Week 7 was a prime example of what makes Rhode Island high school football so great. The unpredictability of play – from the upsets to the surprise blowouts – means anything can happen on any given Friday (or Thursday or Saturday) and you just never know who’s going to take center stage for any particular game.
With everything that went down in Week 7, finding nominees for Providence Journal Player of the Week wasn’t difficult. Narrowing the list down to the five most deserving candidates was. After doing the hard part, we’re going to let our readers decide who should earn the title of Player of the Week.
There’s only one way to vote - check out the bios of this week’s five nominees and then make you pick in the ballot at the bottom of the page. Voting opens at 9 a.m. Monday and runs through Saturday and you can vote as many times as you’d like between then. The winner will be announced in this space next week.
Who was the Week 6 Player of the Week?
Zach Borges spent his Saturday morning running away from South Kingstown in a big win for Barrington. Eagles fans decided to perform in similar fashion, as the star running back ran away with voting totals and earned the Providence Journal Week 6 Player of the Week nod.
Borges scored three touchdowns in Barrington’s blowout win over the Rebels, a performance only surpassed by his votes. Borges earned 69 percent of the total votes, with Exeter-West Greenwich’s Bruce Sampson the only player to reach double figures in terms of percentage.
Congratulations to Borges and the Barrington faithful.
What does Player of the Week receive?
The prize for Providence Journal Football Player of the Week is simple – it’s a big bucket of clout.
The award is designed to be an interactive way for the state’s most passionate football communities to show support for their local players. We want the athletes, teams and schools to create social media campaigns to try and earn as many votes as possible. When a player wins, the community does as well – and that shows us which ones are truly passionate about high school football.
How does a player get nominated?
It’s simple – ball out on the field.
The second step is making sure someone from the team is reporting scores and statistics to the Providence Journal. On gamedays – whether its Thursday, Friday or Saturday – coaches from both teams are responsible for sending the Journal all their scoring information from the game. This information helps us put together our football roundup each week and figure out which players should be nominated.
Final score and touchdown information should be emailed to the Providence Journal at PJSports@ProvidenceJournal.com by 11 p.m. on Thursdays and Fridays and within two hours of the end of the game on Saturdays.
Once we find our candidates, the Journal may reach out to coaches for more complete statistics. Programs that do not report scoring information will not have players considered as nominees. If you think we missed your player, talk to your head coach or athletic director and ask if they are sending results to the Providence Journal.
So who will be the Week 7 Providence Journal Player of the Week? Let’s take a look at the nominees and get ready to start voting now!
🏈Week 7 Nominees
Ethan Archambeault, Johnston
Captain Comeback has done it again as the Panthers’ sophomore star continues to be at his best when the game is on the line. Down two touchdowns in the fourth quarter to Woonsocket, Archambeault took the Panthers up and down the field and helped them pull off a 36-35 win over the Novans. Archambeault had his best statistical game of the season, completing 23 of 30 passes for 366 yards and four touchdowns, including an 80-yarder.
Marcel Coulibaly, Classical
It’s been a tough season for the Purple, but Friday’s rematch of last year’s Division III Super Bowl made up for a lot for Coulibaly and his teammates. Hosting Mt. Hope, Coulibaly was a demon on both sides of the ball and tortured. He tortured the Huskies on defense, coming up with two interceptions. On offense, he did a little bit of everything, rushing for a short touchdown and catching another in the 48-6 win.
Johnny Germain, St. Raphael
The Saints haven’t used their Second Team All-State running back much on offense this fall, but on Friday unleashed him on Cranston West. Germain – who’s been one of the state’s best linebackers – showed his power on a 1-yard touchdown run in the first half, but in crunch time the junior ripped off a 74-yard touchdown that solidified St. Raphael’s 23-20 win and put them in the driver’s seat to earn a home game in the Division I quarterfinals.
Alec Hayes, Narragansett
The Mariners keep rolling in Division IV and their do-everything star continues to be at the center of their success. Hayes and the Mariners had a big matchup with Juanita Sanchez and Hayes’ dual-threat capability shined. Hayes had the offense humming against the Cavaliers, throwing for two touchdown passes and slamming the door shut with a rushing touchdown in the fourth quarter of the 26-14 win.
Caiden Reikhrud, Scituate
So how does a punter get nominated for Player of the Week? By winning the game for his team with his foot. Late in the third quarter against Exeter-West Greenwich Reikhrud – who also plays offensive and defensive line for the Spartans – hit the best punt any specialist has made this season, pinning a ball from his own 40 to the 1-yard line. He helped the defense get a stop and then was a lead blocker on Landon Poulin’s touchdown run, which was the game’s lone score.
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Who should be the Week 7 Football Player of the Week? Vote now to decide.