State player of the year: Jordan Carey an all-purpose player, all the time

Jordan Carey cares about more than football.

"He has a really special heart," said his mother, Merrilee.

The Capital senior tutors special-needs students in a physical-education class and reads to second-graders at his old elementary school.

"He really has a heart for people," Merrilee said. "As parents, we're so proud of his character and who he is. He still takes out the trash and thinks about other people."

But Jordan Carey is a special football player, too. He did a little bit of everything in leading the Cougars to the Class 4A state-championship game and finished the season with 2,700 all-purpose yards and 27 touchdowns.

"Jordan's been the main reason we made it as far as we did," Capital Coach Wayne Sortun said. "He's an outstanding player who can make plays beyond people's imagination."

Carey carries the load Jordan Carey's remarkable all-purpose yardage totals in 2002: STATS NO. YARDS TDS Rushing 111 1,007 10 Receiving 51 889 14 Kickoff returns 19 522 2 Punt returns 12 166 1 Int. returns 7 116 0 Totals 200 2,700 27

So it's easy to imagine why Carey has been named The Seattle Times' State High School Football Player of the Year. The 6-foot, 198-pounder played eight different positions during the season — wingback, wide receiver, quarterback, safety, cornerback, punt returner, kickoff returner and punter. In one half against Stadium of Tacoma, Carey scored a school-record six touchdowns — two rushing, two receiving, one kickoff return and one punt return. He also broke a 100-yard kickoff return against Mount Tahoma and, in a win over Wilson, pulled a TD triple play, throwing for one, running for another and catching a pass for a third.

Carey, voted the Narrows League Bay Division MVP for the second year in a row, wound up with 1,007 yards rushing, 889 receiving, 522 on kickoff returns, 166 on punt returns and 116 on seven interception returns. As a junior, he scored 22 touchdowns and had nearly 2,000 all-purpose yards.

Considering all that, won't simply playing wide receiver at Oregon be a bit boring?

"I could never get bored with football," Carey said. "I'm looking forward to playing one position and concentrating on becoming the best wide receiver I can be."

"The guy's outstanding," DuRocher said. "He's legit. There's not much more you can say about him. He's good."

The championship game had a bad ending for Carey and his Capital teammates, who lost 35-28 to Kentwood. Carey's fourth-quarter halfback pass was picked off and returned 79 yards for a touchdown that put the Conquerors up 35-21. It's a play Carey won't let ruin his memories of a marvelous season.

"I was disappointed about what happened," he said, "but you can't dwell on something like that. ... That wasn't the only reason we lost."

And Carey is the first to insist he isn't the only reason the Cougars won 10 games this season.

For Carey, it comes down to caring about more than football. Working with special-needs kids makes him realize what a special life he leads.

"It just makes you appreciate what you have," he said. "It just feels good to give back to someone who's in need or who needs a hello or just needs to throw a ball."

And those who know him appreciate having Carey in their lives.

Sandy Ringer: sringer@seattletimes.com.