Area gets multiple All-Idaho nods in football
Dec. 16—The 48th annual All-Idaho football teams were announced Wednesday, and the area was well represented.
The teams were voted on by the state's coaches, with the Idaho Statesman releasing the results on its website.
Here's a deeper look at the area's best:
Whitepine League all-stars
The Whitepine League Division I was well represented, with seven players from three different schools scattered throughout the All-Idaho team.
Kamiah's Porter Whipple earned first-team honors as an offensive and defensive lineman for the second year in a row.
The senior was a brick wall up front, not allowing a single sack while registering 20 pancake blocks.
Whipple was a game wrecker on the Kubs' defense, finishing with 101 tackles and a state-high 35 for loss.
The 6-foot-3, 235-pounder had several standout performances in 2023, including when he notched 10 tackles, four sacks and an interception return for a touchdown in a 42-0 victory over Council on Sept. 15.
Kamiah senior defensive back David Kludt also got a first-team nod, finishing the year with six interceptions.
Lapwai's Ahlius Yearout got a spot on the All-Idaho first team as a receiver, and earned a second-team spot as a linebacker.
Yearout had 1,459 all-purpose yards on just 91 touches (16 yards per play). He was just as dynamic on defense, registering a season-high 15 tackles in a 48-26 win over Troy on Sept. 29.
The WPL champions, Logos, had three All-Idaho honorees, with senior quarterback Jack Driskill being the only first-teamer.
Driskill was a dynamic dual-threat quarterback who racked up 3,792 yards of total offense and 58 touchdowns.
The 5-11 gunslinger led the third-year program to the postseason for the first time, notching a 60-26 win over Murtaugh in the quarterfinals.
In that one, Driskill finished 22-of-34 passing for 530 yards and six touchdowns. He added 107 yards and two more scores on the ground.
One of Driskill's favorite targets, Lucius Comis, earned a spot on the second team.
The junior finished with 862 yards of total offense.
Linebacker Ben Carlson received a second-team nod.
Kendrick cleans up the DII
The Tigers' headman Zane Hobart and quarterback Ty Koepp were named the 1A DII coach and player of the year, respectively, for the second year in a row.
Koepp completed 65% of his passes for 2,400 yards and 40 touchdowns.
Koepp's favorite weapons, Sawyer Hewett and Hunter Taylor, also found a spot on the first team.
Hewett had 1,544 all-purpose yards and 23 touchdowns. Taylor added 762 yards receiving and three punt return touchdowns. He was also a second-teamer as a defensive back.
The Tigers had two linemen earn first-team honors on both sides of the ball, Dallas Morgan and Brock Boyer.
Senior linebacker Lane Clemenhagen also got a first-team nod for Kendrick.
The Tigers also had Wyatt Fitzmorris (LB) and Carson Hogan (OL) make the second team.
Bulldogs, Bengals, Eagles get a couple of second-teamers
Lewiston senior kicker Alex Hernandez was a member of the 5A classification's second team.
Hernandez notched 22 touchbacks on 35 kickoff attempts in 2023. In the Bengals' 42-26 win over Clarkston on Sept. 10, he had six kickoffs reach the back of the end zone.
Grangeville's senior receiver Carter Mundt and junior offensive lineman Troy Benifield Jr. were also second-team honorees.
Lewis County's only all-stater was running back Gage Crow.
The Eagles' running back had more than 2,000 rushing yards and accounted for more than half of his team's scores in 2023.
Pixley may be contacted at (208) 848-2290, tpixley@lmtribune.com or on Twitter @TreebTalks
