Liberty senior Bruzon named Arizona's Player of the Year
WEEKLY BLOG: 12/9/23
It was back in May of 2021 that I first learned about Navi Bruzon. He was finishing up his freshman year at Liberty with the Lions' annual spring game. Bruzon was one of four quarterbacks that saw action with the varsity players that night. In his first fall at the Peoria school, he led the freshman team to a 7-1 record on a team that averaged 50 points per game. Bruzon threw one pass on varsity during the 2020 season, but it doesn't show up on his stats as it was a two-point conversion to defeat Centennial in the Open quarterfinals on a trick play.
Three years later, on a Saturday afternoon in Scottsdale, at a ceremony put on by the Grand Canyon State Gridiron Club and its new steward of the award, the Arizona Sports & Entertainment Commission, Bruzon was announced as the recipient of this year's Ed Doherty Award.
The 5-11, 190-pound senior quarterback led the Lions to a 12-1 record and the school's first Open Division championship last weekend. Bruzon passed for 3,287 yards and 32 touchdowns, plus he rushed for 972 yards and 21 scores. He was named the 6A Northeast Valley Region Player of the Year by the league's coaches.
"It means a lot," Bruzon said. "I'm happy to bring the first-ever hardware like this to Liberty. It's a great feeling."
In addition to the Ed Doherty Award, Bruzon has earned the Frank Kush Player of the Year from the National Football Foundation and the QB of the Year from BJ Media. In his career, Bruzon was 28-3 as a starter.
Bruzon joins recent Ed Doherty Award winners Brock Purdy (2017), Bijan Robinson (2018 & 2019), Ty Thompson (2020), Nicco Marchiol (2021), and Devon Dampier (2022).
"He's a playmaker," Liberty head coach Colin Thomas said. "He's the smartest, toughest leader you're ever going to coach. There's no limitation to what he can do. I've been blessed to coach him for four years. He's an amazing player and he's been a big part of our success."
Bruzon has not committed to a college yet. He holds offers from Air Force and San Diego and also preferred walk-on opportunities exist at Arizona State and Northern Arizona.
Despite his success at the freshman level, Bruzon didn't necessarily see it continuing on throughout the rest of his high school years. Liberty ended up averaging 46 points per game during its championship season and totaled over 600 points.
"I didn't really think about getting this big," Bruzon said of his goals in high school. "I'm not going to lie. I just try to be the best version of me every day and the best version of me has worked, so I'll continue that in the future."
Bruzon is the first player from Liberty to win the Ed Doherty Award. In addition to Bruzon, three of his Lion teammates were recognized with weekly medallion awards. Wide receiver Braylon Gardner, offensive tackle Kaden Haeckel, and linebacker Keaton Stam were also nominees. All of them are seniors.
Prior to the announcement of the winner, the top five candidates were brought up to the stage. They were Gage Baker (QB-Paradise Honors), Adam Mohammed (RB-Apollo), Brandon Phelps (WR-ALA-Gilbert North), and Demond Williams Jr. (QB-Basha). Of that group, Mohammed, Phelps, and Williams Jr. are all committed to the University of Arizona.
The award's namesake, Ed Doherty, was a football player and coach. He was the only person to serve in the head coaching position for both Arizona and Arizona State. In the high school football ranks, he was the head coach at St. Mary's (1965-1970) and Salpointe (1978-1982).
In addition to the announcement of the winner, the entire day was about the celebration of the 77 nominees, which were selected throughout the season by having one of the top weekly performances in the state. All levels and areas of the state were represented from Tucson in the south to Yuma out west along with Bullhead City and Flagstaff up north and Morenci out in Eastern Arizona. While most of the medallion winners were offensive players, there was representation on the defensive side of the ball and along the offensive line. A total of 53 different schools were represented as the nominees were individually announced entering the ballroom.
Prior to the start of the luncheon, a Green Room was set up where media members were able to interview the finalists. A total of 55 of the 77 nominees were in attendance and I had a chance to talk with a few of them.
"It's pretty cool," Canyon View quarterback Beau Devens said. "It's really nice. It's a fun experience."
Devens, a senior, led the 5A Conference in passing with 3,190 yards in 10 games played. He earned his medallion in Week 6 with 456 passing yards and four touchdowns. Three of those TD passes came in the fourth quarter during a comeback in a 35-28 win over Cactus. The Jaguars overcame a 28-14 deficit with just nine minutes remaining.
Coconino running back Bridger French was also a medallion winner in Week 6 as he carried the load in a dominating 41-7 win over Bradshaw Mountain. French, a senior, rushed for 221 yards on 24 carries and scored three touchdowns.
"I wouldn't have done it without my boys next to me," French said. "It was a blast being out there with everyone. It was a good overall vibe."
Coconino rebounded from a 4-6 season in 2022 to 7-4 and a 4A Conference playoff berth. French, who also qualified for state in wrestling last year, rushed for 1,673 yards and scored 28 touchdowns for the Panthers.
"There's a ton of great people," French said of seeing all the other top football players. "I'm super blessed to be here with everyone."
Thunderbird running back Elijah Little was another medallion winner. His running led the Titans to a 9-3 record and a spot in the 4A quarterfinals. Little was selected following a Week 9 game against Buckeye. He rushed for 222 yards and five touchdowns in a 49-28 victory over the Hawks.
Little had 10 games with over 100 yards rushing and scored a touchdown in 10 of the Titans' 12 games. He picked out the opponent that posed the biggest challenge to the Thunderbird offense.
"Apollo," Little said. "Because they are 5A and they were a little bigger than us. Apollo had people at every level."
Thunderbird might make another run in the 4A playoffs next season. Little (1,795 yards) is a junior as is quarterback Andrew Cohill (13 TD passes).
Another team that will return some talent on offense in 2024 is Queen Creek. The Bulldogs will bring back quarterback Tait Reynolds, who threw 11 TD passes in his sophomore year. QCHS will also have running back Lucas George, who earned his medallion in Week 4 with a 385-yard rushing night. The junior also had 3 touchdowns in his 33 carries in a wild 71-60 win over Canyon View. Queen Creek scored at least two TDs in every quarter and had 10 for the game.
"I'm just honored to be here," George, who rushed for 1,011 yards this season, said. "I'm grateful for the friends and family that I have that support me to be up here."
Two other individuals were honored during the ceremony.
Jake Gustafson was named the AIA Official of the Year. In his speech, he mentioned the importance of the athletes in his job when he said, "We do it because of the players."
Riczer Desvaristes was awarded the Contributor to the Game from the Arizona Interscholastic Association. He was instrumental in the startup of the girls' sport of flag football, which became an officially recognized sport this year. Next season should see 40 more teams take the field. There are also plans by the Arizona Sports & Entertainment Commission to recognize flag football players next year.
"It is an investment of future leaders, role models, and trailblazers that shape the landscape of our communities," Desvaristes said in his speech. "Let's continue to champion these women and work towards a future where every inspired athlete has an opportunity to share the stage with these athletes I've mentioned earlier."
Reach Chris Eaton at gridironarizona@yahoo.com or DM at @gridironarizona with story ideas.
Make sure to follow ArizonaVarsity.com on social platforms for more daily content!
Twitter (Arizona Varsity Podcast Network)
Twitter (Arizona High School Sports)
Support our sponsor:
