Stadium Talk’s 2022 High School Football All-American Team

These are the best high school football players in the country for the 2022 season on offense, defense and special teams.

To cap off an amazing season of high school football across the country, Stadium Talk is not only picking a high school football national champion for the first time — we’re also picking a high school football All-American team. There are 22 different states represented on the All-American offense and defense, selected by Stadium Talk senior writer Tony Adame.

Southeast Polk (Iowa) High School senior offensive lineman Kadyn Proctor was named Stadium Talk National Offensive Player of the Year, and Miami (Florida) Central High School defensive lineman Rueben Bain was named Stadium Talk National Defensive Player of the Year.

St. Edward (Ohio) High School head coach Tom Lombardo was named Stadium Talk National Coach of the Year after leading his team to a second consecutive Ohio Division I state championship.

Stadium Talk’s final Top 25 rankings will be released on Dec. 19 when we will also crown our first national champion.

Stadium Talk National Offensive Player of the Year: Kadyn Proctor, Offensive Lineman

AP Photo

High School: Southeast Polk High School (Pleasant Hill, Iowa)

Height/Weight: 6-foot-7, 330 pounds

Graduation Year: 2023

College: Alabama

Bottom line: Few high school offensive linemen in memory have dominated at the level of Southeast Polk’s Kadyn Proctor, a senior offensive tackle who led his school to a 12-1 record in 2022 and its second consecutive state championship.

While offensive linemen don’t usually get the individual accolades usually doled out on position players, Proctor is the rare example of a player who can’t be denied. Take into account that Southeast Polk had two running backs rush for over 1,000 yards each and ran for 3,364 yards and 55 touchdowns on the season. He also flipped his commitment from Iowa to Alabama right before Early National Signing Day.

In four playoff games, Southeast Polk ran for 1,131 yards and 16 touchdowns, including 432 rushing yards and six touchdowns in a championship game win over Valley. Who do you think they were running behind?

Quarterback: Avery Johnson, Maize High School (Maize, Kansas)

avery2johnson / Twitter

Height/Weight: 6-foot-3, 175 pounds

Graduation Year: 2023

College: Kansas State

Bottom line: Tucked into the suburbs west of Wichita, Maize High quarterback Avery Johnson etched his name among the all-time greats in Kansas football history, leading his school to back-to-back Class 5A state runner-up finishes.

Johnson was named the 2022 Kansas MaxPreps Player of the Year after he led Maize to a 12-1 finish while throwing for 2,768 yards, 29 touchdowns and three interceptions along with rushing for 816 yards and 15 touchdowns on just 98 carries — stats that could have been much more gaudy had the Eagles not won six of their 13 games by over 40 points.

Johnson had his best performance of the year against state power Derby High on Oct. 7, when he racked up 531 yards of total offense and seven total touchdowns in a 52-51 Maize win. Johnson is headed to play college football for reigning Big 12 Conference champion Kansas State.

Running Back: Justice Haynes, Buford High School (Buford, Georgia)

justicehaynes6 / Twitter

Height/Weight: 5-foot-11, 200 pounds

Graduation Year: 2023

College: Alabama

Bottom line: Justice Haynes transferred to Buford before his senior season and was dominant in the state’s largest division, racking up 1,695 rushing yards and 23 touchdowns on 153 carries to go with 239 receiving yards and three touchdowns on just nine receptions. Haynes also returned two kickoffs for touchdowns.

Haynes is a college-ready back who is committed to playing for Alabama and appears to have the skills to become the second NFL running back in his family. Haynes’ father, Vernon Hayes, played for the University of Georgia before playing seven seasons in the NFL, winning a Super Bowl with the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2006.

Running Back: Jarvis Green, Dutch Fork High School (Irmo, South Carolina)

JarvisGreen4_ / Twitter

Height/Weight: 5-foot-10, 190 pounds

Graduation Year: 2023

College: Clemson

Bottom line: Dutch Fork’s Jarvis Green had a season for the ages and proved he was one of the most versatile players in the country as a senior, leading his school to a 14-1 record and the Class 5A state championship.

Green, a Clemson commit, had 2,272 rushing yards and 33 touchdowns along with 527 receiving yards and six touchdowns on 36 receptions — he also had 271 return yards and was named 2022 South Carolina MaxPreps Player of the Year.

It was the sixth state title for Dutch Fork in seven years, and Green was also named the Class 5A Lower State Back of the Year.

Running Back: Lamar Sperling, Archbishop Hoban High School (Akron, Ohio)

AP Photo

Height/Weight: 5-foot-10, 190 pounds

Graduation Year: 2023

College: Buffalo

Bottom line: Archbishop Hoban’s Lamar Sperling had one of the greatest single seasons in Ohio history in 2022 on the way to leading his team to a 14-2 record and a Division II state runner-up finish.

Sperling rushed for a staggering 3,867 yards on 417 carries and set a state record with 59 total touchdowns — in six playoff games alone, he had 1,781 rushing yards and 26 touchdowns. He also set a Division II state championship game record in a loss to Toledo Central Catholic with 356 rushing yards.

Sperling, a Buffalo commit, now owns the second-highest single-season rushing total in state history and 15th all-time nationally. He was also named 2022 Ohio MaxPreps Player of the Year.

Wide Receiver: Junior Sherrill, Lipscomb Academy (Nashville, Tennessee)

Maureice2 / Twitter

Height/Weight: 5-foot-11, 180 pounds

Graduation Year: 2023

College: Vanderbilt

Bottom line: You couldn’t help but notice Lipscomb Academy’s Junior Sherrill this season as he lit up opponents on the way to being named 2022 Tennessee MaxPreps Player of the Year and leading his school to a 13-0 record and second consecutive Division II-AA state championship.

Sherrill finished the season with 1,626 total yards and 25 touchdowns and was named MVP of the state championship game win over Christ Presbyterian Academy with 141 receiving yards and three touchdowns on 11 receptions to go with 60 rushing yards and one touchdown. Sherrill is committed to playing for Vanderbilt.

Wide Receiver: Brandon Innis, American Heritage High School (Plantation, Florida)

AndrewJBone / Twitter

Height/Weight: 6-foot, 190 pounds

Graduation Year: 2023

College: Ohio State

Bottom line: One of a handful of players committed to play for Ohio State, American Heritage’s Brandon Innis entered the season as one of the nation’s best wide receivers and lived up to the hype.

Innis had 66 receptions for 1,244 yards and 14 touchdowns heading into the Class 2M state championship game on Dec. 17 against No. 3 Miami Central.

Wide Receiver: Carnell Tate, IMG Academy (Bradenton, Florida)

TalkinVAWLS_pod / Twitter

Height/Weight: 6-foot-2, 180 pounds

Graduation Year: 2023

College: Ohio State

Bottom line: Carnell Tate played the last two seasons of his high school career at IMG Academy, where he established himself as one of the nation’s best wide receivers. As a senior in 2022, Tate had 30 receptions for 777 yards and eight touchdowns, as IMG only played a nine-game schedule.

Tate, an Ohio State commit, was at his best in IMG’s biggest game of the year, with six receptions for 123 yards and two touchdowns in a 27-16 win over No. 4 St. Frances Academy in the Ascenders’ season finale.

Wide Receiver: Kenyon Sadiq, Skyline High School (Idaho Falls, Idaho)

AP Photo

Height/Weight: 6-foot-3, 220 pounds

Graduation Year: 2023

College: Oregon

Highlights: Three-time Class 4A State Champion (2020-22),

Bottom line: So this is kind of a cheat — Sadiq is more of a hybrid tight end/wide receiver that we’re more accustomed to seeing on Sundays in the NFL, but we need to find a spot for him on our squad.

Sadiq, who is headed to Oregon to play in college, led Skyline to the Class 4A state championship as a senior — the third consecutive state title for Sadiq and the school. He finished the season with 62 receptions for 1,303 yards and 18 touchdowns to go with 233 rushing yards and four touchdowns on 26 carries and was named 2022 Idaho MaxPreps Player of the Year. Did we mention he also returned a kickoff for a touchdown?

Tight End: Elija Lofton, Bishop Gorman High School (Las Vegas, Nevada)

LindseySquints / Twitter

Height/Weight: 6-foot-2, 220 pounds

Graduation Year: 2024

College: Undecided

Bottom line: Bishop Gorman’s Elija Lofton had a breakout season in 2022 and showed he was one of the nation’s best tight ends with 28 receptions for 739 yards and 13 total touchdowns as the Gaels went 13-1 and won the Nevada Class 5A state championship for the 13th time in the last 15 seasons.

