The results are in: Handing out midseason awards for best teams, players so far

NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos...

Sep. 24—The first five weeks of the high school football season have come and gone, leaving behind plenty of excitement in the process.

Teams have achieved success, and players have put up gaudy stats. So with five games down, here's who landed some midseason awards:

—

MVP(s): Hatton's Savarius Evans and East Lawrence's Cayne McClure

Football in Lawrence County used to be among the best in the entire state when teams like Hazlewood and Courtland were combining for 16 state championships. This year feels like those old times, as Hatton is 5-0 and East Lawrence is 4-1. Each team has a star player leading the way, and even though each has played in only four out of the five games this season, that hasn't stopped both from making a significant impact.

Evans has rushed for 786 yards and 13 touchdowns on just 61 carries, an average of 13 yards per carry. McClure has rushed 47 times for 512 yards and nine touchdowns, averaging 11 yards per carry. He also is the Eagles' leading tackler with 46.

—

Offensive standout: Austin's Aidan Davis

Last year as a junior was Davis' first time playing football in three years. It didn't take long for him to shake off the rust, though, as he rushed for over 1,162 yards and 11 touchdowns.

He is on pace to shatter those numbers this year, as he has rushed for 720 yards and 10 touchdowns. Austin's offense runs through Davis, and he has accounted for 70 of the Black Bears' 119 points.

—

Defensive standout: Priceville's Tripp Sivley

The Honey Badger for Priceville has been a true ball hawk from his safety position for the Bulldogs. Sivley leads the area with five interceptions, has a fumble recovery, a blocked punt returned for a touchdown and 20 tackles. He also splits time on offense, where he is tied for the most receptions on the team with 16 for 245 yards and three touchdowns.

—

Breakout player of the year: Athens' Kaydon Bledsoe

Coming into the season, there was a big question of how Athens would replace the production it had gotten out of the running back position the last two years from Xavier Edwards and Damarcus Malone.

Bledsoe silenced those questions in his first game, when he rushed for 134 yards and two touchdowns. He has since become one of the best offensive players in north Alabama. He has rushed 99 times for 745 yards and 12 touchdowns and has caught six passes for 118 yards and a touchdown.

—

Coaches of the year: Hatton's Nikita Stover and East Lawrence's Jamie Suggs

The coaches for the two Lawrence County teams have had equally impressive seasons.

Stover went 7-4 last year in his first season and has the Hornets 5-0 this year with a 31-point average margin of victory. Stover also has Hatton in the top 10 of the state football poll for the first time since 1995.

Suggs, who is in his first year as head coach, has East Lawrence 4-1 for the first time since 2020 and just the second time since 1997. With two more wins, the Eagles would have a winning season for the first time since 2020 and second time since 1997.

Both teams will meet next week at Eagle Stadium in Trinity to see who will take over first place in Class 3A, Region 5.

—

Unsung heroes: West Morgan's offensive line

Nobody is more of an unsung hero than the big boys up front. The offensive linemen have always been tasked with doing the dirty work while everyone else pads the stat sheet.

Several teams have great offensive lines, but the Rebels' has been arguably the best. West Morgan brought six guys back this year who started games last year: Marek Jankowski, Ben Alexander, Camryn Harris, Colton Lowery, Ben Brown and Cash Murphy, and it's shown as they're leading an offense that is averaging 326 yards rushing per game. They've also done a good job of protecting their new quarterback, eighth grader Brantley Phillips.

—

Golden arm: Hatton's Cade Parham

While Savarius Evans garners a lot of attention for Hatton, the Hornets' quarterback has been flawless. Parham leads the area in passing with 967 yards and 11 touchdowns. He has yet to throw an interception.

—

Tackling machines: Decatur's Jacob Marshall and Hartselle's Holland Hurley

Neither Decatur nor Hartselle has had the start to the season that either envisioned, but each has players who have played a big role on defense.

Marshall leads the area in tackles with 66, while Hurley is second with 60. Hurley had big shoes to fill, as he stepped into the middle linebacker position that has produced back-to-back All-State players at Hartselle the last two years.

—

Game of the year: Austin at Athens

The two Class 5A, Region 7 opponents played last week and put on a barn burner, with Austin edging the Golden Eagles 46-39. The highlight was seeing each team's star, Aidan Davis for Austin and Kaydon Bledsoe for Athens, light up the scoreboard.

Davis rushed 34 times for 264 yards and four touchdowns and had a 31-yard pass. Bledsoe rushed 22 times for 221 yards and four touchdowns and had two catches for 85 yards and a score.

— caleb.suggs@decaturdaily.com or 256-340-2395. Twitter @CalebSuggs2

More at NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos