Mr. Football 2006: Aaron Corp
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For every previous season in which there has been a Mr. Football State Player of the Year chosen, the selection was based on what happened during a 14-week season that included no CIF state bowl games.
Scott Kurtz
The CIF Div. II state bowl game trophy also turned out to be emblematic for Aaron Corp's selection as state player of the year.
This year, of course, all that changed with the first CIF state championship tripleheader and one of the major impacts of those games turned out to be on the state player of the year vote.
Because of what he did in that extra game and based on what he and his team accomplished against an extremely difficult schedule, we're pleased to announce that quarterback Aaron Corp from Lutheran High of Orange has been named the 2006 Mr. Football State Player of the Year by CalHiSports.com.
Aaron Corp led Lutheran to a 42-28 victory over Palo Alto in the CIF Div. II state title bowl game. A 6-4, 175-pounder who committed to USC last summer, Aaron Corp ran the ball 11 times against Palo Alto for 155 yards and one touchdown. He also completed 16 of 32 passes for 208 more yards and four scores.
For the season, Aaron Corp did the unusual double by rushing for more than 1,000 yards (1,135 to be exact) and passing for more than 2,000 yards (2,750 to be exact). He had 12 TDs running with 21 throwing and led the Lancers to a 14-1 record. They were No. 2 overall in the final state rankings, although admittedly there are many in the media and on message boards who think they should have been No. 1.
"You guys did a great job letting the suspense build for this, but we're thrilled and this is a huge honor for him and us," said Chris Corp, Aaron's father, who was contacted by cell phone on Wednesday night in Florida where Aaron is preparing for the first Offense-Defense All-American Game that will be held on Thursday night.
"They just had the banquet for that game and Aaron was named the best quarterback," Chris Corp added. "He's taking some hardware up to his room right now and we're happy about that, but (being named Mr. Football State Player of the Year) will be something that is even bigger. He's been asking me the last few days, 'Is it there yet?'"
It was certainly a different ending to a season than what Aaron Corp experienced as a junior when he was injured and had to watch his Lancer teammates get bounced out in the first-round of the CIF Southern Section Div. VI playoffs. This year, with Aaron Corp healthy and operating at peak efficiency every week, head coach Jim Kunau's team not only won the state bowl game but also outlasted Long Beach Poly and Edison of Huntington Beach to win the first-ever CIF Southern Section Pac-Five Division title. That division was a virtual super grouping including most of the very best leagues in Southern California.
Aaron Corp becomes the ninth player from Orange County to be named Mr. Football State Player of the Year. Others have been DeShaun Foster of Tustin (1997), Rod Perry of Santa Ana Mater Dei (1996), Travis Kirschke of Anaheim Esperanza (1992), Bret Johnson of El Toro (1987), Kerwin Bell of Huntington Beach Edison (1979), Mickey Flynn of Anaheim (1955), Larry Lutz of Santa Ana (1931) and Ted Shipkey of Fullerton (1922).
Scott Kurtz
California's Mr. Football for 2006 runs into the end zone for the final time in his prep career.
The most closely considered for the top honor in addition to Aaron Corp was the record-breaking duo from Oaks Christian of Westlake Village – quarterback Jimmy Clausen and running back Marc Tyler.
Jimmy Clausen has just been named USA Today's Offensive Player of the Year and while we often snicker at USA Today's rankings and All-American teams, we won't disagree with Jimmy Clausen getting the nod in that category. In fact, if we were picking an offensive and defensive player of the year instead of just one overall player of the year then Jimmy Clausen's phenomenal career at Oaks Christian might be too much to ignore. Aaron Corp just happens to be one of those quarterbacks who also ran the ball effectively and also was one of the best punters in Orange County as well.
