SRC’s Hooker, Rees push each other to Sun-Star Defensive Players of Year honor

Mark Hooker and Austin Rees are great players in their own right.

Both possess the strength, athleticism and football acumen to be bona fide contributors on any team in Merced County. Good as they are individually, the best friends are quick to point out that they don’t come close to what they achieved in 2015 without each other.

Hooker’s ability to occupy multiple offensive linemen freed Rees up to become one of the most productive linebackers in the state. His 207 tackles ranked No. 1 in the Sac-Joaquin Section and No. 2 in California. Rees was every bit as beneficial to Hooker, giving the senior defensive end extra time with his ability to drop into coverage and muck up the opposition’s passing game. Hooker took full advantage, leading the state with 32 sacks and finishing second in the nation.

The Stone Ridge Christian seniors share the title of Sun-Star Defensive Players of the Year.

“It’s been really neat to watch how far they’ve come, not only from their sophomore to senior years, but from week to week this season,” Knights assistant coach Anthony DeJager said. “They have very different roles on the team, but they really complement one another on the field.

“As their friendship grew off of the field, their play together just got better on it. They know each other’s strengths. They know where the other one is going to be. Knowing that the guy next to you is going to take care of his job allows you to just worry about doing yours.”

Good as the pair were a year ago, helping Stone Ridge to its first section title in school history, no one saw their 2015 campaigns coming.

Hooker burst onto the national scene after recording 22 sacks in his junior season, receiving love from MaxPreps and Cal-Hi Sports. Of the two, Hooker was built for the attention. He’s got the confidence and aggressive personality to go with his gaudy sack numbers, but even he doubted he could match the previous year’s totals.

Often facing double and triple teams, Hooker knew things wouldn’t come as easily in his senior campaign.

“I always went up against the team’s best tackle, and the running back would often be set up to my side of the field for extra protection,” Hooker said. “To be honest, it was pretty annoying at first. I told one of my teammates after the first game that I had no idea how I was even going to match what I did last year.

“It was just something that I had to fight through. In the end, I think it made me a better football player.”

Impressive as Hooker’s season was, there’s a strong case to be made that Rees’ was even better.

With 94 tackles a season ago, Rees didn’t exactly come out of nowhere. Still, his hard work and natural ability lifted him to the status of football elite this fall.

Rees averaged just under 14 tackles per game and was good for two tackles for a loss per game. He did all that while racking up over 1,400 rushing yards and 24 touchdowns as the team’s starting fullback on offense.

“I knew at the beginning of the season that if we played our game, we’d be better than we were last year,” Rees said. “I never saw 200 tackles coming, though. I was just trying to go out and do the best I could for my team. Everything else just kind of happened.

“I think Mark and I helped push each other. We’d fight for tackles, especially when we lined up on the same side of the field. We wanted to see the other one do well, and then we wanted to go out and do even better.”

As good as the Knight duo was individually, it’s what they achieved as a defensive unit and a team that will stay with them for the rest of their lives.

SRC set a state record with 10 consecutive shutouts, including a 69-0 thumping of Big Valley Christian in the Division VII section title game. The Knights defended their section crown and made school history again with a 70-21 victory over Mission of San Francisco in a NorCal Playoff play-in game.

“We were pretty confident we could defend our section title, but none of us saw the rest of it coming,” Rees said. “Nobody saw 10 shutouts. Nobody saw state coming. It was a special final season and one that I’m glad I got to share with my team and the Stone Ridge community.

“Mark and I got a lot of the glory for what we did, but at the same time, we didn’t do 90 percent of the work. The whole team achieved those things. We were just a part of it.”

This story was originally published January 15, 2016 at 5:36 PM with the headline "SRC’s Hooker, Rees push each other to Sun-Star Defensive Players of Year honor."