TheGatorade Player of the Year awards are given annually to up and cominghigh school student-athletes in the United States.[1][2] They are given for boys'baseball, boys' and girls'basketball, boys' and girls'cross country, boys'football, boys' and girls'soccer, boys' and girls'track & field, girls'softball, and girls'volleyball.[1]
A "State Player of the Year" award is given to the beststudent-athlete in each of the twelve sports in theDistrict of Columbia and each of the fiftystates, where each sport is recognized as an interscholastic sport.[3] Selection is based on three criteria: athletic achievement, academic excellence, and exemplary character (includingsportsmanship, and participation in community and other activities).[3] Twelve "National Player of the Year" awards are then given to the best student-athlete in each of the twelve sports, chosen from the state winners in the respective sport.[4]
Finally, one maleAthlete of the Year and one female Athlete of the Year are selected from the twelve National Player of the Year recipients.[5] The two winners are voted on by a national panel with about 400sports journalists,coaches, and others.[3] The two athletes of the year,Cameron Boozer andJane Hedengren, received their awards at a special ceremony prior to TheESPY Awards.[3]
TheGatorade Company established the awards in 1986.[1] The selection process was administered byESPN RISE, ESPN's division for high-school sports. The selection process is currently run by the Gatorade Player of the Year Selection Committee.[1]
Past national winners includePeyton Manning andEmmitt Smith for football,LeBron James andKobe Bryant for basketball,Allyson Felix for track and field, andKerri Walsh for volleyball.
Awards include:[note 1]
Awards include:[note 2]
| Year | Winner | Hometown | College |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | Gary Sheffield | Tampa, FL | Did not attend |
| 1987 | Willie Banks | Jersey City, NJ | |
| 1988 | Mark Lewis | Hamilton, OH | |
| 1989 | Jeff Jackson | Chicago, IL | |
| 1990 | Todd Van Poppel | Arlington, TX | |
| 1991 | Brian Barber | Orlando, FL | |
| 1992 | A. J. Hinch | Midwest City, OK | Stanford |
| 1993 | Alex Rodriguez | Miami, FL | Did not attend |
| 1994 | Doug Million | Sarasota, FL | Miami |
| 1995 | Chad Hutchinson | San Diego, CA | Stanford (football) |
| 1996 | Matt White | Waynesboro, PA | Did not attend |
| 1997 | Darnell McDonald | Englewood, CO | |
| 1998 | Drew Henson | Brighton, MI | Michigan (football) |
| 1999 | B. J. Garbe | Moses Lake, WA | Did not attend |
| 2000 | Jason Stokes | Coppell, TX | |
| 2001 | Casey Kotchman | Seminole, FL | |
| 2002 | Zack Greinke | Apopka, FL | |
| 2003 | Chris Lubanski | Collegeville, PA | |
| 2004 | Mark Rogers | Topsham, ME | |
| 2005 | Justin Upton | Chesapeake, VA | |
| 2006 | Clayton Kershaw | Dallas, TX | |
| 2007 | Rick Porcello | West Orange, NJ | |
| 2008 | Kyle Skipworth | Riverside, CA | |
| 2009 | Matt Hobgood | Norco, CA | |
| 2010 | Kaleb Cowart | Adel, GA | |
| 2011 | Dylan Bundy | Owasso, OK | |
| 2012 | Lance McCullers Jr. | Tampa, FL | |
