Football Division Honors

The amount of talent in Northern California makes post-season honors a difficult task, but we continue on with our top football players and coaches in 2012 by division. Headlining this group are some of the top players from the Sac-Joaquin and North Coast sections.

Division I Player of the Year: Brandon Monroe RB/S Del Oro

Despite battling injuries in early in the year, Monroe was a dominant force in the playoffs as Del Oro reached the semi-finals of the SJS Division II playoffs. He finished with 1,545 yards and 17 touchdowns with 37 tackles and three interceptions. He rushed for at least 192 yards in each of his last five games with 15 touchdowns over that span. He was named the Sacramento Bee Player of the Year and is verbally committed to San Jose State.

Division I Coach of the Year: John Regalia St. Ignatius

Hopes were high for St. Ignatius this year, but winning the Central Coast Section Open Division title and reaching the Division I Regional Bowl game exceeded expectations. The Wildcats lost back to back games to Bellarmine and Serra near the end of the regular season, but responded with two wins over Mitty, Palma and the defending champion Bells in the championship game. St. Ignatius finished the year 10-4 and No. 7 in the final NCP rankings. All four of its losses came against teams in the NCP Top 20.

Division II Player of the Year: Joe Protheroe RB Clayton Valley

The East Bay Offensive Player of the Year by the Bay Area News Group, Protheroe led the powerful ground attack for Clayton Valley. He had 3,014 yards and 34 touchdowns as Clayton Valley won the NCS Division II crown and reached the Division II Regional Bowl game. He had 118 yards and two touchdowns in the section finals against Rancho Cotate. He holds offers from Sacramento State and Cal Poly.

Division II Coach of the Year: Trent Merzon Oakdale

Oakdale had two straight SJS Division III runner-up finishes heading into this year, but changed this trend with a 2012 section title. In his 13th year as Oakdale's head coach, Merzon won his second section title and first since 2007. The Mustangs also beat Clayton Valley in the Division II Regional Bowl game to reach the program's first state bowl game. Both of Oakdale's losses this year came to Southern California teams (Oceanside and Serra-Gardena).

Division III Player of the Year: Jared Goff QB Marin Catholic

A standout since his sophomore year, Goff helped lead Marin Catholic to a North Coast Section Division III title and state bowl berth for the first time since 2009. The Cal-bound senior threw for 3,692 yards and 40 touchdowns to just 12 interceptions. He also showed off good ball skills as part of the zone read running game for the Wildcats, which finished No. 6 in the NCP rankings. He finished with more than 7,000 career passing yards. He was named Player of the Year by the San Francisco Chronicle and the Offensive Player of the Year by the Marin Independence Journal.

Division III Coach of the Year: Ryan Reynolds Sutter

Reynolds helped lead the Huskies to the Division III Regional Bowl game and became just the second Northern Section team to compete in Regional/State Bowl games. Sutter went 13-1, including a win over Northern Section Division I champion Enterprise. Sutter outscored its opponents by 29 points per game this year. In his fourth season as head coach, Reynolds has tallied 39 total wins and now has a section title on his resume.

Division IV Player of the Year: John Mundt TE/DE Central Catholic

Winning league player of the year honors, Mundt was a force on both sides of the ball for the Division IV state champions. Central Catholic was the top ranked team in Division IV from start to finish. He led Central Catholic in catches (33), yards (625) and touchdowns (eight). The 3-star recruit averaged almost 19 yards per catch while notching 80 tackles and 15.5 sacks at defensive end. Mundt provided plenty of mismatch problems at 6-foot-5 and 235 pounds, which helped lead to an offer and commitment to Oregon.

Division IV Coach of the Year: Curtis McCauley McClymonds

McCauley has led McClymonds to three straight Silver Bowl titles and a 31-6 record over the past three years. His most recent title earned the Warriors a Division IV Regional Bowl bid and became the first Oakland Section squad to participate in a Regional/State Bowl game. After going 1-3 through a tough early season schedule, McClymonds won eight in a row before losing to Central Catholic in the Regional Bowl game.