Lofton is rated as the No. 1 prospect in Nevada for the Class of 2024 and returns next season to a team that should be a national-championship contender with quarterback Micah Alejado also returning. Lofton currently has offers from Texas, Colorado, Hawaii and Nevada.

Tight End: Jelani Thurman, Langston Hughes High School (Fairburn, Georgia)

Langston Hughes High School

Height/Weight: 6-foot-5, 230 pounds

Graduation Year: 2023

College: Ohio State

Bottom line: Jelani Thurman was one of the favorite targets in the passing game for Langston Hughes as the Ohio State commit helped lead his team to a 15-0 record and the first state championship in school history.

Thurman finished the season with 28 receptions for 624 yards and 13 touchdowns and has the pedigree to become a star on the next level and possibly in the NFL. His father is former NFL linebacker Odell Thurman and his mother is former WNBA All-Star and two-time WNBA champion Kara Braxton.

Offensive Lineman: Ian Reed, Vandegrift High School (Austin, Texas)

Vandegrift OL Ian Reed, Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney

Ian_Reed72 / Twitter

Height/Weight: 6-foot-6, 315 pounds

Graduation Year: 2023

College: Clemson

Bottom line: Vandegfit’s Ian Reed was named the Texas District 25-Class 6A Offensive Lineman of the Year as a junior in 2021 and lived up to his billing as the state’s top dog in the trenches as a senior, leading his school to the Class 6A Division II state championship game for the first time in school history.

Reed’s skill can be seen in the diverse Vandegrift offense — he blocked for a quarterback who threw for over 3,000 yards and a running back who ran for over 1,000 yards. Reed is committed to playing for Clemson.

Offensive Lineman: Samson Okunlola, Thayer Academy (Braintree, Massachusetts)

SAMSONOKUNLOLA_ / Twitter

Height/Weight: 6-foot-5, 305 pounds

Graduation Year: 2023

College: Miami

Bottom line: What’s wild about watching Samson Okunlola play is that he’s already 305 pounds — more than heavy enough to mix it up in a Power Five game — but looks and moves like he’s much lighter. Okunlola looks like the type of player who could be an All-American in college and a first-round pick in the NFL Draft.

He was set to announce his college choice on Dec. 15 and had narrowed his final four schools to Florida, Michigan State, Alabama and Miami.

Offensive Lineman: Brandon Baker, Mater Dei High School (Santa Ana, California)

BrandonBaker73 / Twitter

Height/Weight: 6-foot-5, 290 pounds

Graduation Year: 2024

College: Undecided

Bottom line: Mater Dei High’s Brandon Baker established himself as one of the nation’s top offensive linemen as a junior in 2022 as the Monarchs once again played a national schedule. Baker has the elite size and athleticism that has Power Five teams (and NFL general managers) dreaming of championships.

Baker was great in 2022, helping lead the way to a CIF Southern Section Division I runner-up finish, as the offense scored 63 touchdowns. Running back Jordon Davison rushed for 1,514 yards and 17 touchdowns, and junior quarterback Elijah Brown threw for 2,785 yards and 31 touchdowns. With all three players back next year,, Mater Dei will once again be a national-championship contender.

Offensive Lineman: David Sanders, Providence Day School (Charlotte, North Carolina)

DavidLSandersJr / Twitter

Height/Weight: 6-foot-7, 260 pounds

Graduation Year: 2025

College: Undecided

Bottom line: The only sophomore to make the Stadium Talk All-American Team on either side of the ball, Providence Day School’s David Sanders is a prodigal offensive lineman and the No. 1 recruit in the country for the Class of 2025, according to 247Sports.

Sanders helped lead Providence Day to a 12-1 record and the NCISAA Division I state championship in 2022, blocking for four-star quarterback Jadyn Davis. He was named All-Conference and All-State, and he already owns offers from almost all of the major Power Five programs.

