READFIELD — Some players, mostly skill position players, put up hard-to-fathom statistics week in and week out. Others make their presence felt on defense, or even special teams.

And then there is Luke Emery, who did something few players could this fall: Impact a game on just about every play.

Emery, a Maranacook Community High School senior, defined dominance this season with eye-popping numbers in all facets of the game.

For his accomplishments this season, Emery is the Kennebec Journal Football Player of the Year. Gardiner senior Alonzo Connor was also considered.

“Ever since last season ended I was ready for this one,” Emery said. “I really wanted to have a good year.”

Emery did just that.

He rushed for 1,302 yards and 14 touchdowns, and he did it on just 151 carries. He averaged 8.6 yards a carry. He also threw three touchdown passes and had a touchdown reception.

Emery also shined at his defensive end position. He finished with 73 tackles — 55 solos — and a whopping 15 sacks. He blocked three punts and two extra point attempts.

Oh, and his 46.5-yard punting average was among the best in the Campbell Conference’s Class C division.

Just how good was he this season?

“He’s a nightmare,” Winthrop coach Joel Stoneton said. “He’s a nightmare for defenses because not only is he a quick runner, but he can run you over. He can throw the ball and he could be thrown to as well. On special teams, the way he could put his foot in the ball, it was a huge threat. Defensively, you had to run away from him. You had to get ready for him in every aspect of the game.

“He took it to another level this year.”

Emery earned the Taglienti Award, which is given to the top player in the conference. Coaches decide the recipient via a secret ballot vote.

“It’s weird because I don’t look at myself like that,” Emery said. “I wasn’t expecting to get any awards. All around, I had a good year, but I think it was just because I was pumped for my senior year. I think all of us were. We trained really hard, and I think it showed.”

Maranacook finished 7-3 and advanced to the conference semifinals.

“I was hoping I didn’t have to run as much as I did in previous years because I wanted others to get involved,” Emery said. “I didn’t want to run it every play. We have a lot of good players here and I also thought we would be a better team with a passing game. Caleb (Castonguay) really got the hang of it and turned into a real good quarterback for us. I just tried to be a good leader and do whatever I could to help us win.”

Emery did a lot of everything, establishing himself as one of the most complete players in the conference.

“He had a great season for us,” said Maranacook coach Joe Emery, Luke’s father. “He was committed. He did just about everything for us.”

The 6-foot-4, 210-pound Luke Emery said he most enjoyed playing with the offense. However, he took pride in his performance on defense and special teams.

“I liked playing offense a little more, but every play I felt I had a role,” he said. “This year I improved a lot in punting. I had some good kicks. I definitely liked doing it. It felt awesome to kick one away and see it go out at like the 1-yard line. It happened a couple times and it was awesome.”

Bill Stewart — 621-5640

bstewart@centralmaine.com

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