Phoenix big on All-Region roster
The Sonoraville High School football team came up just shy of making the GHSA 3A playoffs this past fall, but the Phoenix had quite a large number of players make the AAA All-Region 6 team.
Junior wide receiver/defensive back/ returner Brant Bryant was the only Sonoraville player named to the first team on both offense and defense as the Phoenix had six players named to the first team.
Four of those Sonoraville selections were on offense and two were on defense with Bryant chosen for both.
Besides Bryant, junior running back Zach Lyles, sophomore quarterback Jaxon Pate, and lineman Jaxx Knight were the other Sonoraville players named to the All-Region offense.
On defense, junior linebacker Tristan Mullins was the lone first-team selection other than Bryant.
Bryant was a threat on both sides of the ball for Sonoraville, being among the top pass catchers on offense and also among the league leaders in interceptions and tackles.
Offensively, Bryant was the Region leader in receiving yardage and he was also among the league’s best in touchdowns, all-purpose yardage, and offensive yards per game.
He caught 32 passes this year for 683 yards or an average of 21 yards per reception and six of those catches he took into the end zone. Bryant would finish with eight touchdowns on the year as he also had two running the ball.
Bryant ended with 763 yards in total offense, including his yards on the ground for an average of 76.3 yards in total offense per game for his team.
Defensively, Bryant was one of the region’s top tacklers with 75 in 10 games and he also had four interceptions. Of his tackles, Bryant had 30 solos and 45 were assisted and his four pickoffs tied him for first place with three others in the league, who also had four picks.
Junior Zach Lyles, had he stayed healthy all year, would have been one of the Region’s top, if not the top, playmakers as he gained first-team status despite playing in about half his team’s games and starting only four of them.
He rushed for 478 yards on just 60 carries for an average of over eight yards per attempt and he had 322 yards on 16 receptions for an average of just over 20 yards per reception.
Pate was one of two quarterbacks named to the first team and he was one of the league’s biggest playmakers, leading the Region in passing yardage, touchdown tosses, and total yardage offensively while he was also a top 10 rusher.
Pate ended the year with 2,193 yards passing with 24 touchdowns in just 10 games. Pate had 10 more touchdown throws than the person behind him and he had 600 more yards than the person who was second in throwing yards.
He also had 658 yards rushing and seven touchdowns on 90 carries as he didn’t hesitate to take off if his protection broke down or he didn’t have an open receiver.
That gave him 2,851 yards in total offense, meaning he accounted for just over 285 yards running and throwing in all 10 of his team’s games.
Senior Jaxx Knight was a two-year starter in the offensive line for the Phoenix and had an excellent senior year.
Defensively, sophomore Tristan Mullins was a guy that opposing offenses could not block this year as the Phoenix linebacker led not only his team, but the entire Region in tackles.
Mullins had a more-than-solid 114 tackles in 10 games with 69 of those being solo bring-downs and he assisted on 45 more tackles.
The Phoenix also had three offensive players and two defenders named to the All-Region second team and had the same breakdown in the honorable mention listings
Offensively, junior receiver Nicholas Beddington, senior tight end Ridge Redd and offensive lineman Draven
Peppers were all named to the Region 6 second squad
Defensively, tackle Jebb Knight and freshman outside linebacker Wyatt Spring were recognized.
On the honorable mention roster, Sonoraville had a trio of offensive
players with kicker Ivan Agua, sophomore Hayden Ross and sophomore Ty Brown being nominated while defensive standouts Zach McAfree and Jeremiah Payne were selected.
The Phoenix were 6-4 this past season and 4-4 in the Region for fifth place.