Athlete: Connor Kirby, Bixby High School (Bixby, Oklahoma)

connorwkirby / Twitter

Height/Weight: 6-foot-3, 190 pounds

Graduation Year: 2023

College: Undecided

Bottom line: Connor Kirby capped his career at Bixby by leading his school to a fourth consecutive state championship and throwing for 1,920 yards, 30 touchdowns and three interceptions while also rushing for 1,023 yards and 16 touchdowns on 137 carries.

Even though Kirby played quarterback, he seemed like he would have been comfortable playing any skill position in the Spartans’ offense, as his team went 12-1 and scored over 60 points in nine out of 13 games — they also avenged their only regular-season loss to rival Jenks in the postseason. Kirby currently has an offer from NCAA Division II Missouri Southern.

Kicker: Tristan Alvano, Westside High School (Omaha, Nebraska)

AlvanoTristan / Twitter

Height/Weight: 6-foot-2, 185 pounds

Graduation Year: 2023

College: Undecided

Bottom line: There were a lot of great high school kickers in the U.S. in 2022, and Omaha Westside’s Tristan Alvano was the very best of them.

Alvano made national headlines in November when he hit five field goals in the Nebraska Class A state championship game against Gretna from 44, 50, 26, 42 and the 45-yard game-winner as time expired and with Westside trailing 41-40. For the season, Alvano had 73 touchbacks on 96 kickoffs and kicked 16 field goals.

The performance in the state championship game earned Alvano an offer from Nebraska and new head coach Matt Rhule, but he also has offers from Boston College, North Dakota State, Air Force and Army.

2022 Stadium Talk All-American Offense

Jarvis Green, Tristan Alvano, Avery Johnson

Big Edition/Twitter

QB: Avery Johnson, Sr., Maize High School (Maize, Kansas)

RB: Justice Haynes, Sr., Buford High School (Buford, Georgia)

RB: Jarvis Green, Sr., Dutch Fork High School (Irmo, South Carolina)

RB: Lamar Sperling, Sr., Archbishop Hoban High School (Akron, Ohio)

WR: Junior Sherrill, Sr., Lipscomb Academy (Nashville, Tennessee)

WR: Brandon Innis, Sr., American Heritage High School (Plantation, Florida)

WR: Carnell Tate, Sr., IMG Academy (Bradenton, Florida)

WR: Kenyon Sadiq, Sr., Skyline High School (Idaho Falls, Idaho)

TE: Elija Lofton, Jr., Bishop Gorman High School (Las Vegas, Nevada)

TE: Jelani Thurman, Sr., Langston Hughes High School (Fairburn, Georgia?)

OL: Kadyn Proctor, Sr., Southeast Polk High School (Pleasant Hill, Iowa)

OL: Ian Reed, Sr., Vandegrift High School (Austin, Texas)

OL: Samsun Okunlola, Sr., Thayer Academy (Braintree, Massachusetts)

OL: Brandon Baker, Jr., Mater Dei High School (Santa Ana, California)

OL: David Sanders, So., Providence Day School (Charlotte, North Carolina)

ATH: Connor Bixby, Sr., Bixby High School (Bixby, Oklahoma)

K: Tristen Alvano, Sr., Westside High School (Omaha, Nebraska)

Stadium Talk National Defensive Player of the Year: Rueben Bain, Defensive Lineman

CentralNorvell / Twitter

School: Miami Central High School (Miami, Florida)

Height/Weight: 6-foot-2, 255 pounds

Graduation Year: 2023

College: Miami

Bottom line: Miami Central’s Rueben Bain has been the dominant pass rusher in the nation over the last two seasons. Bain had 19.5 sacks in 2021 and has 28 sacks this season heading into the Class 2M state championship game against No. 16 American Heritage on Dec. 17 — despite missing several games with an injury. He has also accumulated over 50 tackles in each of the last two seasons, and for his career, he has 192 tackles, 57 sacks and a staggering 92 tackles for loss.

Bain, who is committed to Miami, already has three state championships to his name and seems to play his best in big games. In a season-opening win over then-No. 1 IMG Academy, he had three sacks as the Rockets handed IMG its first loss to an in-state opponent.

