Record-breaking runners lead the TR's Prime Time Players. See who made the list.

Another high school football season has left with the autumn winds, ushering in a brutal cold that is sure to last much longer than Midwesterners would prefer.

That is for later conversation. For now, let's honor this year's top players with 29th edition of the Times Recorder Prime Time Players.

Picked annually by the Times Recorder sports staff since 1994, when Crooksville's Tony Taylor was the inaugural Player of the Year, the list includes schools from the Muskingum Valley League, Rosecrans and Zanesville.

Offensive Player of the Year

The candidates were many and impressive, but West Muskingum's Rashid SeSay took home the prize.

Whether running, catching or tackling, the 6-0, 195-pound SeSay was a dominant all-around force for another playoff team under coach Nathan Brownrigg. He accounted for 39 total touchdowns, establishing a new single-season record.

He amassed 1,060 yards and 27 TDs on 136 carries, totaled 28 caches for 454 yards with eight scores, and even threw a pair of TDs. He also returned two kickoffs for touchdowns, made 55 tackles and had a pick six to highlight his all-around contributions.

Beyond that, his impact as a team leader and representative of the program and school made him a true difference maker. He was named East District Player of the Year in Division V by the Ohio Prep Sportswriters Association.

"I've been coaching for a long time, and I have never had a kid with his level of maturity," Brownrigg told the TR recently. "We have real conversations about life, family and matters like that. He's a very talented and strong athlete who also sees the big picture. He's very humble."

Brownrigg was named Coach of the Year for the second time since becoming Tornadoes head coach. He led them to a 10-2 season, which included a home playoff win against Belmont Union Local, in addition to the MVL-Small School Division title.

Offense

SeSay was far from the only talent capable of bringing home the top honor.

Tri-Valley junior running back Jayden Wallace took the MVL-Big School Division by storm, running 209 times for 1,549 yards with 20 touchdowns in the regular season. His 32 catches for 450 yards were also team highs.

His 30 carries for 143 yards in a Week 8 win at Sheridan will never be forgotten by Scottie fans. He backed it up with two more 100-yard games in the playoffs.

His classmate, quarterback Max Lyall, again eclipsed the 2,000-yard passing mark while totaling 29 regular-season touchdowns. He was intercepted only four times.

Sheridan quarterback Caden Sheridan and senior classmate A.J. Winders, perhaps the area's best 1-2 passing punch, helped lead the Generals into their first regional final following a 34-27 win against Columbus Hartley in the Division IV, Region 15 semifinals.

Caden Sheridan accounted for more than 2,500 total yards, with top target Winders putting up more than 800 receiving yards. Winders also starred at cornerback.

Morgan's Logan Niceswanger accounted for 38 regular-season touchdowns and more than 3,000 total yards as the Raiders' quarterback, with classmate Kole Searl catching 71 passes for 1,027 yards with 10 TDs.

Philo quarterback Talon Preston was also named to the team after leading all quarterbacks in rushing with 859 yards and 15 TDs. He also passed for 540 yards and 5 TDs.

Rosecrans' Brendan Bernath secured every school passing record, finishing with 2,235 yards and 25 TDs.

Other running backs named to the squad include Rosecrans' Brody Zemba, who had 40 catches and 1,261 total yards, Coshocton's Israel Rice and John Glenn's Lincoln Gilcher. Rice had 1,045 all-purpose yards.

Joining Winders and Searl at receiver were Tri-Valley's Keaton Hahn and Ashton Sensibaugh, New Lexington's Jerek Braglin, Maysville's Wesley Armstead and Meadowbrook's Nick Norman.

Braglin caught 46 passes for 462 yards with nine touchdowns, despite playing with a knee injury. His total yards were the second-most in school history.

Erik Neal, a vital part of Tri-Valley's offense as a blocker, was named as a tight end. He also caught 21 passes in the regular season, in addition to a first-half touchdown in the playoff win against Delaware Buckeye Valley.

A deep crop of linemen included Sheridan's Cole Davis, a senior who earned Lineman of the Year in the Southeast District, Tri-Valley's Gavin Spiker, Coshocton's Ellzye Smith, John Glenn's Clay Mathers, West Muskingum's Mike Farley, Morgan's Owen McCoy and Zanesville's Canon Mercer.