| 2013 | Clint Frazier | Loganville, GA | |
| 2014 | Justus Sheffield | Tullahoma, TN | |
| 2015 | Luken Baker | Conroe, TX | TCU |
| 2016 | Kyle Muller | Dallas, TX | Did not attend |
| 2017 | MacKenzie Gore | Whiteville, NC | |
| 2018 | Ryan Weathers | Loretto, TN | |
| 2019 | Bobby Witt Jr. | Colleyville, TX | |
| 2020 | Jared Kelley | Refugio, TX | |
| 2021 | Dylan Lesko | Buford, GA | |
| 2022 | Brock Porter | Orchard Lake Village, MI | |
| 2023 | Max Clark | Franklin, IN | |
| 2024 | Konnor Griffin | Flowood, MS |
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| Year | Winner | Hometown | College |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | Jeff George | Indianapolis, IN | Purdue /Illinois |
| 1987 | Emmitt Smith | Pensacola, FL | Florida |
| 1988 | Curtis Bray | Monroeville, PA | Pittsburgh |
| 1989 | Terry Kirby | Tabb, VA | Virginia |
| 1990 | Robert Smith | Euclid, OH | Ohio State |
| 1991 | Marquette Smith | Winter Park, FL | Florida State /Central Florida |
| 1992 | Chris Walsh | St. Paul, MN | Miami (FL) /Minnesota |
| 1993 | Ron Powlus | Berwick, PA | Notre Dame |
| 1994 | Peyton Manning | New Orleans, LA | Tennessee |
| 1995 | Brock Huard | Puyallup, WA | Washington |
| 1996 | Tim Couch | Hyden, KY | Kentucky |
| 1997 | Travis Minor | Baton Rouge, LA | Florida State |
| 1998 | Ronald Curry | Hampton, VA | North Carolina (football andbasketball) |
| 1999 | Chris Lewis | Long Beach, CA | Stanford |
| 2000 | Brock Berlin | Shreveport, LA | Florida /Miami (FL) |
| 2001 | Joe Mauer | St. Paul, MN | Did not attend |
| 2002 | Lorenzo Booker | Oxnard, CA | Florida State |
| 2003 | Kyle Wright | Danville, CA | Miami (FL) |
| 2004 | Jeff Byers | Fort Collins, CO | USC |
| 2005 | Greg Paulus | Syracuse, NY | Duke (basketball) /Syracuse |
| 2006 | Mitch Mustain | Springdale, AR | Arkansas /USC |
| 2007 | John Brantley | Ocala, FL | Florida |
| 2008 | Matt Barkley | Santa Ana, CA | USC |
| 2009 | Garrett Gilbert | Austin, TX | Texas /SMU |
| 2010 | Malcolm Jones | Westlake Village, CA | UCLA |
| 2011 | Justin Worley | Rock Hill, SC | Tennessee |
| 2012 | Johnathan Gray | Aledo, TX | Texas |
| 2013 | Max Browne | Sammamish, WA | USC /Pittsburgh |
| 2014 | Andrew Brown | Chesapeake, VA | Virginia |
| 2015 | Kyler Murray | Allen, TX | Texas A&M /Oklahoma |
| 2016 | Jacob Eason | Lake Stevens, WA | Georgia /Washington |
| 2017 | Tate Martell | Las Vegas, NV | Ohio State /Miami (FL) /UNLV |
| 2018 | J. T. Daniels | Santa Ana, CA | USC /Georgia /West Virginia /Rice |
| 2019 | Jake Smith | Scottsdale, AZ | Texas /USC /Arizona State |
| 2020 | Arik Gilbert | Marietta, GA | LSU /Georgia /Nebraska |
| 2021 | Jaxson Dart | Draper, UT | USC /Ole Miss |
| 2022 | Nick Singleton | Shillington, PA | Penn State |
| 2023 | Jackson Arnold | Denton, TX | Oklahoma |
| 2024 | DJ Lagway | Willis, TX | Florida |
| 2025 | Keelon Russell | Duncanville, TX | Alabama |
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| Year | Winner | Hometown | College |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Amanda Freed | Cypress, CA | UCLA |
| 1999 | Maureen LeCocq | West Hills, CA | Stanford |
