HAVERHILL, Mass. -- If there's a front-runner for the 2024 Joe Yukica Player of the Year Award, you can make a strong case that it's Kevin Todisco.
A two-way standout at middle linebacker and halfback, Todisco rushed for 260 yards and three touchdowns on 20 carries to lead Salem High School to a 42-21 victory over Bishop Guertin on Saturday at Haverhill Stadium.
Todisco scored each of his three touchdowns in the second half, when the Blue Devils (6-2 overall, 5-2 in Division I) found the end zone on each of their five possessions.
"To me, he's the player of the year because of what he does offensively and defensively ... I don't think anybody compares to him both ways," Salem coach Steve Abraham said. "Offensively, he's the best running back I've seen all year -- and there are some great ones with Morrison (Pinkerton's Matt Morrison) and Helton (Bedford's Brody Helton). The physicality that he delivers when he hits you, that's part of why we're better in the second half. You don't want to tackle him anymore. And he's a very good blocker.
"We sleep on him on defense, but he might be our second-best defensive player. He's a violent middle linebacker. If he wasn't a running back for us, I would nominate him as an all-state linebacker. He's very good in there."
Salem also received three touchdowns from halfback Felix Gonzalez, who scored on runs of 5, 10 and 21 yards.
BG was within six points, 27-21, after Alex Dolan's 2-yard TD run and Nate Bowen's point-after kick early in the fourth quarter, but Gonzalez ran for his 21-yard TD on Salem's next possession and then Todisco added a 95-yard run with 2:31 to play. Todisco's other TDs came on a 1-yard run and a 54-yard run.
BG (5-3, 4-3) also received two TD passes from Bowen. He tossed a 17-yard TD pass to Cole Reeves and an 8-yard TD pass to Ryan Connelly.
"(Todisco) loves contact," BG coach Anthony Nalen said. "He's got the wheels to break away from kids. Defensively, he looks like their leader out there. We tried to run away from him as much as possible. He's the guy on both sides."
Salem has won six in a row since it opened the season with losses to Londonderry and Alvirne.
"We're a completely different team (since the Week 1 loss to Londonderry)," Todisco said. "We figured out what works for us and we've cleaned up the mistakes we were struggling with in Weeks 1 and 2. Some kids are in different positions. We're a whole different team."
Both the Cardinals and the Blue Devils will be in the 13-team playoff field. With one week remaining in the regular season, Salem is one of four teams that could win the Central Conference and earn a first-round bye.
"No matter what happens, we're going to do Salem stuff," Abraham said. "We're going to run the ball at you, and we're pretty good at it. And have some pretty good skill kids here so we can beat you in multiple ways. And we're going to play tough defense and cause some turnovers."
Key players
-- Gonzalez finished the game with 97 yards rushing on 12 carries.
-- Bowen completed 23 of 34 passes for 262 yards and two touchdowns.
Key plays
-- After BG made it a 19-14 game late in the third quarter, Todisco scored from 54 yards away on Salem's next play from scrimmage.
- With BG threatening to make it a one-score game, Salem's A.J. Shikrallah intercepted a pass in the end zone with 3:19 to play. The Blue Devils sealed the win two plays later with Todisco's 95-yard TD run.