- Michigan
King’s Dequan Finn adds Gatorade Michigan POY award to State Champs! Mr. Football honors
First it was the 2018 State Champs! Michigan High School Mr. Football Award, sponsored by Hungry Howie’s.
Now Detroit King’s Dequan Finn has been named the Gatorade Michigan Football Player of the Year, becoming the first Crusader to earn the honors in the 34 years Gatorade has been handing out the award.
Finn joins such prestigious state-award winners as Emmitt Smith (Florida, 1986), Matthew Stafford (Texas, 2005) and Christian McCaffrey (Colorado, 2012 and 2013), and will be a finalist for the Gatorade National Football Player of the Year, which will be announced in December.
Committed to Toledo, Finn was 109 of 185 passing for 2,109 yards, 26 touchdowns and just seven interceptions as a senior, with 1,307 yards rushing and 21 touchdowns. He led the Crusaders to a Division 2 state title as a sophomore and a Division 3 title as a senior.
The last five winners of the Gatorade Michigan Football POY award include Muskegon’s La’Darius Jefferson (2017), Detroit Cass Tech’s Donovan Peoples-Jones (2016), Lansing Catholic’s Tony Poljan (2015), Birmingham Brother Rice’s Alex Malzone (2014) and Ithaca’s Travis Smith (2013).
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Previous Gatorade Michigan Football POY winners:
2017 — La’Darius Jefferson, QB, Muskegon*
2016 — Donovan Peoples-Jones, WR, Detroit Cass Tech
2015 — Tony Poljan, QB, Lansing Catholic
2014 — Alex Malzone, QB, Birmingham Brother Rice*
2013 — Travis Smith, QB, Ithaca*
2012 — Mark Chapman, QB/DB/KR, Port Huron
2011 — Cooper Rush, QB, Lansing Catholic
2010 — Valdez Showers, RB/DB, Madison Heights Madison
2009 — Jason Fracassa, QB, Sterling Heights Stevenson*
2008 — Joe Glendening, RB, East Grand Rapids
2007 — Mike Martin, DT, Novi Detroit Catholic Central
2006 — Keith Nichol, QB, Lowell
2005 — Brandon Graham, DE, Detroit Crockett
2004 — Kevin Grady Jr., RB, East Grand Rapids
2003 — Justin Hoskins, RB, Grand Rapids Creston
2002 — LaMarr Woodley, LB, Saginaw
2001 — Tim Shaw, RB, Livonia Clarenceville
2000 — Brad Leach, QB, Utica
1999 — Charles Rogers, WR, Saginaw
1998 — T.J. Duckett, QB/RB/LB, Kalamazoo Loy Norrix
1997 — Drew Henson, QB, Brighton
1996 — Maurice Williams, OT/DT, Detroit Pershing
1995 — John Anes, RB/LB, East Kentwood
1994 — David Bowens, LB/TE, Orchard Lake St. Mary’s
1993 — Chris Floyd, RB, Detroit Cooley
1992 — Clarence Thompson, QB, Detroit King
1991 — Pete Chryplewicz, TE, Sterling Heights Stevenson
1990 — Shannon McLean, LB/FB, Detroit DePorres
1989 — Jerome Bettis, RB/LB, Detroit Mackenzie
1988 — Jim Miller, QB, Waterford Kettering
1987 — Jason Wolf, RB/DB, Birmingham Brother Rice
1986 — Tony Briningstool, LB, Northville
1985 — Allan Jefferson, RB, Warren De La Salle
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* — Also named State Champs! Mr. Football, an award which started in 1998