Tyler was probably the front-runner to be Mr. Football State Player of the Year heading into the playoffs. He was last year's top junior, after all, and seemed on pace to break the career state touchdown record. In Oaks Christian's first playoff game, though, Tyler suffered a broken fibula and didn't play again. The Lions then became a bit more of a passing team in their next playoff games, which seemed to have lifted Jimmy Clausen ahead of his fallen teammate.
If the season had ended after the section playoffs -- as it has for every season since 1927 except two when there was a CIF Reebok Bowl – then it's likely that Jimmy Clausen would have been named State Player of the Year. That extra week, though, not only allowed Aaron Corp to showcase himself in his game but also was an extra week in which Jimmy Clausen struggled as Oaks Christian survived in the CIF Div. III bowl game, 27-20 in overtime, against Cardinal Newman of Santa Rosa.
Although he did keep some drives alive running the ball and showcased his arm strength and accuracy on several key throws, Jimmy Clausen threw three interceptions in that game.
In the aftermath of all that happened in the CIF bowl games, including Canyon Country Canyon's upset of state No. 1 De La Salle of Concord, one of the major reasons given to bolster Oaks Christian being No. 1 for the final rankings was that the Lions beat a good Cardinal Newman team "without its best player." At least two coaches from Oaks Christian presented it in that way as well, obviously referring to Tyler's injury. It then didn't seem right to us to go ahead and choose a different player, Jimmy Clausen, as the state player of the year.
Another factor that favored Aaron Corp over Tyler and Jimmy Clausen was local consensus. Aaron Corp already has been chosen as the Orange County Register Offensive Player of the Year and based on how their sportswriters were talking in the press box on December 16 we figure that he'll also be the L.A. Times Player of the Year. Jimmy Clausen, on the other hand, was not named the offensive player of the year by the Ventura Star, which instead chose Tyler and Moorpark junior running back Darrell Scott as its co-offensive players of the year. We will always pay more attention to what the local newspaper does than one based in Arlington, Virginia.
Jimmy Clausen will be in action in the coming days in an All-American game as well. While Aaron Corp will play at the Offense-Defense All-American Game in Florida on Thursday, Jimmy Clausen will quarterback the West squad at the U.S. Army All-American Game in San Antonio.
Here is an updated honor roll of the Mr. Football State Players of the Year going back more than 80 years:
Mr. Football
State Players of the Year
(Updated all-time honor roll; selections made retroactively based on research by the late Nelson Tennis, founder of CalHiSports.com, prior to 1978)
Last year's Mr. Football, Toby Gerhart of Norco, played quite a bit as a true freshman at Stanford.
2006 -- Aaron Aaron Corp (Lutheran, Orange) QB
2005 -- Toby Gerhart (Norco) RB
2004 -- Desean Jackson (Poly, Long Beach) WR-DB-KR
2003 -- Sean Norton (Hart, Newhall) QB
2002 -- Whitney Lewis (St. Bonaventure, Ventura) WR-RB
2001 -- Derek Landri (De La Salle, Concord) OL-DL
2000 -- Tyler Ebell (Ventura) RB
1999 -- D.J. Williams (De La Salle, Concord) RB-LB
1998 -- Kyle Boller (Hart, Newhall) QB
1997 -- DeShaun Foster (Tustin) RB
1996 -- Rod Perry (Mater Dei, Santa Ana) WR-DB
1995 -- Chris Claiborne (J.W. North, Riverside) RB-LB
1994 -- Daylon McCutcheon (Bishop Amat, La P.) RB-DB
1993 -- Keith Smith (Newbury Park) QB
1992 -- Travis Kirschke (Esperanza, Anaheim) OL-DL
1991 -- Amani Toomer (De La Salle, Concord) WR
1990 -- Napoleon Kaufman (Lompoc) RB
1989 -- Ryan Hancock (Monta Vista, Cupertino) QB
1988 -- Tommie Smith (Antelope Valley, Lancaster) RB-DB
1987 -- Bret Johnson (El Toro) QB
1986 -- Russell White (Crespi, Encino) RB (Soph.)
