Ledger-Enquirer's Dandy Dozen lives up to expectations
This is the fifth in a series of articles taking a look back at the 2015 high school football season. Coming Sunday, a look ahead to 2016.
By DAVID MITCHELL
dmitchell@ledger-enquirer.com
It's difficult to whittle down the preseason Dandy Dozen honors to just 12 players. But with something called the Dandy Dozen, that's as many as you can choose.
While there were other players who proved themselves as elite throughout the season, these 12 players lived up to the hype in 2015.
Here's a look back at the 2015 Dandy Dozen and how each performed for their respective teams this season.
Lorenzo Smothers, ATH, Marion County
Marion County's do-it-all star lived up to the billing in every sense of the word. One of the state's all-time most prolific scorers, Smothers ran for over 1,000 yards and 13 touchdowns, caught eight touchdown passes and even passed for another touchdown on offense.
Defensively, Smothers re
corded 54 tackles and five interceptions.
When he got hurt in the playoffs, Marion County just wasn't quite the same, and lost to Commerce in the state quarterfinals.
Essang Bassey, ATH, Columbus
The only person able to slow Smothers down all season was Bassey, who limited Smothers to just 26 total yards in the matchup between the two.
Bassey was equally impressive for the rest of the season, recording 50 tackles, six for loss, an interception, three fumble recoveries and a touchdown on defense. Offensively, he ran 79 times for 536 yards and two scores, and caught 21 passes for 577 yards and four touchdowns.
He led Columbus to its best season in two decades.
Karon Delince, DB, Central
Delince is constantly one of the best athletes on the field.
A year after recording seven interceptions as a sophomore, Delince recorded seven more as a junior for the Red Devils.
He is gaining traction in recruiting, with attention from SEC schools, and will look to match his elite production of the past two years in 2016.
Austin Hester, OL, Shaw
Hester has been in the conversation for the area's best offensive lineman for years.
He is a yearly consideration for the All-Bi-City team, and has been a part of the Dandy Dozen for the past two seasons.
This year, he graded out at 89 percent and recorded 23 pancakes for Shaw, which made the playoffs for the first time since 2012.
John Broussard, DB, Central
Broussard is one of the area's best defensive backs. His stats don't reflect the impact he has on his defense, and will continue to have at college at Auburn University.
This year, he recorded 32 tackles, one interception and nine passes broken up for a Central defense that was undoubtedly the area's best.
Jamal Couch, WR, Central
Like Broussard, Couch's numbers don't entirely reflect his impact.
When quarterback Zion Webb went down with an injury to begin the season, fellow wide receiver Quan Weaver moved to quarterback. In the playoffs, elite receiver Justyn Ross went down with an injury himself. The impressive receiver trio for the Red Devils was down to one player, Couch.
Couch finished the season with 266 receiving yards and six touchdowns, including one in the playoffs that helped the Red Devils advance past Lee-Montgomery. He also rushed for 79 yards and a touchdown.
DeAndre Bowman, ATH, Pacelli
Bowman has been Pacelli's go-to offensive threat for the past three seasons, the leader of the team's vast turnaround from cellar dweller to playoff contender.
This year, Bowman rushed for 598 yards and six touchdowns, caught 16 passes for 424 yards and five touchdowns, and recorded 66 tackles, an interception and a fumble recovery.
He will graduate as one of the school's best players in recent memory.
Markus Wright, LB, Jordan
Wright's season was frustrating to begin with. An injury kept him out of the team's first three games of the season, and then it took a little time for him to settle back in.
Still, he was able to record 60 tackles, three for loss, an interception, two fumble recoveries and a touchdown.
Wright had been committed to California, but recently re-opened his recruitment.
Markail Benton, LB, Central
Benton is a part of a defense that regularly rotated players in and out. Other linebackers on the team have numbers right there with his, or better.
But Benton is one of the best players around, and he proved that time after time in big situations this season.
Overall, he recorded 70 tackles, 10 for loss, 5.5 sacks and a fumble recovery. Only a junior, he will have one more year with Central before he moves on to a major college.
Vada King, LB, Smiths Station
King was one of the top producers on Smiths Station's defense, as he has been for the past three seasons.
While the team failed to make the playoffs, King finished the season with 74 tackles, a fumble recovery and 17 tackles for loss.
He will move on to Southern Miss to play college ball in 2016.
Jawon Pass, QB, Carver
Pass' passing numbers weren't quite as fantastic as they have been in recent years. He tossed a handful more interceptions and didn't throw quite as many touchdowns.
Still, there were flashes of brilliance that proved why Louisville is using one of its scholarships in the 2016 class to bring the young signal-caller in. Pass finished with 2,215 yards, 16 touchdowns and nine interceptions passing. He also rushed for 789 yards and 16 touchdowns.
Javontay Smith, DB, Carver
Committed to North Carolina, Smith was steady as usual at defensive back for the Tigers.
This season, he recorded 38 tackles, seven pass breakups, three interceptions and a touchdown for Carver, which won the Region 1-5A title.
Smith will sign a college scholarship in a few months and move on to an elite program to play next season.
David Mitchell, Follow David on Twitter @leprepsports
This story was originally published December 11, 2015 at 10:53 PM with the headline "Ledger-Enquirer's Dandy Dozen lives up to expectations ."