Los Gatos senior AJ Minyard is SBLive's Northern California Football Athlete of the Week (8/26/2023)

What a great start as a starter.

AJ Minyard, a 6-foot-3, 175-pound senior quarterback at Los Gatos High School, completed 16 of 21 passes for 244 yards and five touchdowns in his team's 2023 opener, a 45-14 win over Soquel.

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It was Minyard's first game as a starting quarterback. Last season he went 13 of 20 for the season for 152 yards and a touchdown.

His game versus Soquel put Minyard in a top performer's list where he captured nearly 68 percent of the votes to earn the SBLive Northern California Football Athlete of the Week for Aug. 24-26.

We are currently accepting Northern California Athlete of the Week nominations for Aug 24-26. If you would like to nominate an athlete, please email sblive-social@scorebooklive.com or message us on Twitter or Instagram at @sbliveca.

Here are the other nominees for the Week of Aug. 24-26.

Jacob Alvarado, a senior running back and linebacker at Milpitas, rushed 26 times for 206 yards and two touchdowns in a 31-14 win over Dougherty Valley. Alvarado also had six tackles on defense.

Caden Bailey, a junior quarterback at Hilmar, accounted for 307 yards and two touchdowns in a 21-13 win over Los Banos.

Luke Baker, a senior quarterback at San Ramon Valley, picked up where he left off last season passing for 321 yards and two touchdowns in a 42-14 win over St. Ignatius.

Sam Beck, a running back and middle linebacker at St. Helena, rushed 24 times for 323 yards and three touchdowns in a 40-13 win over Justin-Siena.

Nathan Crawford, a senior running back for Twelve Bridges, rushed 23 times for 134 yards and two touchdowns and added four catches for 50 yards in a 43-6 win over Pioneer. Crawford now has 370 yards rushing and eight touchdowns in two games.

Bryson Donelson, a senior running back at Central Valley Christian, rushed for 183 yards and four touchdowns on just 12 carries in a 41-12 win over Eidson-Fresno. Donelson now has a state-best 508 yards rushing and nine touchdowns in just 19 carries over two games.

Martis Ferguson, a running back and strong safety for San Leandro, rushed 16 times for 221 yards and two touchdowns in a 17-15 loss to Redwood.

Emmanuel Fitzgerald, a running back for San Mateo, rushed for 240 yards and a score in a 20-7 win over El Camino.

Taniela Folau, a defensive lineman for Serra-San Mateo, the top-ranked team in Northern California, recorded three sacks and recovered a fumble in a 21-14 win over Folsom.

Kordey Glass, a junior standout for Hanford, needed just six rushes to score four touchdowns, plus added a TD reception in a 70-0 win over Buhach Colony.

Andre Latimore, a quarterback for Del Mar, rushed for 242 yards and a touchdown in a loss to Westmont.

AJ Minyard, a quarterback for Los Gatos, completed 16 of 21 for 244 yards and five touchdowns in a 45-14 win over Soquel.

Mike Mitchell, a sophomore quarterback at Riordan, completed 22 of 33 passes for 324 yards and three touchdowns in a 36-17 win over Sacred Heart Prep.

Caden Pinnick, a senior quarterback at Del Oro, completed 12 of 14 passes for 211 yards and three touchdowns in a 55-9 win over Reed. He also rushed four times for 82 yards and two more scores.

Jacob Poole, a senior running back and safety for Strathmore, rushed 15 times for 282 yards and three touchdowns in a 42-0 win over Hanford West.

Earl Riley, a quarterback for Central-Fresno, completed 19 of 25 for 327 yards and fourth touchdowns in a 40-13 win over San Joaquin Memorial.

Connor Trip, a kicker for Bellarmine, kicked a 55-yard field goal that proved decisive in a 17-14 win over Menlo-Atherton.

Herschel Turner, a senior running back at Mt. Diablo, rushed for a school-record 377 yards and six touchdowns and added 11 tackles on defense as the Red Devils defeated Deer Valley 39-29. It was Turner's first game for the Red Devils after transferring from Freedom.

Landon Wright, a four-star two-way star for Clovis West, caught seven passes for 180 yards and three touchdowns in a 56-16 win over Turlock. Wright is headed to Washington State.

Carlos Young, a standout for Sanger, recorded a 94-yard pick 6, then preserved a 33-21 win over Clovis, with an interception in the fourth quarter.