Brighton High football standout and state record-holder Simi Fehoko on Tuesday, Nov. 24, 2015 received his jersey and an official invitation to play in the Jan. 9, 2016 U.S. Army All-American Bowl the most prestitious prep football game in the country.
Only the country’s best 90 players are chosen to play in the bowl, which is televised nationally on NBC. Fehoko is following in the tracks of some amazing athletes: Last year, now-USC Trojan Osa Masina was selected to play in the Army All-American Bowl. In 2010, Brighton’s Ricky Heimuli also was invited to the big game.
Fehoko, who has committed to Stanford, also stands to snag another high-profile honor at the prestigious gridiron contest. He’s been listed on a 16-player roster of the identified candidates for Player of the Year. The honor will be awarded to the year’s No. 1 player during the game.
At the event on Tuesday, the soft-spoken Fehoko thanked his coaches, teammates and the school administration for all their support as he’s chased his athletic and academic dreams.
Brighton Coach Ryan Bullet, who received an invite to attend the bowl’s coaches camp, said Fehoko’s contribution to the Brighton team goes beyond his ability to score.
“He is positive. As a coach, that is refreshing,” Bullet said. “Here you have a pretty high-profile kid who could’ve asked why he wasn’t getting the ball all the time …. and he just wanted the team to win.”
Brighton’s football team, Bullet said, won 29 games with Fehoko as a starting player.
Bullet says Fehoko is a dedicated player who shows up to practice ready to dig deep and inspire other players to do their best.
“Last year,” Bullet said, “I thought Brighton had the best player on the (Army All-American bowl) field. I feel the same way this year.”
At Tuesday’s event in the gymnasium, the school also received a special designation: Former Philadelphia Eagle Reno Mahe presented a commemorative golden football to Principal Charisse Hilton.
The ball signifies that Brighton is a Super Bowl Honor Roll Community, a designation received because Mahe graduated and got his football start at the Cottonwood Heights school. The honor comes as a result of the Super Bowl’s 50th anniversary this year.
