Former/Future Gators Nominated for Florida High School Football Accolades

FloridaHSFootball named a group of former Gators who are coaching in the state of Florida and a group of UF enrollees to its postseason award nominee lists.

Hawthorne Hornets head coach Cornelius Ingram holds the runner-up trophy after the Hawthorne Hornets played the Madison County Cowboys in the 1R State Championship at The Range at HG Morse Stadium in Sumterville, FL on Friday, December 6, 2024. The Madison County Cowboys defeated the Hawthorne Hornets 21-14. [Doug Engle/Gainesville Sun] | Doug Engle/Gainesville Sun / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

FloridaHSFootball on Tuesday nominated a group of former and future Florida Gators to its postseason award lists, which is broken up by coaching/offense/defense/special teams and by classification.

Former Gators Cornelius Ingram (Hawthorne), Elijah Williams (Orlando Jones) and Jacquez Green (Manatee) were nominated as Coach of the Year in their respective classifications while 2026 signees Ben Hanks III (Miami Booker T. Washington) and Waltez Clark (Tampa Plant) were nominated as defensive in specialist players of the year in their classes.

Ingram, who played tight end for Florida from 2004-2008, led Hawthorne to its fifth-straight state championship appearance, where the Hornets were knocked off by Madison County in a rematch of 2024's state title. Hawthorne had won back-to-back titles prior to this year's loss.

“I felt like we overachieved,” Ingram told Mainstreet Daily News' Mike Ridaught. “We dealt with some injuries early on in the year, even going into the game we had some key injuries right away that kind of threw off some personnel stuff that we wanted to do, but I felt like we were in the game the whole entire time and that’s what it’s about.”

Meanwhile, Williams, a former running back from 1994-1997, also led Jones to a state runner-up finish after losing to American Heritage, 41-31, in the 4A championship. The Tigers finished 14-1 in 2024, its most wins in over 20 years (MaxPreps records go as far back as 2004).

Green, a teammate of Williams from 1995-1997, led Manatee to a 10-2 record with a deep run into the 5A state playoffs. The Hurricanes run ended with a loss to Saint Thomas Acquinas in the state semifinals.

Hanks III, a legacy signee and five-star corner in the class of 2025, broke the Miami-Dade County record for interceptions in a season with 13 and finished with a total of 21 interceptions in his high school career.

"Ben (Hanks), obviously, with 13 picks to break the county record down there, and then it’s in the DNA, right? The orange and blue’s in there, you know, so I think those guys tend to play a little bit harder," head coach Billy Napier said on Feb. 5.

Rounding out the group of nominees is four-star running back signee Waltez Clark, who was nominated in the specialist category as a returner. Clark returned two punts and one kickoff for scores as a senior.

"He was a guy we identified early," Napier said on Dec. 5. "Had him in seven-on-seven camp. Documented speed. A guy that just keeps getting bigger. He can run the full route tree. Good punt returner, kick returner. He's been kind of the leader of the group, the steady, consistent voice there. He's stuck with us. He's got a bright future in front of him. We're excited about him."

Nominees

• Cornelius Ingram (Hawthorne): Rural Coach of the Year
• Elijah Williams (Orlando Jones): 4A Coach of the Year
• Jacquez Green (Manatee): 5A Coach of the Year
• Ben Hanks III (Miami Booker T. Washington): 2A Defensive Player of the Year
• Waltez Clark (Tampa Plant): 6A Specialist of the Year (Kick returner)