1985 -- Terry Rodgers (Swee****er, National City) RB-KR
1984 -- Aaron Emanuel (Quartz Hill) RB
1983 -- Ryan Knight (Rubidoux, Riverside) RB
1982 -- John Paye (Menlo School, Atherton) QB
1981 -- Kevin Willhite (Cordova, Rancho Cordova) RB
1980 -- Michael Alo (Banning, Wilmington) FB
1979 -- Kerwin Bell (Edison, Huntington Beach) RB
1978 -- John Elway (Granada Hills) QB
1977 -- Marcus Allen (Lincoln, San Diego) QB
1976 -- Freeman McNeil (Banning, Wilmington) RB
1975 -- Charles White (San Fernando) RB
1974 -- Myron White (Santa Ana Valley) RB
1973 -- Frank Manumaluena (Banning, Wilmington) LB
1972 -- Wally Henry (Lincoln, San Diego) RB
1971 -- John Sciarra (Bishop Amat, La Puente) QB
1970 -- Pat Haden (Bishop Amat, La Puente) QB
1969 -- James McAlister (Blair, Pasadena) RB
1968 -- Jesse Freitas (Serra, San Mateo) QB
1967 -- Calvin Jones (Balboa, San Francisco) RB (Jr.)
1966 -- Mickey Cureton (Centennial, Compton) RB
1965 -- Greg Jones (South San Francisco) RB
1964 -- George Buehler (Whittier) LB-OL
1963 -- Tim Rossovich (St. Francis, Mountain View) LB
1962 -- Steve Grady (Loyola, Los Angeles) RB
1961 -- Mike Garrett (Roosevelt, Los Angeles) RB
1960 -- Kent Nance (Madera) RB
1959 -- Willie Brown (Poly, Long Beach) RB
1958 -- Daryle Lamonica (Clovis) QB
1957 -- Jim Josephson (Bellarmine, San Jose) FB
1956 -- Randy Meadows (Downey) RB
1955 -- Mickey Flynn (Anaheim) RB (Jr.)
1954 -- Dick Bass (Vallejo) RB
1953 -- C.R. Roberts (Oceanside) RB
1952 -- Ronnie Knox (Santa Monica) QB
1951 -- Marty Keough (Pomona) RB
1950 -- Charley Powell (San Diego) E
1949 -- Paul Larson (Turlock) HB
1948 -- Johnny Olszewski (Long Beach St. Anthony) FB
1947 -- Hugh McElhenny (L.A. Washington) FB
1946 -- Al Pollard (L.A. Loyola) HB
1945 -- Paul Haynes (Pasadena) HB
1944 -- Jackie Jensen (Oakland) HB
1943 -- Don Burnside (North Sacramento Grant) QB
1942 -- Glenn Davis (La Verne Bonita) QB
1941 -- Billy Agnew (Piedmont) HB
1940 -- Tommy Fears (L.A. Manual Arts) E
1939 -- Johnny Petrovich (Alhambra) QB
1938 -- Jim Jurkovich (Fresno) FB
1937 -- Frankie Albert (Glendale) QB
1936 -- Mike Klotovich (San Francisco Mission) HB
1935 -- Kenny Washington (L.A. Lincoln) QB
1934 -- Doyle Nave (L.A. Manual Arts) HB
1933 -- Vic Botteri (Vallejo) QB
1932 -- Nello "Flash" Falaschi (San Jose Bellarmine) HB
1931 -- Larry Lutz (Santa Ana) T
1930 -- Charles "Chili" Bertoli (Berkeley) HB
1929 -- Ervin "Cotton" Warburton (San Diego) QB (Jr.)
1928 -- Orv Mohler (Alhambra) QB
1927 -- Gus Shaver (Covina) HB
1926 -- Erny Pinckert (San Bernardino) FB
1925 -- Francis Tappaan (Los Angeles) T
[More at http://talk.ocregister.com ]
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