| 2000 | Tia Bollinger[17] | Santa Ana, CA | Washington |
| 2001 | Cat Osterman | Cypress, TX | Texas |
| 2002 | Alicia Hollowell | Fairfield, CA | Arizona |
| 2003 | Lisa Dodd | San Diego, CA | UCLA |
| 2004 | Anjelica Selden | Fairfield, CA | |
| 2005 | Dani Hofer | Palm Harbor, FL | LSU |
| 2006 | Kirsten Shortridge | Keller, TX | Baylor |
| 2007 | Ashley Brignac | River Ridge, LA | Louisiana-Lafayette |
| 2008 | Kenzie Fowler | Oro Valley, AZ | Arizona |
| 2009 | |||
| 2010 | Kasey Fagan | Dunnellon, FL | Florida/Arkansas |
| 2011 | Paige McDuffee | The Woodlands, TX | UCLA |
| 2012 | Geri Ann Glasco | Watkinsville, GA | Georgia/Oregon |
| 2013 | Carley Hoover | Central, SC | Stanford/LSU |
| 2014 | Taylor McQuillin | Mission Viejo, CA | Arizona |
| 2015 | Rachel Garcia | Palmdale, CA | UCLA |
| 2016 | Bubba Nickles | Merced, CA | |
| 2017 | Taylor Dockins | Norco, CA | Cal State Fullerton |
| 2018 | Megan Faraimo | San Diego, CA | UCLA |
| 2019 | Kelley Lynch[6] | Sharpsburg, GA | Washington |
| 2020 | Jayda Coleman | The Colony, TX | Oklahoma |
| 2021 | Jordy Bahl | Papillion, NE | |
| 2022 | Keagan Rothrock | Indianapolis, IN | Florida |
| 2023 | Ava Brown | Montgomery, TX | |
| 2024 | Addisen Fisher | Bend, OR | UCLA |
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| Year | Winner | Hometown | College |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Kerri Walsh | San Jose, CA | Stanford |
| 1997 | Denise Boylan[22] | Lisle, IL | Notre Dame |
| 1998 | Sara Sandrik[23] | Pelham, AL | Stanford |
| 1999 | Logan Tom | Salt Lake City, UT | Stanford |
| 2000 | April Ross | Newport Beach, CA | USC |
| 2001 | Ogonna Nnamani | Bloomington, IL | Stanford |
| 2002 | Bre Ladd[24] | Tucson, AZ | Arizona |
| 2003 | Kristin Richards[25] | Orem, UT | Stanford |
| 2004 | Cynthia Barboza | Long Beach, CA | Stanford |
| 2005 | Cynthia Barboza | Long Beach, CA | Stanford |
| 2006 | Megan Hodge | Durham, NC | Penn State |
| 2007 | Alix Klineman[26] | Manhattan Beach, CA | Stanford |
| 2008 | Kelly Murphy[27] | Wilmington, IL | Florida |
| 2009 | Gina Mancuso | Papillion, NE | Nebraska |
| 2010 | Ashley Wittman | Shakopee, MN | Minnesota |
| 2011 | Krista Vansant | Redlands, CA | Washington |
| 2012 | Jordan Burgess | Tampa, FL | Stanford |
| 2013 | Lauren Carlini | Aurora, IL | Wisconsin |
| 2014 | Alexa Filley | Louisville, KY | Auburn |
| 2015 | Mikaela Foecke | West Point, IA | Nebraska |
| 2016 | Khalia Lanier | Phoenix, AZ | USC |
| 2017 | Lexi Sun | Solana Beach, CA | Texas/Nebraska |
| 2018 | Thayer Hall | Roebuck, SC | Florida |
| 2019 | Ellie Holzman | New Orleans, LA | Illinois |
| 2020 | Jess Mruzik | Livonia, MI | Michigan/Penn State |
| 2021 | Ally Batenhorst | Katy, TX | Nebraska/USC |
| 2022 | Averi Carlson | Lucas, TX | Baylor/Texas/ SMU |
| 2023 | Harper Murray | Ann Arbor, MI | Nebraska |
| 2024 | Ayden Ames | Prosper, TX | Texas |
| 2025 | Campbell Flynn | Farmington, MI | Nebraska |
See[note 3]
Annual awards inathletics andtrack and field | ||
|---|---|---|
| International |  | |
| National | ||
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