Troy Leigber is a Bruin

Preferred walk-on. This guy can play.

From Calhisports.com:

MEDIUM SCHOOLS PLAYER OF YEAR:

TROY LEIGBER

(LAGUNA HILLS)

It makes sense to always compare what Troy did this season to his older brother, Mitch, who started at running back this past season at Stanford and like Troy was a player at Laguna Hills who could do anything on a football field.

But it might be more appropriate to compare Troy to the first and only other Laguna Hills player before him this week who has been named State Medium Schools Player of the Year, which was running back Michael Jones in 1997. Jones led the Hawks to a 13-1 record that season and to a CIF Southern Section title. He finished with 39 touchdowns scored and is among the all-time career leaders for the state and Orange County with 91 for his career. Leigber led the Hawks to a 15-1 record and to the CIF D3-A state championship with a state-leading 52 touchdowns and 312 points scored.

Jones also rushed for 2,684 yards in that 1997 season (in two less games than Troy played), which was a record that Troy topped barely with 2,695 yards. It’s what Leigber did in his final games, however, is what will go down most vividly in the minds of the Laguna Hills’ faithful.

In the CIFSS D7 championship vs Golden Valley of Santa Clarita, Leigber rushed for 204 yards with an 84-yard TD in the third quarter and he blocked what would have been a late game-tying PAT in a 28-27 victory. Then in the CIF D3-A state final, with the Hawks trailing by 20 points to Bellarmine of San Jose, Leigber fueled a big comeback, including a 62-yard TD run in the fourth quarter, and finished with 222 yards rushing in another 28-27 win.

For the season, the Orange County Register’s Offensive Player of the Year, also had four interceptions on defense, two forced fumbles, two blocked kicks, caught 24 passes for 436 yards and five TDs and he had three kickoff return touchdowns.

Other than the two Laguna Hills players for this year and 1997, the only others from Orange County appearing on the all-time state list of Medium Schools State Players of the Year are John Huarte from Mater Dei of Santa Ana (it was medium schools then) for 1959 and 1960 and Norm Veeh of Tustin for 1943.

Leigber is currently undecided about his college plans. He has offers from Air Force and Northern Colorado and tweeted out preferred walk-on offers this week from UCLA and UC Davis.