Football: Barkley is Gatorade athlete of the year

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Former USC and Mater Dei quarterback Matt Leinart was on the podium at a Los Angeles hotel Wednesday when Mater Dei quarterback Matt Barkley was presented the Gatorade Male High School Athlete of the Year award.

‘The winner is my man, Matt Barkley,’ Leinart said as he presented Barkley his award.

In the award’s six-year history, Barkley is the first to have won it as a junior. He joins such nationally recognized athletes as LeBron James, Greg Oden, Dwight Howard and Kevin Love as winners.

Athletic, academic and character achievement were considered among the six male candidates who included basketball standout Jrue Holiday from Campbell Hall and baseball standout Kyle Skipworth from Patriot.

-- Eric Sondheimer