Defensive Lineman: Da’Shawn Womack, St. Frances Academy (Baltimore, Maryland)

St. Frances Academy

Height/Weight: 6-foot-4, 240 pounds

Graduation Year: 2023

College: LSU

Bottom line: Da’Shawn Womack has had the chance to go against the very best teams in the country over the last two seasons playing a national schedule at St. Frances Academy. Womack had 48 tackles, 26 tackles for loss, 15 sacks and five fumble recoveries in 2022, including a fumble he returned 75 yards for a touchdown in a 22-15 win over No. 24 Kahuku, the Hawaii Open Division state champion.

St. Frances Academy finished 8-1 and defeated three teams that have already won state championships in Kahuku, Dutch Fork (S.C.) and East St. Louis (Ill.) — they also have wins over two teams playing for state titles this week in DeSoto (Texas) and Venice (Fla.). Womack is committed to LSU, where he could make an immediate impact, and was also named the 2022 Maryland MaxPreps Player of the Year.

Defensive Lineman: Matayo Uiagalelei, St. John Bosco High School (Bellflower, California)

DUiagalelei / Twitter

Height/Weight: 6-foot-5, 265 pounds

Graduation Year: 2023

College: Undecided

Bottom line: There’s very little Matayo Uiagalelei can’t do on a football field. He could dominate a game at either defensive end or tight end, although his future is very much on the defensive side of the ball — his rare combination of size, skill and speed already has him projected as a first-round pick in the NFL Draft.

On offense, Uiagalelei had three touchdowns on just five receptions. On defense, he had 47 tackles, 10.5 tackles for loss and a team-high 7.5 sacks as No. 1 St. John Bosco won a CIF Southern Section Division I championship with a win over then-No. 1 Mater Dei and then defeated Serra for its first CIF Open Division state title since 2019.

Defensive Lineman: Peter Woods, Thompson High School (Alabaster, Alabama)

AL7AFootball / Twitter

Height/Weight: 6-foot-3, 270 pounds

Graduation Year: 2023

College: Clemson

Bottom line: It’s not hard to look at Thompson High defensive lineman and Clemson commit Peter Woods and see a direct link to past Clemson standouts — he really looks like the next incarnation of former Clemson All-American and current NFL player Christian Wilkins.

Like Wilkins, Woods has already shown he’s a winner — as a senior in 2022, he had 90 tackles, 23 tackles for loss and eight sacks while helping lead Thompson to a fourth consecutive state championship and facing constant double teams all season.

Woods finished his career with 260 tackles, 72 tackles for loss and 29.6 sacks, and he capped his career by being named the 2022 Alabama MaxPreps Player of the Year.

Linebacker: Dylan Williams, Long Beach Polytechnic High School (Long Beach, California)

Dwill_2024 / Twitter

Height/Weight: 6-foot-3, 215 pounds

Graduation Year: 2024

College: Undecided

Bottom line: The only underclassmen to make the Stadium Talk All-American team on defense, Long Beach Poly junior linebacker was the driving force on one of the best defenses in the nation, racking up 79 tackles, 25.5 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks, seven pass deflections, one interception and two forced fumbles. On special teams, he added one blocked field goal and two blocked punts as Poly went 10-1, including an unbeaten regular season.

Williams could play at virtually any Power Five contender in the country, and they all might still be on the table after he decommitted from USC in October.

Linebacker: Drayk Bowen, Andrean High School (Merrillville, Indiana)

DraykBowen / Twitter

Height/Weight: 6-foot-2, 235 pounds

Graduation Year: 2023

College: Notre Dame

Bottom line: Andrean’s Drayk Bowen has been one of the nation’s best linebackers for the last two seasons, capping his career with a Class 2A state runner-up finish after he registered 144 tackles, 19 tackles for loss, five sacks and two interceptions while also rushing for 1,784 yards and 26 touchdowns.

Bowen, the 2022 Indiana MaxPreps Player of the Year, could make an immediate impact at Notre Dame next year, as he has the size to step right in and play outside linebacker. In his senior year, Bowen was at his best in the postseason, racking up almost 1,000 rushing yards over five playoff games along with 50 tackles, eight tackles for loss, two sacks and two interceptions. Bowen finished his career with 379 tackles, 54 tackles for loss, 16 sacks and five interceptions.

