The 2022 football season came to an end in November for Elmore County schools, but it was a successful season for the six teams in county. Five of the six teams reached the playoffs, and two of the five reached the second round.
While teams had collective success, individual players from across the county also found plenty of success on the field. The 2022 All-Elmore County team is headlined this season by our three players of the year, Offensive Player of the Year Payton Stephenson, Defensive Player of the Year Justin Crumbaugh, and Two-Way Player of the Year Gabe LeMaster.
First-year head coach Kyle Caldwell of Elmore County has been named the Coach of the Year.
Here is the 2022 All-Elmore County Football Team.
QB: Payton Stephenson, Elmore County senior
Stephenson capped off his third year starting for Elmore County with a stellar senior season. The 2022 Elmore County Offensive Player of the Year completed 129 of 221 passes for 1,890 yards and 22 touchdowns. He added 704 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns on the ground.
RB: Shawn Brackett, Holtville senior
Despite battling an injury for much of the season, Holtville’s star running back carried the ball 142 times for 869 yards and 14 touchdowns. He was also one of the team’s top receivers with 28 catches for 344 yards and one touchdown.
RB: CJ Wilkes, Elmore County junior
Wilkes finished his junior campaign as the county’s leading rusher. He carried the ball a team-high 178 times for 1,303 yards and eight touchdowns, good for 7.3 yards per carry. He added 125 receiving yards to cap off an excellent offensive season.
WR: Jackson Thomas, Stanhope Elmore senior
Thomas, a Troy football commit, was Stanhope Elmore’s do-it-all offensive weapon this season. The star receiver recorded 73 catches for 734 yards and six touchdowns, and he added 39 rushes for 233 yards and seven touchdowns, mostly out of the wildcat formation.
WR: Jabari Murphy, Elmore County junior
Murphy had his best season yet as a Panther and was nearly unstoppable in all facets of the offense. He recorded 55 catches for 793 yards for a county-high 10 touchdowns. He added 79 rushing yards and another touchdown to help the run game.
TE: Colton Walls, Stanhope Elmore senior
Walls, who is a Troy football and baseball commit, showed off his skills as a tight end, long snapper, and back-up quarterback this season. He recorded 18 catches for 228 yards and five touchdowns, nine carries for 63 yards, and 197 passing yards and one passing touchdown.
OL: Austin Gray, Tallassee senior
Gray proved to be one of the county’s most consistent offensive lineman this year. The senior center graded out at 83% this season and graded above 80% in eight of 10 games he played in this year.
OL: Wes Reeves, Edgewood Academy senior
Reeves served as the Wildcats’ most consistent offensive lineman this season. Playing at right guard, Reeves graded out at 84%. He also recorded 80 tackles and five tackles for loss on defense.
OL: Ethan Alston, Holtville senior
Alston was arguably the county’s best offensive lineman this season. The star senior graded out at 89% for the entire season while he also tallied 61 pancake blocks and allowed only three sacks over the course of 11 games.
OL: Jacobie Jenkins, Wetumpka senior
Jenkins lands on this list for the second consecutive year. He had another stellar season blocking for the Indians, and he wraps up his career by helping lead a Wetumpka offense to nearly 200 rushing yards per game.
OL: Jonathan Thames, Elmore County junior
Thames was excellent this season for the Panthers as a tackle, and he helped Elmore County to its best season in the past 11 seasons. He was one of the key blockers for an offense that scored 35.3 points per game this season.
OL: Aveon Johnson, Stanhope Elmore senior
Johnson served as the Mustangs best offensive lineman this season as he primarily played guard but would slide over and play center as well. He helped pave the way for a Mustangs’ offense that averaged 22 points per game.
ATH: Cade Everson, Tallassee junior
Everson is arguably the county’s most versatile athlete and he proved that in a stellar junior season. On offense, he recorded 13 catches for 203 yards and three touchdowns as he also tallied 55 rushes for 463 yards and five touchdowns. On defense, he recorded 20 tackles and he added an 84-yard kickoff return for a touchdown on special teams.
ATH: Nate Rogers, Wetumpka junior
Rogers, Wetumpka’s star quarterback, was the biggest dual-threat quarterback in the county this season. He did the most damage on the ground with 118 carries for 1,172 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns, and he improved heavily in the passing game as he completed 102 of 208 passes for 1,378 yards and 10 touchdowns with only four interceptions.
K/P: Logan Weighall, Wetumpka senior
Weighall makes the cut for the second-straight year and proved his worth this year both as a kicker and punter. He punted the ball 46 times for an average of 40 yards per punt and downed 21 inside the 20-yard line. He kicked off 61 times for an average of 58.6 yards and 35 touchbacks. He was near perfect on PATs as he knocked in 35 of 37 attempts and hit six of his nine field goal attempts, including a school-record 49-yard field goal.
DL: Micah Cole, Tallassee senior
Cole shined both on offense and defense this year, but he made the most impact as a nose guard for the Tallassee defense. He recorded 33 tackles with a team-high seven tackles for loss and five quarterback pressures. On offense, he graded at 77% at right guard.
