All-Desert Empire League football team revealed. Who earned offensive, defensive MVPs?
It was an unusual season for the Desert Empire League when it came to the offensive side of the ball, in that there were not a lot of household names returning at the skill positions.
So with that in mind, heading into the season it was difficult to predict who the top offensive player might be, and that proved to be the case. In fact, the league's offensive player of the year as voted on by the league's coaches, wasn't even on his team's starting lineup to begin the season.
The 2023 All-Desert Empire League Football Team was released Monday and Rancho Mirage quarterback Yanni Padilla earned the honor of Offensive MVP.
Padilla and his talented group of receivers got the offense revved up, and whenever a key play needed to be made, Padilla, only a junior, came through. His leadership and clutch gene helped the Rattlers to an undefeated outright league title. In the five league games, he threw for 848 yards and nine touchdowns and ran for another score.
On the other side of the ball, it was La Quinta defensive lineman Gabriel Duran, also a junior, taking home the top honor as the Defensive MVP. Duran, who helped the Blackhawks to a second-place finish in league play, had 34 tackles, six sacks, a forced fumble and four more tackles for loss from his defensive end spot, and was a problem for opposing offensive coordinators all year long.
The special teams MVP was jack-of-all-trades Braden Cervello of the Xavier Prep Saints. The senior was also a valuable piece of the Saints' offense and defense but separated himself as the top kicker and punter in the league. Cervello averaged 42.0 yards per punt, made 28 of 29 extra points and added five field goals with a long of 40 yards on the season.
Here is a look at the full All-DEL football team including first team, second team and honorable mention.
All-DEL football team
Offensive MVP: Yanni Padilla, Rancho Mirage (Jr.)
Defensive MVP: Gabriel Duran, La Quinta (Jr.)
Special teams MVP: Braden Cervello, Xavier Prep (Sr.)
FIRST-TEAM OFFENSE
OL: Izaiah Heffern, Rancho Mirage (Jr.)
OL: Carl Brenagh III, Palm Springs (Sr.)
OL: Elijah Vaikona, Xavier Prep (Jr.)
OL: Ty Murga, La Quinta (Sr.)
OL: Deardred Robinson, Palm Desert (Sr.)
WR: Kobee Finnikin, Rancho Mirage (Soph.)
WR: Edward Johnson, Rancho MIrage (Sr.)
WR: Tyson Ruiz, Xavier Prep (Sr.)
TE: Mark Levine, La Quinta (Sr.)
RB: Jordan Johnson, Palm Springs (Soph.)
RB: Jeremiah Williams, Rancho Mirage (Jr.)
QB: Greg Hollis, Shadow Hills (Sr.)
Athlete: Pedro Trujillo, Shadow Hills (Jr.)
Athlete: Koa Rapolla, Palm Springs (Soph.)
FIRST-TEAM DEFENSE
DL: Jackson Bishop, Palm Desert (Soph.)
DL: Gabriel Lua, La Quinta (Jr.)
DL: Mason Hershberger, Rancho Mirage (Sr.)
DL: Kyle Hill, Xavier Prep (Sr.)
LB: Abel Flores, Rancho Mirage (Sr.)
LB: Jesus Pazos, Xavier Prep (Jr.)
LB: Jermiah Peffers, Shadow Hills (Sr.)
DB: Braden Cervello, Xavier Prep (Sr.)
DB: Austin McDanel, Xavier Prep (Jr.)
DB: Aidan Simo, La Quinta (Soph.)
DB: Adam Jimemez, Rancho Mirage (Sr.)
Athlete: Aidan Flores, Rancho Mirage (Sr.)
Athlete: Dawson Johnson, Palm Desert (Sr.)
Athlete: Koa Rapolla, Palm Springs (Soph.)
Kicker: Braden Cervello, Xavier Prep (Sr.)
Kicker: Alex Cervantes, Shadow Hills (Soph.)
Return man: Juan Bautista, La Quinta (Sr.)
SECOND-TEAM OFFENSE
OL: Sysko Rios, Rancho Mirage (Soph.)
OL: Jonathan Givens, Palm Springs (Sr.)
OL: C Jackson Dungy, La Quinta (Jr.)
OL: Noah Contreras, Xavier Prep (Jr.)
OL: Brandon Gout, Shadow Hills (Sr.)
WR: Jeremiah Johnson, Rancho Mirage (Soph.)
WR: Juan Bautista, La Quinta (Sr.)
WR: Braden Cervello, Xavier Prep (Sr.)
TE: Hines Verazas, Rancho Mirage (Soph.)
RB: Jesus Pazos, Xavier Prep (Jr.)
RB: Dawson Johnson, Palm Desert (Sr.)
QB: A.J. Rivera, Palm Desert (Soph.)
SECOND-TEAM DEFENSE
DL: Dominic Alba, Shadow Hills (Jr.)
DL: Hugo Barrios, Rancho Mirage (Jr.)
DL: Woody Wilson, Palm Desert (Sr.)
DL: Daniel Shayder, Xavier Prep (Jr.)
LB: Malakai Whaley-Sharif, Palm Springs (Sr.)
LB: Travis Bloch, Shadow Hills (Sr.)
LB: Lorenzo Herrera, La Quinta (Jr.)
DB: Miles Burdette, Palm Desert (Soph.)
DB: Kobee Finnikin, Rancho Mirage (Soph.)
DB: Major Hinchen, La Quinta (Soph.)
DB: Alexander Vasquez, Xavier Prep (Soph.)
Punter: Yanni Padilla, Rancho Mirage (Jr.)
Return man: Tyson Ruiz, Xavier Prep (Sr.)
HONORABLE MENTION
David Caris, Shadow Hills (Soph.)
Xavier Rodriguez, Shadow Hills (Sr.)
Canyon Pensis, Xavier Prep (Sr.)
Joe Berry, Xavier Prep (Jr.)
Jaedan Smoot, Palm Springs (Sr.)
Isaac Hernandez, Palm Springs (Sr.)
Sean Jones, La Quinta (Sr.)
Robert Garcia, La Quinta (Soph.)
Zach Gibbs, Palm Desert (Jr.)
Darrius Pine, Palm Desert (Soph.)
Ahmari Thomas, Rancho Mirage (Sr.)
Noah Hook, Rancho MIrage (Soph.)
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: The 2023 All-Desert Empire League football team revealed