Linebacker: Wyatt Milkovic, Basha High School (Chandler, Arizona)

wyattmilkovic / Twitter

Height/Weight: 6-foot-2, 225 pounds

Graduation Year: 2023

College: Boise State

Bottom line: Wyatt Milkovic was a dominant force at linebacker for Basha on the way to the first state championship in school history, winning the Arizona Open Division title in one of the nation’s toughest postseason brackets.

Milkovic racked up an incredible 144 tackles, 19.5 tackles for loss and 4.0 sacks despite missing two games with injuries as Basha went 12-1. You can probably catch Milkovic on television soon enough — the Boise State commit could be a dominant player in the Mountain West conference in the near future.

Linebacker: Wyatt Gedeon, St. Edward High School (Lakewood, Ohio)

wyattgedeon / Twitter

Height/Weight: 6-foot-1, 235 pounds

Graduation Year: 2023

College: Coastal Carolina

Bottom line: Wyatt Gedeon finished his career with back-to-back Ohio Division I state championships for St. Edward as the Eagles went 15-1 both seasons.

Gedeon was a force to be reckoned with on defense, using his 4.62-second, 40-yard dash speed to rack up 125 tackles, 32 tackles for loss and 20 sacks as a senior in 2022. Gedeon, who is committed to playing for Coastal Carolina, was also named the All-Ohio Division I Defensive Player of the Year in 2022.

Defensive Back: Caleb Downs, Mill Creek High School (Hoschton, Georgia)

SCNext / Twitter

Height/Weight: 6-foot, 195 pounds

Graduation Year: 2023

College: Alabama

Bottom line: Caleb Downs showed why he’s the best safety in the Class of 2023 after he entered his senior season with sky-high interceptions and delivered, leading Mill Creek to the Class 7A state championship while finishing second on the team with 66 tackles and leading the team with five interceptions.

Downs is committed to Alabama and could make an immediate impact for the Crimson Tide as a true freshman. And it’s not a bad bet that we may hear his name called in the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft, making him the third person in his family to play in the NFL following his father, Gary Downs, and uncle, former Pro Bowl cornerback Dre Bly.

Defensive Back: Smith Snowden, Skyridge High School (Lehi, Utah)

Utah_Newspapers / Twitter

Height/Weight: 5-foot-10, 175 pounds

Graduation Year: 2023

College: Utah

Bottom line: Skyridge High had two of the best defensive players in the nation this season on the way to winning the first state championship in school history with outside linebacker/defensive end Tausili Akana up front and defensive back Smith Snowden patrolling the secondary.

Snowden’s elite speed — he’s been clocked at 10.74 seconds in the 100-meter dash — and high-level coverage skills essentially shut off one part of the field to opponents all season, as Skyridge went 13-1 and he finished with 30 tackles and six interceptions. Snowden committed to Utah following the season, and we fully expect his name to start popping up on All-Pac 12 teams sooner than later.

Defensive Back: Joenel Aguero, St John’s Prep (Danvers, Massachusetts)

Matthew J. Lee / AP Photo

Height/Weight: 6-foot, 195 pounds

Graduation Year: 2023

College: Georgia

Bottom line: Joenel Aguero returned to his home state of Massachusetts after spending the last two seasons at IMG Academy and led St. John’s Prep to an 11-2 record and Division 1 Super Bowl championship — the Massachusetts equivalent of a state title. It was the second Super Bowl win for Aguero at St. John’s after he also won as a freshman.

Aguero, who is committed to play for defending national champion Georgia, was named 2022 Massachusetts MaxPreps Player of the Year after he finished the season with 600 receiving yards and eight touchdowns playing wide receiver while dominating on the defensive side of the ball, where he’s expected to play on the next level.

Defensive Back: Isaac Smith, Itawamba Agricultural High School (Fulton, Mississippi)

Itawamba Ag DB Isaac Smith

Height/Weight: 6-foot, 200 pounds

Graduation Year: 2023

College: Undecided

Bottom line: The son of former Ole Miss linebacker Reggie Smith, Itawamba Agricultural safety Isaac Smith has carved out his own piece of high school football history in the state over the last two years, capping his career off with 76 tackles and 10 interceptions as a senior in 2022.

