Vote: Florida Panhandle high school football player of the year (12/18/2024)

We have chosen 16 players as nominees for the Florida panhandle high school football player of the year

RB Connor Mathews breaks away as he runs the ball during the Niceville South Sumter football game at Niceville. / Michael Snyder / USA TODAY NETWORK

After another exciting season of football here in the Florida panhandle, it is time to see who was the best high school football player this season in northwest Florida. These phenomenal players led their teams to great seasons, and many will look to continue their career at the collegiate ranks. With that being said, we have nominated 16 players to be voted on for the player of the year. We ask you, the fans, to vote on who you think is the high school football player of the year in the Florida panhandle.

SBLive voting polls are intended to be a fun way to create fan engagement and express support for your favorite high school athletes and teams. Unless expressly noted, there are no awards for winning the voting. Our primary focus is to highlight the abilities and accomplishments of all the athletes and teams included in our poll. You can vote as often as you wish and are encouraged to share our polls with others. - SBLive Sports

Here are the nominations:

Voting will end on December 31st, 2024.

Ladarian Clardy, Escambia

Clardy has proven he is worth every bit of his composite four-star rating this year. He recorded 60 total tackles with 50 of those tackles being solo tackles. His five tackles for a loss also shows that he is not afraid to step up and help in the run game. He has shown elite coverage skills, and because of that he only had two interceptions this season since opposing quarterbacks thought twice about throwing his way. He also showed this season what he can do when he gets the ball in his hands. He caught 16 passes for 396 yards and four touchdowns. Lastly, he can turn the tide in the return game. He had 348 total return yards and two touchdowns.

Dante Core, Choctawhatchee

Core is another stellar defensive back that is making his way to Oxford, Mississippi to play for Lane Kiffin and the Rebels. He caught 10 passes for 281 yards and four touchdowns, but the defensive side of the ball is where he really made his mark. He recorded 33 total tackles and 21 solo tackles with two tackles for a loss this season. Like Clardy, opposing quarterbacks were scared to throw his way. He did manage to get three interceptions as well as one forced fumble and one fumble recovery. One of his interceptions and his fumble recovery ended up going for six too.

Nathaniel Krider, Niceville

The Eagles had one of their best seasons in recent history when they made it to the state semifinals before they fell to Lakeland in three overtimes. Krider was a big reason why they made it this far. As one of the leaders of the defense, Krider recorded 67 total tackles and 30 solo tackles with 14 tackles for a loss. He also was able to get after the quarterback by recording 11 sacks on the year.

Maddox Hayles, Niceville

Hayles is the second Eagle to make this list, and there is a good reason why. He proved to be a heat-seeking missile on defense. His instincts allowed him to sniff out the ballcarrier which is why he recorded 158 total tackles. 77 of those tackles were solo tackles, and he registered 24 tackles for a loss. He also recorded four sacks this year.

Vinny Villanova, Navarre

In a year that did not go right for Navarre, Villanova was one of the bright spots for the team. The senior linebacker recorded 93 solo tackles and 100 tackles overall. He registered nine tackles for loss, and he also recorded five sacks. Lastly, he got one interception and forced one fumble.

Reyes Medina, Walton

Medina had an exceptional senior season from the defensive end spot. He recorded 30 solo tackles and 67 total tackles this season. It took a little while, but halfway through the season is when he started getting to the quarterback. In four games, he recorded eight sacks.

Tylon Lee, Pace

The panhandle were full of great defensive linemen this year, and Lee was one of them. He recorded 47 solo tackles and 87 total tackles on the year. He had no problem getting into the backfield too as he recorded 40 tackles for a loss. Lee also sacked the quarterback six times and he forced 28 quarterback hurries.

Quinn Gray Jr, Lincoln

The senior defensive end recorded 43 solo tackles and 60 total tackles on the year. Gray registered nine tackles for a loss, and he got seven sacks along with six hurries. He also had a nose for the football. Gray recorded one interception, one pass deflection, two fumble recoveries and forced four fumbles on the year.

Amari Clemons, Marianna

The composite four-star running back had a monster season. The junior rushed for 1,880 yards and 34 touchdowns on 153 carries. Clemons averaged 12.3 yards per rush, and he rushed for over 100 yards in nine games. He also caught 14 passes for 247 yards and three touchdowns.

CJ Nettles, Pensacola Catholic

The senior running back had a fantastic year helping lead the Crusaders to an 8-2 record. He rushed for 1,319 yards and 20 touchdowns. He rushed the ball 162 times and averaged 8.1 yards per carry. Nettles also caught 19 passes for 178 yards and one touchdown.

Von'tavius Keller, Choctawhatchee

The sophomore exploded on the scene week 1 when he rushed for 243 yards and two touchdowns versus Gulf Shores (AL). His spectacular play did not stop there. On the season, he rushed for 1,774 yards and 21 touchdowns on 271 carries. He averaged 6.5 yards per rush, and he rushed for over 100 yards in 10 games. He also caught nine passes for 79 yards and one touchdown.

Johnny Lewis Jr, Niceville

Lewis was a part of the one-two punch Niceville had at quarterback this season. He was 26/48 for 383 yards with three touchdowns and two interceptions. The real threat was when he ran the ball and got out into the open field. He rushed for 1,117 yards and 13 touchdowns on 161 carries. His play running the football is one of the many reasons why Niceville was able to make a deep playoff run.

Wells Bettenhausen, Walton

The senior had one of the best seasons from the quarterback position in the panhandle this season. He was 148/224 for 2,674 yards and 29 touchdowns this season. He completed 66 percent of his passes while throwing only eight interceptions this season. He also showed some elusiveness by rushing for 186 yards and six touchdowns on 40 carries this year.

Ben Tyner, Pace

The senior quarterback completed 58 passes on 92 attempts for 1,214 yards and 16 touchdowns this season. He completed 63 percent of his passes while throwing just five interceptions. His running ability this season separated him from other quarterbacks. He rushed for 906 yards and 21 touchdowns on 164 carries. He averaged 5.5 yards per carry and rushed for over 100 yards in four different games.

Brayden Sampson, Walton

A pair of Braves' receivers made this list after outstanding seasons. Sampson caught 42 passes for 1,064 yards and 11 touchdowns. He also had big play ability by averaging 25 yards per reception. He was also valuable in the return game as he gained 274 yards and two touchdowns from kick returns.

Dominic Goodwin, Walton

Goodwin was the other piece at receiver that had great senior season as part of a prolific passing attack. He caught 30 passes for 618 yards and 10 touchdowns this season. He averaged 20.6 yards per reception, and his longest reception on the season was 77 yards.