One of the biggest individual honors a high school football player can receive is Mr. Football USA, the title bestowed upon the nation’s most outstanding player each fall by ESPNHS.
JUNIORS IN THE MIX
QB
Cord Sandberg 
Cord Sandberg
Quarterback
6-2, 200
Bradenton, FL
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, Manatee (Bradenton, Fla.)
Sandberg, a smooth lefty, is a rare junior on this watch list. He figures to assume the role of catalyst on No. 6 Manatee’s offense following the graduation of running back Mike Blakely, an ESPNU 150 recruit in the Class of 2011. Sandberg was no slouch last year as a sophomore, passing for 2,900 yards and 26 touchdowns to lead the Hurricanes to a 13-1 mark, and he’s already picked up scholarship offers from the likes of Auburn, Clemson and Rutgers.
QB
Riley Ferguson 
Riley Ferguson
Quarterback
6-2, 190
Matthews, NC
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, Butler (Matthews, N.C.)
There are some questions to be answered at Butler this fall with the departure of head coach Mike Newsome, but the Bulldogs are set under center where Ferguson returns after passing for 2,899 yards and 24 touchdowns a year ago. Ferguson would need to bump up both of those numbers significantly and lead Butler to another state title to stay in the Mr. Football USA discussion, but the 6-foot-2, 185-pounder has the ability to do just that, having picked up early offers from LSU, Michigan, Clemson and Virginia Tech.
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