CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — The Virginia High School League announces its 2024 Class 1 all-state football team. Rye Cove senior quarterback Landon Lane is the Class 1 Offensive Player of the Year, and Grayson County senior defensive back Mac Goad is the Class 1 Defensive Player of the Year. Essex head coach Todd Jones is the Class 1 Coach of the Year.
Rye Cove’s 5’9”, 186-pound dual-threat quarterback, Lane, passed for 1,697 yards (95-144 for 65.9 %) and 23 touchdowns and rushed for 1,486 yards on 175 attempts and 28 rushing touchdowns this season, leading the Eagles to the state semifinals and a 14-1 record. He finished the year with 3,183 total yards from scrimmage and accounted for 51 touchdowns (26.2 pts. per game). Lane accounted for 366 of the team’s 685 total points for the season. Additionally, Lane earned second-team all-state honors as the all-purpose defensive player.
The 6’2”, 175-pound Gould was a dominant force in his defensive back position for the Blue Devils. He finished his senior year with 58 tackles,19 assists, six tackles-for-loss, five pass deflections, and three interceptions, including an interception return for a touchdown. A two-way star, Goad caught 42 passes for 921 yards (17.7 yards per catch) and 12 touchdowns. He had 15 rushing attempts for 104 yards and one touchdown. He totaled 1,156 all-purpose yards and 14 total touchdowns and handled kick-off duties, finishing with 52 kicks for 2,358 total yards and nine touchbacks.
Head Coach Todd Jones led Essex to a 14-1 record and the school’s second state title with a 22-0 win over Grayson County in the Class 1 state championship game after losing in last year’s final to Galax, 7-6. It’s the Trojan’s first state title since 2009 when they won the Division 2 crown with a 30-0 win over Radford. The title is the second for Jones while at Essex. During his 27-year career as a head coach at Essex, Pulaski County, and Westmoreland, he has compiled a 249-87 record, which includes two state runner-up finishes in 2003 and 2023, 11 region and 15 district championships.
