lattimore
Mount St. Joseph
The speedy 6-foot, 205-pounder rushed for nine touchdowns and 702 yards and had seven scoring receptions despite playing through an ankle injury and defenses designed to stop him. One of the nation's top recruits, Lattimore ranks Maryland, Virginia, N.C. State and North Carolina among his top college picks.
Damond Malloy
Pikesville
The 5-8, 175-pounder used his 4.5-second speed to rush for 1,703 yards and 30 touchdowns. He also passed for 1,166 yards and 12 touchdowns. Malloy has rushed for 100 yards in 23 of 29 career games and 200 yards in eight career games. He is leaning toward playing at Hofstra University.
Danny Romanowski
Dundalk
The 6-4, 280-pound junior bench-presses 340 pounds, runs a 4.9-second 40-yard dash and was the man behind whom the Owls gained most of their 3,000-plus rushing yards. Schools such as Boston College, Virginia, Maryland, Syracuse, Penn State and Tennessee are interested.
Anthony Triplin
Gilman
Triplin used his excellent vision and ability to read opposing defenses to catch 50 passes for 806 yards and 10 touchdowns, return a kickoff 91 yards for a score and return one of his two interceptions for a 50-yard touchdown. Triplin has committed to play lacrosse at Johns Hopkins.
Marques Thompson
Calvert Hall
The 5-8, 160-pound slashing, cut-back runner used his shifty moves and 4.5-second speed to gain 1,617 yards with 17 touchdowns to lead the No. 3-ranked Cardinals to a 10-1 record and their third straight win over Loyola. Thompson is considering Richmond, Lehigh, William and Mary and Georgetown.
CO-COACHES OF THE YEAR
Biff Poggi
Gilman
Although Gilman had stars in quarterback Ambrose Wooden and defensive lineman Victor Abiamiri, the Greyhounds possessed an undersized corps of two-way linemen and had graduated several key players from a 6-4 team. Playing a tough schedule, however, Gilman went 10-0 under Poggi for the fourth time in six seasons and won a fifth Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association crown. Gilman began and ended the year No. 1 in The Sun and in the state, and achieved the area's highest-ever national ranking at No. 15 in USA Today.
David Eubank Jr.
Dundalk
After five years as an assistant, Eubank got his first head coaching opportunity this season. He combined his passion for the game and attention to fundamentals to take the Owls to a school-best 9-2 record, a share of its third-ever Baltimore County 4A-3A crown, and its first Class 3A North region crown. Eubank and his coaching staff took a team that was penalized 100 yards in its fourth win of the year over Milford Mill and turned it into one that was playing disciplined by season's end.
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Victor Abiamiri
Gilman
A hulking, 6-foot-5, 240-pounder with 4.5-second speed in the 40-yard dash, Abiamiri entered the year coming off a season in which he amassed 16 sacks and earned All-Metro honors.
Though the senior defensive end played much of the season with an ankle injury, and every team designed its offensive blocking schemes to prevent his penetration, Abiamiri's 12 sacks and 17 tackles for lost yardage still ranked first on the Greyhounds. He totaled 52 tackles and had one interception.
An A student with an 1,140 SAT score, Abiamiri has visited Princeton and has planned visits to Notre Dame, Miami, Maryland, North Carolina and Stanford.
FIRST TEAM
Durant Cephers
City College
The durable, 6-foot, 170-pounder alternated from free safety to linebacker, making 34 solo tackles (more than 100 overall) to go with eight sacks, two fumble recoveries and four interceptions to lead the Knights to the Class 2A state playoffs. The senior is considering Marshall and Florida A&M.;
Devon Douglass
Calvert Hall
The 6-3, 270-pound senior made more than 20 of his 90-some tackles behind the line of scrimmage, including nine sacks for the Cardinals. Towson, Maryland, Bucknell, Lehigh, Lafayette and Central Connecticut are interested.
Matt Eckerl
Calvert Hall
He had nearly 100 tackles - 10 of them for lost yardage - and four interceptions among his nine defensed passes. Eckerl, who overcame a career-threatening knee injury, always found a way to be around the ball. The senior will play lacrosse at Towson University.
Mark Hicks
Edmondson
The 6-1, 220-pound junior led the Red Storm to the Class 2A state semifinals by averaging two sacks a game and leading the team with more than 160 tackles. Hicks is getting looks from Penn State, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia and North Carolina.
Nathan Hummel
Gilman
At 6 feet, 210 pounds, the junior led the Greyhounds with 112 tackles (12 of which were for lost yardage), recovered three fumbles, had five sacks and two interceptions. Hummel has attracted interest from schools such as Notre Dame, Connecticut, Virginia and Boston College.
Byron Selby
Dunbar
The 6-3, 190-pound senior had three sacks, caused three fumbles and intercepted two passes while alternating at cornerback, safety and linebacker. On offense, Selby threw for 11 touchdowns and 1,402 yards. He is considering Virginia Tech, Clemson, North Carolina, Morgan and Norfolk State.
Loyola
The 6-1, 235-pound sophomore linebacker made 73 tackles and returned two of his four interceptions for touchdowns in wins over Landon and Urbana. As a quarterback, he rushed for two touchdowns and threw seven others.
Chris Stimmel
Cardinal Gibbons
The 6-1, 215-pound senior averaged 46 yards a punt, booted 15 of his kickoffs into the end zone, was 17-for-19 on extra point kicks and 3-for-4 on field-goal attempts, with a long of 37 yards. Stimmel, who also had 108 tackles, is considering Towson University, Navy, Western Michigan, Massachusetts, Marshall and Connecticut.
Nate Wdowiak
Hereford
The 6-foot, 205-pound senior used his 4.7-second speed to register eight sacks and rank as the No. 2 tackler on a defense that did not allow a rusher to surpass 100 yards during its 13-0 state championship season. Iona College, Sacred Heart and Wagner are his college considerations.
Clive Williams
Eastern Tech
The 5-10, 170-pound senior had 11 interceptions, bench-presses 240 pounds and runs a 4.5-second 40-yard dash. Strong as a cover man and always around the play, Williams may be headed for McDaniel College.
Donald Williams
Eastern Tech
The 6-1, 265-pound senior had six sacks among his 65 solo tackles, bench-presses 330 pounds and runs a 4.9-second 40-yard dash. Central Connecticut, Maryland, Richmond, Bucknell, Morgan, Towson and St. John's are among the schools inquiring about him.
Nick Williams
Calvert Hall
The senior defensive back made eight of his 90 tackles behind the line of scrimmage, broke up 15 passes and intercepted one, and, offensively, rushed for 727 yards and 12 touchdowns. He is considering William and Mary, Richmond, Central Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Hofstra, Maryland and Towson for lacrosse and football.
Luke Wilson
Gilman
The 6-5, 230-pound senior complement to Abiamiri had 57 tackles, including 15 for lost yardage, along with 10 sacks and two interceptions. In one of his biggest games, Wilson had 3 1/2 sacks and an interception vs. DeMatha. He will play lacrosse at the University of Pennsylvania.
Grant Zimmerman
Gilman
The 5-9, 165-pound junior led the Greyhounds in interceptions (three), passes defensed (12) and fumble recoveries (four), and ranked third with 71 tackles from his defensive back position. Zimmerman returned three kickoffs for touchdowns, and is being recruited as a lacrosse goalie by North Carolina, Johns Hopkins, Notre Dame and Syracuse.