Wilcox's Tyson Bonilla is SBLive Northern California Athlete of the Week (11/21/2023)
Tyson Bonilla had big shoes to fill and he has done so admirably as quarterback for Wilcox of Santa Clara.
Running the split-back veer takes a lot of practice and responsibility and in 2022 he largely watched Armand Johnson do a fantastic job.
Frankly, Bonilla has been even better taking over for the graduated senior.
Through 12 games, the speedy 6-foot, 180-pounder has passed for 801 yards and six touchdowns, but where he excels is on the run, with a team-best 1,359 yards and 14 touchdowns, leading the Chargers to an 8-4 record and to the championship game of the Central Coast Section's Division 1 playoffs.
Wilcox plays Los Gatos for the CCS championship Friday at San Jose City College.
What helped Wilcox get there was a wild 52-28 upset win at second seed Saint Francis on Nov. 10, when Bonilla rushed 16 times for 171 yards and two touchdowns.
That put Bonilla on a SBLive Northern California performance list, where his numbers really soared. He received almost 60 percent of the vote to earn the SBLive Sports Northern California Football Player of the week for games played between Nov. 9-11.
Here are the other athletes Bonilla beat out to win the award.
Micah Avery, a senior running back for El Cerrito, rushed for 207 yards and three touchdowns in a 61-14 win over Berkeley.
Beau Blau, a senior quarterback at Alhambra-Martinez, completed 7 of 10 passes for 151 yards and two touchdowns and carried the ball 17 times for 159 yards and three more scores in a 49-14 win over Piedmont.
Brandon Burden, a running back for Bradshaw Christian, rushed 13 times for 180 yards and two touchdowns in a 41-7 win over Union Mine.
Jackson Cinfel, a junior running back at Clovis North, rushed 26 times for 161 yards and two touchdowns in a 34-0 win over Clovis West.
Ricky Cole, a quarterback for Inderkum, completed 14 of 22 passes for 255 yards and four touchdowns, plus he ran for two more in a 50-21 win over Monterey Trail.
Preston Conrad, a senior receiver for Branham, had four catches for 140 yards and two touchdowns in a 41-14 win over Greenfield.
Jordan Crisp, a sophomore quarterback for Tulare Union, passed for 349 yards and five touchdowns in a 49-42 win over Kingsburg.
Bryson Donelson, a senior running back for Central Valley Christian, rushed for 390 yards and six touchdowns in a 48-27 win over Tehachapi. Donelson has rushed for 2,289 yards and 37 touchdowns in 2023.
Kaleb Edwards, a wide receiver for Oak Ridge, had seven catches for 153 yards and three touchdowns in a 45-6 SJS D1 win over Turlock.
Evan Frampton, a sophomore running back for Woodside, rushed for 144 yards and a score in a 56-21 win over Del Mar.
Matthew Garibaldi, a running back for San Ramon Valley, rushed for 122 yards and two touchdowns, including the decisive one in a 38-31 overtime win over Campolindo. He also had six catches for 78 yards.
Arturo Hernandez, a running back for Mountain View, rushed 23 times for 174 yards in a 49-21 win over Burlingame.
Ezekiel Herena, a running back for Santa Teresa, rushed for touchdowns of 4, 42 and 76 yards in a 34-15 win over Los Altos.
Willis Johnson, a senior running back for Menlo School, carried 28 times for 171 yards and a touchdown in a 30-28 win over Live Oak.
Makari Kenion, a junior wide receiver for Pittsburg, had just three catches but they went for 132 yards and two touchdowns in a 41-14 win over Amador Valley.
John Koett, a quarterback at Vista del Lago, completed 15 of 21 for 304 yards and five touchdowns, four to Matt Long in a 48-7 D4 SJS win over Rio Americano.
Whit Kruse, a quarterback for Twelve Bridges, completed 13 of 17 for 321 yards and five touchdowns, four to Isaiah Rodriguez, in a 67-25 D5 win over Rosemont.
Jeremiah Madrigal, a senior running back for Palo Alto, rushed 20 times for 173 yards and four touchdowns in a 55-21 win over Seaside.
Dave Marquez, a senior quarterback at Central-Fresno, passed for 335 yards and five touchdowns in a 36-32 win over Frontier.
Jordan Masuisui, a 280-pound running back for Menlo-Atherton, carried 21 times for 177 yards and three touchdowns leading his team to a 49-37 win over Hillsdale.
Jacob Pruitt, a senior quarterback for Rancho Cotate, completed all nine of his passes for 112 yards and a touchdown, and added three scores on the ground where he rushed eight times for 99 yards, in a 40-18 win at Granada-Livermore.
Evan Vernon, a two-way standout for Christopher-Gilroy, had 14 tackles and a fumble recovery and added five catches for 67 yards in a 32-28 win over top-seed Mitty in CCS D2 action.
Westin Wade, a running back for West Park, rushed 18 times for 139 yards and three touchdowns, including the game-winner during a 41-38 overtime win at Placer.
Elijah Walker, a senior running back for Wilcox, rushed for 220 yards and four touchdowns, and added a 97-yard kickoff return for a score in a wild 52-28 win over second-seed St. Francis in CCS Open/Division 1 action.
