CANTON — League champions West Branch, Crestview and United headline the Ohio Prep Sports Media Association 2025 All-Northeast Inland district football team released today.

West Branch and Crestview each have four first-team selections, while United has three first-teamers.

Crestview senior quarterback Jake Noling is the Division VI offensive player of the year after leading the Rebels to the second 10-0 regular season in school history.

Noling guided the Rebels to their first Mahoning Valley Athletic Conference Gray Tier title by accounting for 34 touchdowns as a dual threat.

He completed 97 of 150 passes (65%) for 1,709 yards and 17 touchdowns with two interceptions and ran for 1,085 yards and 17 touchdowns on 133 carries (8.2).

West Branch senior receiver Jeremiah Thomas repeats as the Division IV offensive co-player of the year.

A first-team All-Ohio quarterback last season, Thomas was a versatile receiver for the 10-2 Warriors.

Thomas had 71 catches for 1,022 yards (14.4) and 22 touchdowns, ran for 400 yards and 13 touchdowns on 75 carries (5.3) and passed for 101 yards and two touchdowns.

West Branch’s Tim Cooper also repeats as the Division IV coach of the year after leading the Warriors to a sixth straight Eastern Buckeye Conference title.

West Branch players joining Thomas on the first team are junior quarterback Grady Hirst, senior offensive lineman Zach Coffee and senior defensive lineman Gavin Gregory.

Hirst took over at quarterback, completing 182 of 288 passes (63%) for 2,660 yards and 25 touchdowns with three interceptions. He also was the leading rusher with 533 yards and seven touchdowns on 119 carries (4.5).

Coffee led the way up front for an offense that averaged 36.2 points and 374 total yards a game.

Gregory had 45 tackles with 22 solos, five for looses and two fumble recoveries.

Salem has two first-team selections — senior quarterback Cletis Monroy and senior offensive lineman Matthew Austin.

Monroy ran for 1,371 yards and 22 touchdowns on 169 carries (8.1) and completed 99 of 149 passes (67%) for 1,175 yards and 14 touchdowns. He also led the team in scoring with 150 points.

Austin was the top lineman on a Quaker team that averaged 35.3 points and 372 total yards a game.

Division VI

Joining Noling on the Division VI first team for the Rebels are junior offensive lineman Shane Bacon, senior linebacker Mikey Proctor and senior defensive back Caidyn McElhaney.

Bacon had a 98% blocking grade with 34 pancake blocks.

Proctor had a team-high 128 tackles with nine for losses and three passes defended.

McElhaney had 105 tackles with two for losses, two interceptions and four passes defended.

Eastern Ohio Athletic Conference champion United had three first-team picks in Division VI — junior linebacker M’Kyan Haynes, junior defensive lineman Levi Lucas and senior offensive lineman Tyler Wood.

Haynes was the Eagles’ leading tackler with 85 tackles, including eight for losses, and one interception returned for a touchdown.

Lucas totaled 34 tackles for a loss with six sacks and Wood was the best offensive lineman on a Golden Eagle team that averaged 37.6 points a game.

Joining them on the Division VI first team are Columbiana senior offensive lineman Brayden Clancy and Columbiana junior linebacker Danny Mangiarelli.

Clancy was the Clippers’ top lineman and Mangiarelli collected 85 tackles with 60 solos, seven for losses and broke up three passes.

Division VII

Lisbon senior running back Ashton Hinchliffe returns to the Division VII first team and is joined by Southern senior running back Landen Heffner, East Palestine senior offensive lineman Ayvre Klingensmith, Lisbon senior defensive lineman Marcus Miller and Leetonia senior defensive back Ethan Mathia.

Hinchliffe became Lisbon’s first three-time 1,000-yard rusher. This season he ran for 1,052 yards and 18 touchdowns on 109 carries (9.7), had 23 receptions for 635 yards (23.7) and nine touchdowns and set a single-season school records with 27 touchdowns and 164 points.

Heffner also had three straight 1,000-yard seasons. Despite facing defenses stacked at the line to stop him, he ran for 1,222 yards and 15 touchdowns on 166 carries (7.4) and caught 25 passes for 271 yards (10.8) and three touchdowns in nine games.

Klingensmith was the Bulldogs’ leading lineman, totaling 21 pancake blocks for an offense that averaged 36.8 points a game.

Miller was a run stopper for the Blue Devils. He had 39 tackles with 15 for losses.

Mathia led the Bears with 49 solo tackles and totaled 61 tackles with four for losses and three fumble recoveries.

More honorees

Second-team selections were Salem junior running back Brandon Kana, West Branch senior offensive lineman Gavin Hang, West Branch senior linebacker Lukas Black and Salem senior defensive back Will Harmon in Division IV; and United junior quarterback Tom Brown, Crestview junior defensive lineman Dylan Stoffer, Crestview junior linebacker Josh Smith and United senior defensive back Quentin Taylor in Division VI.

Receiving honorable mention are Salem’s Bairon Exline and Hunter Marcum and West Branch’s Grady Close and Clayton Day in Division IV; Crestview’s Brody Hoon and Kyle Booth, United’s Wyatt Swanson and Columbiana’s Jensen Nordquist and Hayes McCoy in Division VI; and East Palestine’s Zach Schnelle, Clark Rutledge, Tanner Morrow and Braydon Plum, Lisbon’s Colt Tullis and Marc Moore, Leetonia’s Jaden Rivers and Brayden Gainey, Southern’s Logan Mettenberger and Mason Pitts and Wellsville’s Jeron Jackson and Ethan Morris in Division VII.

See page B6 for the complete All-Northeast Inland District football team.