EagleHerald/Brian Bell Stephenson's Monty Glover runs to the end zone after an interception against Carney-Nadeau in Stephenson.

BAY CITY, MI — Even break time is no time to rest for Jimmy Storey.

He’s an all-go, all-the-time kind of athlete.

“His motor doesn’t stop. Even on water breaks, he sprints to the water and back — and that’s not an exaggeration,” Pickford coach Josh Rader said. “Sometimes I say ‘What in the world? Who does that?’ But that’s Jimmy.

“It’s no act. That’s who he is.”

A hard-hitting, high-energy middle linebacker — who doubles as a tough-to-tackle quarterback for the Pickford football team — Storey has been selected as the 2018 Associated Press Player of the Year for eight-player football.

Storey powered Pickford to the greatest season in program history, a 12-1 march that took the Panthers all the way to a state runner-up showing in the eight-player Division 1 playoffs.

The 6-foot, 185-pound junior has been a fixture the past two seasons at linebacker, but Pickford pictured an expanded role for him this year on offense.

He was moved from tight end to quarterback and proved to be an uncanny X-factor.

He was 58 of 91 passing for 1,248 yards and 25 touchdowns — and just one interception — during the regular season. He also averaged 8.8 yards per carry, going for 504 yards on 56 attempts while scoring eight TDs.

“When things break down, he has a knack for making it work,” Rader said.

But it was his play on defense that separated him as a leader. He notched 75 tackles and three interceptions while leading the Panthers to the Great Lakes East title, aggressively covering sideline-to-sideline and bringing the thunder as a rare quarterback/middle linebacker combo.

“He’s just tough,” Rader said. “You can’t hurt him. And if you did, you’d never know it because he wouldn’t show it or tell anyone.

“I’ve had people say ‘You sure you want to keep your quarterback there?’ But with him it’s a no-brainer. He’s an obvious choice for middle linebacker. He tackles people with authority.”

Storey is joined on the All-State team by a pair of Pickford teammates in receiver Nicholas Edington and lineman Isaiah May.

Edington is a massive target at 6-foot-8, 220 pounds, an advantage that helped him turn 23 receptions into 609 yards and 13 touchdowns as a junior.

“When teams scout us, the one thing they all say is ‘How do we stop this receiver?'” Rader said. “Even when he’s covered, he’s open.”

May was a force in the trenches on both sides of the ball. The 6-1, 215 junior helped pave the way for an offense that averaged 51.4 points per game and was at the point of attack on a defense that allowed a stunning 0.8 yards per rush during the regular season.

“He’s probably the quickest kid off the line of scrimmage,” Rader said. “He’s in the backfield almost taking the handoff sometimes.”

Hunter Nowak earned his second All-State honor at quarterback after leading Morrice to the eight-player Division 1 state title. The 5-10, 170 senior was just 18 of 31 passing for 449 yards and eight touchdowns through the air, but he was nearly unstoppable when he kept the ball in his hands. He rushed for 1,301 yards and 25 touchdowns on 140 carries in eight regular season games. To further illustrate his effectiveness, he rushed for 15 two-point conversions.

History-making Au Gres featured a 1-2 punch of senior All-Staters in quarterback Caden Zeien and all-purpose athlete Ryan Schwiderson. Zeien was 82 of 115 passing for 1,550 yards and 29 TDs during the regular season and rushed for 601 yards and eight scores as eight-player newcomer Au Gres delivered its greatest season in program history.

The speedy Schwiderson scored every 2.7 times he touched the ball, rushing for 1,092 yards and 23 TDs and taking five of his eight receptions to the house.

Wyoming Tri-Unity also landed a pair of All-Staters in running back Benson Heath and multi-skilled quarterback and defensive back Braydon Ophoff.

Heath accounted for 1,703 yards and 17 touchdowns rushing and receiving during his team’s perfect regular season. Ophoff passed for 1,666 yards and 22 TDs, rushed for 1,070 yards and 12 scores and also averaged nine tackles a game.

Stephenson’s Montell Glover, the 2017 Player of the Year, had another monstrous season despite being hampered by injury. The 5-10, 215 senior piled up 1,195 yards and 23 touchdowns on just 111 rushes. He also threw four touchdown passes and caught four.

Multipurpose player Roubens Fink of Eben Junction Superior earned All-State as a receiver after hauling in 28 catches for 605 yards and six scores. He also rushed for 1,543 yards and 18 touchdowns and added four more TDs on kick returns.

Central Lake’s Grant Papineau returns to the All-State squad after another big season at linebacker. The 6-foot-4, 225-pound senior registered 82 tackles on defense while rushing for 1,109 yards and 11 touchdowns on defense.

The two defensive backs on the squad are filled by athletes who doubled as quarterbacks.

Powers North Central’s Noah Gorzinski picked off six passes and rung up 58 tackles in the secondary while Engadine’s Andrew Blanchard had an eye-popping 10 interceptions and seven additional pass breakups to go along with 76 tackles.

The All-State squad is completed by lineman Brendan Shelton of Colon, Nicholas Briggs of Bellevue and Jarron Masuga of Cedarville. Shelton is a force at 6-5, 190, creating all kinds of havoc with 16 sacks and 35 tackles for loss.

The 6-3, 215 Briggs didn’t allow a single tackle for loss at offensive guard and notched 29 sacks on defense. The 6-2, 225 Masuga had 11 forced fumbles and nine recoveries as two-way lineman.

Au Gres’ Chad Zeien is the Coach of the Year after leading the Wolverines to a program-best 11-1 season and a trip to the semifinals.

He landed his 100th career varsity victory along the way.