Best of Preps is designed to recognize the accomplishments and sportsmanship of high school prep athletes in Cochise County. The annual awards banquet held Thursday, June 6, 2024, as a way to say thank you to the hundreds of outstanding high school athletes, coaches and fans who allow us to share their stories, performances and passions.

Awards will be presented to the Outstanding Player of the Year in each sport, as well as Male Athlete of the Year, Female Athlete of the year and Coach of the Year.

A special Courage award will be present to an individual or team who may have overcame a unique obstacle as well as a special sportsmanship and fan/booster of the year award will be presented.

All Best of Preps athletes will be invited to attend the event for free. The event will be open for family, friends and the public to purchase tickets to attend via eventbrite.

Doors open for Dinner attendees (honorees and tickets purchased by family members only) at 5 p.m. Dinner will be held in the Buena High School Cafeteria catered by Texas Roadhouse.

Doors open for the Klein Center for Performing Arts for General Public ticket holders at 6 p.m.

Guest Speaker

3x Super Bowl Champion Ed McCaffrey

Ed McCaffrey played wide receiver in the NFL from 1991-2003, most notably with the Denver Broncos from 1995-2003 but also the San Francisco 49ers and New York Giants. McCaffrey won three Super Bowls during his career, one with San Francisco and two with Denver. In 2009, McCaffrey was named to the Broncos’ 50th Anniversary Team.

McCaffrey attended college at Stanford, where he was named first-team All American and first-team All-Pac-10 in 1990. McCaffrey was drafted in the 3rd round by the Giants in 1991, where he spent three seasons before spending one season with the 49ers.

McCaffrey signed with Denver in 1995 and spent the last nine seasons of his career playing for the Broncos. As one of quarterback John Elway’s favorite targets, in 1998 McCaffrey caught 64 passes for 1,053 yards and 10 touchdowns in helping the Broncos to a Super Bowl title. He followed up his Pro Bowl performance the next season with 71 catches for 1,018 yards in helping the Broncos to their second consecutive Super Bowl win.

After his playing career ended, McCaffrey served as head football coach at Valor Christian High School in Colorado for two seasons. In 2020, he was named head coach at the University of Northern Colorado, where he coached until 2022. McCaffrey and his wife Lisa have four sons, each of whom played football, including Christian, a star running back for the San Francisco 49ers.

Presenting Sponsor

Male and Female Athletes of the Year Sponsor

Coach of the Year Sponsors

Team of the Year Sponsor

Speaker Sponsors

Courage Award Sponsor

Sportsmanship Sponsor

Dinner Sponsor