Wed Dec 21, 2011 11:55 PM

All-USA: Green-Beckham, Edwards Jr. named players of year

The All-USA high school football team was chosen by USA TODAY's Jim Halley in consultation with high school coaches and recruiting analysts, including Tom Lemming of CBS College Sports and Mike Farrell of Rivals.com. All selections are seniors, unless noted.

The offensive player of the year is Dorial Green-Beckham, a wide receiver at Hillcrest High in Springfield, Mo.

The defensive player of the year is Mario Edwards Jr., a defensive lineman at Ryan High in Denton, Tex.

The coach of the year is Bob Beatty, whose Trinity (Louisville) team finished No. 2 in the final USA TODAY Super 25 poll.

PHOTOS: 2011 All-USA football team in pictures

MORE: Full 2011 All-USA football teams

VIDEO: 2011 All-USA offense

VIDEO:2011 All-USA defense

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Offensive player of the year

DORIAL GREEN-BECKHAM

Wide receiver for Hillcrest (Springfield, Mo.)

Height: 6-3; Weight: 220

Age: 18

College choice: Undecided. "I get asked that every day. I will probably wait until signing day before I announce. I have five favorites: Arkansas, Oklahoma, Alabama, Texas and Missouri. I cut off a lot of colleges during the season because I wanted to focus on my senior season."

Why him: Set the national career record with 6,447 receiving yards. Broke own state season record with 2,233 yards on 119 catches with 24 touchdowns. Set state records in single-game receiving yards (354) and career TD catches (72). Led team to a school-record 11 wins. Runs a 4.37 40. Led Hillcrest to 5A state basketball title in 2010. Won state track titles in 100 meters and triple jump in 2010. His high school coach, John Beckham, is also his adopted father.

On-field embarrassment: "I caught a pass, and my pants started falling down a bit. I was too worried about being tackled to grab them."

First love: "Basketball. I didn't start playing football until the seventh grade. Once I got into football, I found out I liked the contact."

If I didn't play receiver: "I would probably be a free safety. That would mean I could be anywhere on the field."

After football: "I would probably want to be a coach in high school or college if I didn't make it in the league."

Season highlight: "Playing on ESPN and having a big game (18 catches, three for touchdowns, in a 48-26 win Aug. 27) against Seneca."

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Defensive player of the year

MARIO EDWARDS JR.

Defensive lineman for Ryan (Denton, Tex.)

Height: 6-4; Weight: 275

Age: 18

College choice: Undecided. "I get a lot of calls and hundreds and hundreds of letters. I get at least between 20-25 letters a day. I just put them all in big trash bags. It may be a little pressure. At the end of the day, it's my decision. I'm going to have my decision made for signing day. I'm looking at LSU, Oklahoma, Texas and (Florida State)."

Why him: 67 tackles, including 32 for loss and 11 sacks, one safety and seven forced fumbles. Son of Mario Edwards Sr., who played for five years as a safety in the NFL and is an assistant coach at Ryan.

In my ear: "Drake, J. Cole, Big Sean and Lil' Wayne."

Season highlight: "Probably the Lake Dallas (Corinth, Texas) game when I had three sacks and forced a fumble."

NFL memories: "Just being in the old Cowboys Stadium and how people would get into the game."

Favorite subjects: "English and (advanced placement) government."

Favorite book:To Kill a Mockingbird.

On-field embarrassment: "Probably getting tricked on the option and thinking the running back had the ball when the quarterback had it."

Playing defense: "The most enjoyable thing for me is definitely catching a quarterback or running back and getting the helmet right under the chin, then just hearing them make their little sound when you land on top of them."

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Coach of the year

BOB BEATTY

Trinity (Louisville)

Age: 56

Why him: Trinity won its ninth state title in 11 years, finishing 14-0 and No. 2 in the USA TODAY Super 25 with wins against teams from seven states. His teams are 154-21 in 12 years at Trinity and 179-28 in 15 years overall.

Family: Wife, Jayne, daughter Jennifer, son David.

Recent read: "The only book I've looked at lately are our offensive and defensive playbooks."

Favorite music: "Usually retro R&B."

Social media: "The only tweeting I've done is with a whistle on the practice field."

Influences: "X's and O's came easily for me. My work ethic and how to treat people came from my father. He was a farmer who ended up working for General Motors transport."

Getting into football: "I was a walk-on in college (at Pittsburg State in Kansas). I ended up playing college baseball my last two years of college (Missouri Southern), but my heart was in football."

Most embarrassing: "Maybe this year in the state championship. I was so excited at halftime. I knew we were playing well. We talked to the coaches before we met with the kids. Then I met with the team. I was so excited, I forgot to go to bathroom at halftime. When we had put the game away, I told my offensive coordinator to make some decisions because I had to go. I knew if I was going to enjoy things after the game, it was not going to be in pain."

Motto: "A crisis is only a crisis if you make it one."