Mathew Harper, of Maysville, was named as placekicker. He also enjoyed a strong year as a defensive back and played quarterback.

Defensive Player of the Year

Few players in the area impacted their teams the way Justin Munyan did at Sheridan.

Like SeSay, he was a two-way force. On offense, his hard-running demeanor provided another option with Caden Sheridan in the ground game, even as he focused on defense for much of the season.

It was his play at strong safety that the team needed more than anything, however.

His play on the edge, whether it was making tackles on sweeps and screen passes, or dropping into coverage as a flat defender, made him one of the area's most versatile players.

He finished with 45 tackles and three interceptions in the regular season. He saved his best for the win against Hartley — three tackles-for-losses in the first half alone. One forced a turnover on downs that led to a touchdown.

Defense

Some of the top offensive players also made waves on defense, with Davis, Munyan, Winders and SeSay leading the charge.

There were plenty of other notables who garnered attention, however.

The line was chock full of strong pass rushers, led by Tri-Valley junior Chris Gargasz, Philo senior Drew Wright and West M senior Cord McKenzie. All had double-digit sacks as edge rushers.

John Glenn's Nic Xanders, who had 12 TFLs and six sacks, was named Defensive Lineman of the Year in the Big School Division. He was joined by New Lexington's Lane Baker and Rosecrans' Xander Daniels on the list.

At linebacker, John Glenn's Bronson Bendle and Cameron Barnhouse, who combined for 149 tackles, including 23 for losses and seven sacks, in the regular season, headed a rock-solid Muskie run defense headed by coordinator Mitch Bendle.

Sheridan's duo of Ryan Kuhn and Shawn Griffey — he had 50 tackles, including three for losses, with two sacks — helped the Generals pitched five shutouts and excelled as run stuffers.

Crooksville's Daniel Chapman, Tri-Valley's Kam Karns, West M's Carter Winland and Maysville's Logan Wilhite were also top performers for their respective defenses. Winland also ran for almost 1,000 yards.

A deep secondary was full of ball hawks and sticky cover men.

John Glenn's Andrew Glaub grabbed a school-record nine interceptions and broke up six other passes for a Muskie defense that forced 27 turnovers.

New Lexington's Bentley Hanson was perhaps the MVL's best man-to-man cover corner, totaling 50 tackles and four interceptions while regularly taking on opponents' top receivers. He allowed only nine receptions. He also totaled 742 yards receiving.

The corner opposite him, senior Chase Dumolt, added 50 tackles and three interceptions as a three-year starter. He yielded only six catches.

Coshocton senior Antwone Johns, who also ran for almost 764 yards for a 9-yard average, had 80 tackles and forced five fumbles as a 195-pound safety. He also caught 12 passes and returned 13 kickoffs.

Johns joined another strong all-around defender in Tri-Valley's Nate Better, who broke up five passes and had 24 tackles. West M's Jake Anton, Crooksville's Christian Browning and Philo's Seth Henning each ranked among the area's top interceptors.

The punter was Crooksville's Brady Cottrell, who fell just shy of 38 yards per attempt.

Special Mention

Coshocton — Riley Woodie; John Glenn — Noah Winland; Maysville — Todd Saxton; Morgan — Hayden Bankes, Matt McLean; New Lex — Isaiah Stephens, Jack Wright; Philo — Ashton Shultz; River View — Wyatt Weese, Kydron Snow; Sheridan — Ben Fox, Jack Robinette, Bryson Ruff; Tri-Valley — Kade Hindel, Bode McCullough; West M — Wes Houston; Zanesville — Drew Doyle, Vaughn Pouncy; Meadowbrook — Zayden Yeagle, Noah Farley.

A special thanks to area photographers Leonard Hill, Zach Carney, Kaleb Graham, Michelle Brown and Janis Keller of the Morgan County Herald for their contributions with headshots for our print story.

This article originally appeared on Zanesville Times Recorder: Record breakers head 29th Times Recorder Prime Time Player squad