Heading into the 2024 season, Wall coach Craig Slaughter knew he had something special at the quarterback position. But because then-junior Landon York had yet to take a varsity snap, he had to temper his enthusiasm in preseason interviews.

Over the following four months, area football fans and opposing coaches would learn what Slaughter already knew but wasn’t ready to share for fear of putting additional pressure on his first-year starting QB: That York kid is the real deal.

Kicking off his varsity career with the added responsibility of helping Wall transition from the flexbone triple option to a pass-heavy spread attack, the strong-armed signal caller completed 66.7 percent of his passes for 3,767 yards and 48 touchdowns to just seven interceptions. In the process, he led the Hawks to the Class 3A Division II state semifinals — cementing his place as one of the state’s most prolific returning quarterbacks in any classification.