Southeast Polk’s Abu Sama named All-Iowa Football Player of the Year

Hard to believe now, but Abu Sama, Southeast Polk’s otherworldly running back, was once buried on the Rams’ depth chart.

Like, as recently as last year.

The Rams started the 2021 season with plenty of returning talent, including speedy running back Titus Christiansen. Christiansen was Southeast Polk’s primary rushing option, so much so that Sama recorded just 13 carries through the first five games.

Those 13 carries? He amassed all of 48 rushing yards.

Crazy, right?

RELATED:Abu Sama's state championship performance shows value of star players in team-first game

Then came Week 6 of last year, when Sama provided the first glimpse of his rare talents with 162 rushing yards and two touchdowns in a 38-15 win over Linn-Mar. He has been the Rams’ top option and has tormented opposing defenses ever since.

Hindsight is always a fun exercise, if only because Sama is now considered arguably Iowa’s top high school football player. We’re making it official now, honoring the Southeast Polk senior with the Des Moines Register’s 2022 All-Iowa Player of the Year.

“Special kid,” said Southeast Polk coach Brad Zelenovich last month. “You get the ball in his hands, he's unbelievable.”

That 2021 season helped set up a sensational 2022 campaign.

After emerging in that Week 6 win over Linn-Mar, Sama finished last year with a team-best 931 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns on 144 carries. The Rams won the Class 5A state title.

This past season, Sama was miles better, rushing for 1,408 yards and 28 touchdowns on, again, 144 carries. He recorded the same amount of rushing attempts, yet rushed for 477 more yards and scored 16 more touchdowns.

Add in his nine receptions for 144 receiving yards and he's up to 1,552 total offensive yards on 153 touches, which is 10.1 yards — a first down, basically — every time he touched the football. Even more, 14 of his 29 total touchdowns spanned 20 yards or more, and nine went 40 yards or more.

The Rams won the Class 5A state title again — by an even wider margin, largely because of Sama.

“He's so explosive,” Zelenovich said. “He gets going, he accelerates really well, he's got tremendous vision, and he's physical. He's every bit of 196 pounds. You can tell he's spent time in the weight room. One guy isn't going to bring him down.”

MORE:Abu Sama scores 6 TDs as Southeast Polk tops Valley in Class 5A state title game

Sama capped his spectacular senior season with a record-shattering performance, a 372-yard, six-touchdown performance in the Rams’ 49-14 win over West Des Moines Valley in the Class 5A state championship game. 

The 372 rushing yards and six touchdowns are both state title game records. The 372 rushing yards broke a 31-year-old record previously held by West Branch's Kevin Braddock, who rushed for 311 in the 1991 Class 1A state final. The six touchdowns broke the previous record of five, which was held by eight different players.

“The game plan was to get yards after yards, whether we run the ball or pass it,” Sama said that night at the UNI-Dome. “My coach said the toughest man in the arena is going to rise and show up. That's what I tried to do.”

Southeast Polk totaled 690 yards of offense on 54 plays that night against Valley. Sama touched the ball 25 times and racked up 390 yards (372 rushing, plus an 18-yard reception). The other 29 plays went to seven different players and netted 300 yards.

Here’s one more fun stat: Sama’s final 13 carries that game?

Went for 207 rushing yards and four touchdowns — an all-time performance from Iowa’s top player.

Cody Goodwin covers wrestling and high school sports for the Des Moines Register. Follow him on Twitter at@codygoodwin.