Reflections Of The Past

Let's take a look back at the Oakland Press' Top 25 High School Football Players from a decade ago in the fall of 2002;

1 Marcus Woods (FH Harrison) – Dynamic tailback for HAWKSNATION

2 Jim Pressley (Milford) – The ultimate old school SIR-GRIND-A-LOT as a ball-carrier on 'O' and ball-tracker on 'D' for the Mavs

3 DaJuan Warren (Southfield) – Playmaking field general with quicks and a rifle of an arm

4 Maurice Alexander (Southfield) – The first Bluejays running back to ever eclipse the 4,000 yard marker in his career

5 Fred McConnell (Southfield-Lathrup) – Big-time talent in the trenches

6 Ryan Brittain (Birmingham Brother Rice) – Another in the long line of excellent Brother Rice linebackers

7 Ken Schmidt (Waterford Mott) – One of the state's top linemen in the Class of 2003

8 Morgan Trent (OL St. Mary's) – A shifty and fast WR-DB for TEAM PORRITT and the only player from this gridiron class to make it to the NFL

9 Travis Coughlin (MH Bishop Foley) – Lineman with outstanding footwork

10 Joel Malkasian (Lake Orion) – One of the Dragons best wide receivers of the last 10 years

11 Mike Jones (RH Adams) – Smart & steady quarterback in the pre-Partrito era

12 Kevin Zerbo (FH Harrison) – Two-sport stud for HAWKSNATION (also a star on the baseball field) that provided the heart and soul of the 2002 squad on both sides of the ball

13 Andre Mack (Pontiac Northern) – Speedy split end who was the definition of a home run threat for the Huskies

14 Khalid Walton (Southfield) – Dominant blocker on the O-Line

15 Kim Thompson (Birmingham DCD) – Great defensive back for the 'Jackets, who was also a standout wide receiver

16 Jerome Bennett (Southfield) – Instinctive and aggressive linebacker

17 Delvon Nickson (Oak Park) – Rough and rugged running back for the OP prior to Edwin Baker landing on campus a few years later

18 Jared Kirksey (North Farmington) – Linebacker with awesome pedigree (his dad is NFL assistant coach Larry Kirksey)

19 Oji Cathey (OL St. Mary's) – Tantalizing talent on tailback who averaged more than 6 yards per carry in his two seasons as the Eaglets No. 1 option in the running game

20 Anthony Adams (Troy) – Hard-hitting and hardworking running back and linebacker for TEAM GRIFF

21 Luis Gomez (Oxford) – Punishing runner and tackler for TEAM ROWLEY back in the day

22 Anthony Jackson (Birmingham Brother Rice) – Fleet-footed slotback in the mold of an earlier day Devin Church (Illinois)

23 Korey Padilla (Milford) – Anchor of the MILTOWN MAULERS on the line in the early 2000s

24 Mike LaPage (RH Adams) – All-around GRADE-A athlete on the football field and in the class room

25 Carvell Wilkins (RO Kimball) – Rock solid running back and linebacker for the once and now-defunct BROWN&GOLD