BEST ALL-AROUND PLAYER - STUMPY AWARDS

Best All-Around Player
The nominees:

Shawn Brown, Long Branch: Finished with over 100 tackles as a strong safety, rushed for 574 yards and nine touchdowns, returned a kickoff for a touchdown and returned an interception for a touchdown for one of the Shore's top teams.

Jason Amato, Howell: Had five interceptions on defense and 709 yards receiving and eight touchdowns as a wideout on offense. One of several good two-way players for Howell, including Brian Battaglia and Chance Carrick.

Isaiah Hall, Long Branch: Had a combined 1,300 yards rushing and passing as a quarterback and more than 60 tackles and two interceptions out of the secondary. His teammates, WR/DB, Donte Gilliard and RB/LB Travis Patterson, are also in the discussion along with Brown.

Rashawn Roberts, Asbury Park: A 1,000-yard rusher as a punishing halfback, the 225-pound Roberts was also a fierce, run-stopping linebacker for the state champion Blue Bishops.

Ryan Dolan, Toms River East: The senior running back/linebacker/quarterback was the Raiders' best offensive and defensive player, leading the team in tackles and serving as the main player to stop offensively.

Kevin DeMaio, Holmdel: One of the best two-way linemen in the Shore, he was a force up front in a run-heavy offense and a force against the run as the leader of a standout defensive line. His teammate, do-everything senior running back/defensive back/quarterback/kicker Glenn Grainger, also deserves mention.

Justin Pandorf, Lacey: The junior was not only one of the top defensive linemen/linebackers in the Shore, he played tight end and was a bulldozing runner for the 9-3 Lions. His teammates, Mike Mancini, R.J. Roe, Waren Smith and Tom Rickmers, also deserve to be mentioned.

Knowryl Hammary, Asbury Park: A pulling guard who was a key cog in the Shore Conference's No. 1 offense, he also was the leader of a solid defensive line. WR/DB Derrell Bell deserves some mention here as well.

Austin Kugler, Toms River North: A beast of a blocker with good hands at tight end, he also was the undefeated Mariners' top defensive lineman with over 60 tackles.

Joe Laguna, Keansburg: Recognized as one of the top linebackers in the Shore, he also was a punishing lead blocker and a good feature runner who turned in a pair of 100-yard rushing efforts in the absence of his injured brother, Justin, during the state playoffs. His teammate, WR/DB Scott Pillar, who had 11 touchdown catches and five interceptions, also deserves credit.

Michael Wilbur, Red Bank Catholic: One of the Shore's top rushers, Wilbur was also a team leader at linebacker.

Also deserving mention: Bobby Alameda (Point Boro); Tajh Miller (Long Branch); Jimmy Gillburn (Manalapan); Brandon Carter (Freehold); Mike Murphy (TR East); Steve Kircher (Manasquan); Erik Smithman (Barnegat); Kenny Laplante (Holmdel).

And the Stumpy goes to....Knowryl Hammary. It was right there between him, Roberts and Kugler, because I feel if you took either of them off their respective teams, it would be a huge loss. Hammary was the heart and soul and his intangibles were off the charts. He made that whole team work. Asbury Park could get to the edge on offense because Hammary would sprint out ahead and level people, and he was a playmaker on defense. Without him, they would have been in trouble.