There may be debate over Palm Beach County's most valuable football player, but there is little debate about who means the most to Jupiter.
Nick Bothe strengthened his case again Friday night, accounting for two touchdowns and an interception as the Warriors defeated Wellington 17-3 to improve to 5-0.
Jupiter's "Swiss Army knife" was once again at the center of everything, helping the Warriors remain unbeaten and continue an impressive run following the graduation of 29 seniors from last year's squad.
"A person that makes everyone around you better," Jupiter head coach Josh Brooks said. "Nick certainly does that on both sides of the ball. Quarterback, running back, safety, he's running down into the box. Anywhere he goes, he's going to make us
a better football team."
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Bothe checked just about every box against Wellington, catching a touchdown pass, scoring on a rushing touchdown and recording an interception.
"I can play everywhere, I feel like," Bothe said. "I'm a very versatile player. I can play wherever coach wants me because I just want to do anything to help the team. And I feel like wherever you play me, I'll be great at that position."
His role expanded even further Friday night.
"We worked all week for it," Bothe said. "We had a couple people banged up, so I had to start my role at W, which is a slot receiver. And then towards the end of the game, they moved me more at T, and we really found the groove there. I ran a touchdown, I caught a touchdown, and obviously I caught an interception. So I'm just grateful for my guys, and we got the job done."
Entering Friday night's game, Bothe led Jupiter with 310 all-purpose yards. On defense, the senior had 15 tackles, including two for loss, and his second-quarter interception pushed his season total to five.
That puts him within striking distance of a program record held by his own coach. Brooks recorded seven interceptions during the 2013 season, the highest single-season total by a Jupiter player in the past 13 years.
"I really want to beat this coach's interceptions," Bothe said, drawing a smile from Brooks.
"He's getting close," Brooks replied. "He's got five games left. Now it looks like it might get broken. I hope he breaks it."
A year ago, Jupiter entered a new era after graduating 29 seniors and turning the program over to Brooks in his first season as head coach. Instead of rebuilding, the Warriors haven't skipped a beat.
"The standard is the standard," Bothe said. "The seniors, three years ago, they went 9-1 and last year went 10-0. And this year, we have to keep it going, 10-0. And that's just the main goal. Then we're just going to take it day by day and finish the season strong into the playoffs."
Bothe has become one of the driving forces behind that pursuit, both as a playmaker and a leader.
"He's a kid who truly is a team-first player, and we trust him in a lot of different spots," Brooks said. "We ask him to do a lot of different things, and I couldn't be prouder of the things he's doing this year."
Alex Peterman is a high school sports reporter for The Palm Beach Post. He can be reached at apeterman@usatodayco.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: How Nick Bothe emerged as Jupiter football's 'Swiss Army knife'
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