Smith scored three defensive touchdowns: two on interception returns and one on a 90-yard fumble return. Smith’s ability to come down and meet whoever has the ball — running back, receiver, tight end — at the point of contact and deliver a hit is what separates him from the rest. Absolute baller.

Athlete: Suntarine Perkins, Raleigh High School (Raleigh, Mississippi)

suntarine / Twitter

Height/Weight: 6-foot-3, 205 pounds

Graduation Year: 2023

College: Ole Miss

Bottom line: One of the most versatile players in the entire nation, Raleigh High’s Suntarine Perkins was named the 2022 Mississippi MaxPreps Player of the Year after he led his team to a 14-1 record and the Class 3A state championship.

Perkins had 92 tackles, five sacks, four interceptions, four fumble recoveries and forced a fumble while also rushing for 2,081 yards and 32 touchdowns. He was also Raleigh’s kicker, hitting 25 PAT attempts.

Committed to playing for Ole Miss, he was at his best in a 55-52 win over Noxubee County in the state championship game with 337 rushing yards and four touchdowns, along with four two-point conversions and an interception late in the fourth quarter.

Return Specialist: Jaden Greathouse, Westlake High School (Austin, Texas)

uiltexas / Twitter

Height/Weight: 6-foot-2, 220 pounds

Graduation Year: 2023

College: Notre Dame

Bottom line: If you found your season hanging in the balance and all that was standing between you and your goals was a kick return or punt return, there’s no player we would rather have back there fielding the ball than Westlake’s Jaden Greathouse.

Were Greathouse not hobbled with a hamstring injury for the last month of the season, he may have been an All-American at wide receiver as well, where he finished his career with 232 receptions for 4,035 receiving yards and 53 touchdowns. As a senior, Greathouse had 332 return yards and three punt returns for touchdowns.

Punter: Tyler White, Southlake Carroll High School (Southlake, Texas)

tylerwhite2023 / Twitter

Height/Weight: 6-foot-5, 200 pounds

Graduation Year: 2023

College: Texas A&M

Bottom line: If you want to know what the perfect punter looks like, you have come to the right place. Southlake Carroll’s Tyler White, the No. 1 punter prospect in the nation, averaged 45.4 yards per punt as a senior in 2022, placing five punts inside the 20-yard line of his opponent.

White, who is committed to playing for Texas A&M, was also perfect in the kicking game for the Dragons, hitting 74-of-74 PATs along with going 7-of-7 on field-goal attempts, including a season-best 50-yarder.

2022 Stadium Talk All-American Defense

Drayk Bowen, Isaac Smith, Matayo Uiagalelei

Twitter/Big Edition

DL: Rueben Bain, Sr., Miami Central (Miami, Florida)

DL: Da’Shawn Womack, Sr., St. Frances Academy (Baltimore, Maryland)

DL: Matayo Uiagalelei, Sr., St. John Bosco High School (Bellflower, California))

DL: Peter Woods, Sr., Thompson High School (Alabaster, Alabama)

LB: Dylan Williams, Jr., Long Beach Poly High School (Long Beach, California)

LB: Drayk Bowen, Sr., Andrean High School (Merrillville, Indiana)

LB: Wyatt Milkovic, Sr., Basha High School (Chandler, Arizona)

LB: Wyatt Gedeon, Sr., St. Edward High School (Lakewood, Ohio)

DB: Caleb Downs, Sr., Mill Creek High School (Hoschton, Georgia)

DB: Smith Snowden, Sr., Skyridge High School (Lehi, Utah)

DB: Joenel Aguero, Sr., St. John’s Prep (Danvers, Massachusetts)

DB: Isaac Smith, Sr., Itawamba Agricultural High School (Fulton, MIssissippi)

ATH: Suntarine Perkins, Sr., Raleigh High School (Raleigh, Mississippi)

RS: Jaden Greathouse, Sr., Westlake High School (Austin, Texas)

P: Tyler White, Sr., Southlake Carroll High School (Southlake, Texas)

Stadium Talk National Coach of the Year: Tom Lombardo, St. Edward

St. Edward High School

St. Edward High head coach Tom Lombardo won his second consecutive Ohio Division I state championship in 2022, going 15-1 for the second consecutive year as the Eagles played a national schedule.

It was the fourth state championship at St. Edward for Lombardo, who was hired in 2015.