Gourley, Sherman Win Awards

SM East Head Coach
Chip Sherman.

While no player in the Sunflower League took home an individual honor at the Simone Award ceremonies on Tuesday, two of its coaches did. 

SM East head coach Chip Sherman was awarded the Nathan Stiles Inspiration Award after leading the Lancers to a 6-5 record and Sectional berth, despite battling cancer and enduring continuous chemo therapy sessions throughout the season.

Olathe South head coach Jeff Gourley was named the Kansas Coach of the Year after leading the Falcons to a 12-1 record and their first state title in school history.

The other awards were given out as follows:

The Simone Award - Evan Boehm, Lee's Summit West

Buck Buchanan Award- Evan Boehm, Lee's Summit West
Bobby Bell Award- Travis Britz, Harrisonville
Otis Taylor Award - Tre' Parmalee, Bishop Miege
Kimble Anders Unsung Hero Award - Julius Foster, Lincoln Prep; Carlos Reams, Lincoln Prep
Missouri Coach of the Year - Fred Bouchard, Staley
Gordon Docking Media Award - Dion Clisso, Prepskc.com

2011 Simone Award Candidates

The Simone Award

This past week the finalists for the Simone Awards was announced.  The only representitive from the Sunflower League for any of the awards was Olathe Northwest's Willie Cauley, who is a finalist for the Otis Taylor Award which is given annually to the top Wide Receiver  in the KC Metro.  Here are the candidates below with my commentary in italics.

The Simone Award
Evan Boehm, Lee's Summit West, Offensive Line
Montel Cozart, Bishop Miege, Quarterback
Connor Harris, Blue Springs, Quarterback
Morgan Steward, Staley, Running Back

The Fontana Award (top small-class player)

Antwynn Beavers, Liberty North, Jr., runningback
Krae Kelso, Platte County, Sr., quarterback
Colin Murphy, Basehor-Linwood, Sr., quarterback
Gabe Vandiver, Richmond, Sr. runningback

The Otis Taylor Award (top wide receiver)
Jaron Alexander, Grandview, Sr., wide receiver
Willie Cauley, Olathe Northwest, Sr., wide receiver
Deiondre’ Hall, Blue Springs, Sr., wide receiver
Tre Parmalee, Bishop Miege, Sr., wide receiver

Congratulations to Willie Cauley for being named a finalist for this award.  He is the one of ONLY two Kansas finalist for any of the big-class awards.  Cauley certainly deserves the attention after an outstanding season where he caught 64 passes for over 1,200 yards and 15 TDs. 

Buck Buchanan Award (top linebacker/lineman)
Evan Boehm, Lee’s Summit West, Sr., offensive line
Nathanael Lohn, Staley, Sr., defensive end
Michael Rose, Rockhurst, Sr., linebacker
Tony Tanumai, Fort Osage, Sr., defensive tackle

Bobby Bell Award (top small-class defensive player)
Jorge Belcher, O’Hara, Sr., linebacker
Colby Bowers, Richmond, Sr., offensive/defensive line
Travis Britz, Harrisonville, Sr., defensive end
Brandon Goodman, Paola, Sr., linebacker