Last week on the FOX 40 Final Quarter high school football show, hosts Jim Crandell and Kristina Werner revealed a list of the last five Mr. Football State Players of the Year from the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section, according to CalHiSports.com.
We decided to present this category since a leading contender to be this year’s Mr. Football State Player of the Year is Folsom QB Jake Browning. As a way to show how hard it can be for someone from the Sac-Joaquin Section to be on this list, there’s only been six since 1890.
Here is what that countdown revealed with player, high school and notes:
1. Dano Graves (Folsom) 2010
He led the Bulldogs to 2010 Division II state title with passing and running.
2. Kevin Willhite (Cordova) 1981
A CIF state champ on the track and one of the fastest sprinters in section history, he’s still the best high school back we’ve ever seen in the section.
3. Dick Bass (Vallejo) 1954
Vallejo wasn’t in the section at the time but is now. Bass later starred at UOP and for the Los Angeles Rams.
4. Paul Larson (Turlock) 1949
He later became a star QB at Cal.
5. Don Burnside (Grant) 1943
He later changed name to Don Doll and led USC in rushing for three years.
Tune into this week’s show Friday at 11 p.m. for all the local highlights plus the next Top 5 from CalHiSports.com, which will be a list of the best five places to watch a game in the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section history. The show will include highlights from all of the biggest games in the region and will be the final show of the season since not as many teams will be playing next week and beyond. Thanks to Jim and the FOX 40 team for letting Cal-Hi Sports be part of this year’s show.