DL: R.J. Harris, Wetumpka senior
Harris haunted opposing offenses and got into the backfield better than seemingly anyone else in the county this season. The senior defensive end recorded 93 tackles, 16 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, 12 quarterback hurries, and one forced fumble.
DL: Luke Reinert, Elmore County sophomore
Elmore County’s star defensive end terrified opposing offensive coordinators with his ability to get into the backfield. The sophomore recorded 68 tackles, 13 tackles for loss, and a team-high nine sacks with two forced fumbles this season.
DL: JaQuize Buycks, Stanhope Elmore senior
Buycks, a Liberty commit, filled up holes on the defensive line at a high rate this season. The star senior recorded 30 tackles, five tackles for loss, one sack, three quarterback hurries, and one fumble recovery to cap off his stellar career.
DL: Bryson Boone, Edgewood Academy senior
Boone, who was named an AISA All-Star this season, was in opposing backfields all season long. The star senior recorded 83 total tackles, 15 tackles for loss, and one sack on the year. He also played right tackle on offense where he graded out at 81%.
LB: Justin Crumbaugh, Wetumpka senior
Crumbaugh, who is the 2022 Elmore County Defensive Player of the Year, was a star in Wetumpka’s tough defense. He recorded 110 tackles in 11 games, good for 19% of the team’s total tackles. He also recorded 11 tackles for loss and one interception for a touchdown.
LB: Luke Burdette, Tallassee senior
Burdette made a name for himself as Tallassee’s leader on defense. The multi-year star recorded 84 tackles and nine sacks from his outside linebacker position. He also recorded a tackle for loss and scored one touchdown on the season.
LB: Conner Hackett, Holtville senior
Hackett was a tackling machine this season as he led all player across the county in tackles. He recorded 143 total tackles, good for 13 tackles per game, along with 23 tackles for loss, one sack, two interceptions, and one forced fumble.
LB: Jackson Mann, Elmore County sophomore
Mann has led the Panthers in tackles for both his freshman and sophomore seasons now. This year, he recorded 116 tackles, 7.5 tackles for loss, one sack, and he recovered four fumbles. He averaged 11 tackles per game.
LB: Donnie Arnold, Stanhope Elmore junior
Arnold put together a stellar junior season for the Mustangs, both with tackles and sacks. He caused mayhem in the backfield as he recorded 52 total tackles, 13 tackles for loss, 7.5 sacks, nine quarterback hurries, and two forced fumbles.
DB: Tristan Bennett, Wetumpka senior
Bennett was the Indians top cornerback and his stats show why he didn’t get tested very often. He recorded a team-high four interceptions and five passes defended, as well as 39 total tackles on the season.
DB: Dorion Jackson, Wetumpka senior
Jackson made the move from offense to defense this year and the position change instantly worked for the Troy commit. The safety was one of the Indians’ leading tackles with 65 total tackles and 10 tackles for loss. He also shined in coverage with two interceptions and four passes defended.
DB: Gabe LeMaster, Edgewood Academy junior
LeMaster had a stellar season on both sides of the ball and was named the 2022 Elmore county Two-Way Player of the Year, but he shined brighter on defense. He recorded 72 tackles this season with five tackles for loss, six interceptions, and 10 pass break ups.
DB: Dashaun Caffee, Stanhope Elmore junior
Caffee was one of the best ball hawks in the secondary this season as he led his team in interceptions. He recorded 68 tackles, three tackles for loss, one sack, five interceptions, four passes defended, and he blocked one punt.
Honorable Mention
Edgewood Academy: QB Austin Champion, Sr., LB Parker Shaw, So., WR/DB Bradley Boone, Sr., OL Elias Collins, Jr., WR Brody Whitt, Jr., DL Brock Whitt, Fr.; Elmore County: WR/DB Garrett Allen, Sr., LB/DL Chris Holt, Jr., LB Drew Thornton, Sr., OL Payton Hall, Sr., OL Nicobe Hooks, Sr.; Holtville: QB Keiland Baker, So., OL Lane Talley, Sr., OL Tristan Gulledge, Jr., WR Eric Atkins, Jr., DL Kei Webb, Sr., DB Chasen Webster, Jr., LB Ty Langley, Sr.; Stanhope Elmore: LB Asher Brendelson, Sr., DL Terry Burke, Sr., DB Cortrell Mandosia, Sr., DB JaShawn Mays, Sr., RB Davion Thomas, Sr., WR Tevin Landrum, Sr., OL Davion Brown, Sr.; Tallassee: QB Tyler Ellis, Sr., RB/DB DJ Leonard, Sr., RB Josh Griffin, So., LB Caden Griffith, Sr.; Wetumpka: RB Mike Dillard, Jr., ATH Jamarion Thrasher, Jr., WR Quashawn Wright, Sr., DB James Ball, Jr., LB Dasean Smoke, Sr., OL Patrick Barfoot, Jr.
