Right off the bat, Michael Martinez made his intentions known.

“He came up here and said, ‘I’m gonna be MVP,'” Carl Madison said.

Sure enough. Martinez was named MVP after helping Madison’s West team overwhelm the East, 30-7, in the Native American All-Star high school football game Saturday night at Haskell Stadium.

Martinez, who stands only 5-foot-6 and weighs about 185 pounds, ran for one touchdown, caught a pass for another and intercepted two East passes.

Oh, and he also had a sack.

Martinez, who graduated from Bartlesville (Okla.) High in May, conceded the MVP trophy was foremost on his mind when he made the trip Tuesday to Lawrence for the start of practice.

“Yeah, that’s what I came up here to do, and I got lucky,” Martinez said.

Lucky?

“There were a lot of good players here so I was lucky,” he replied.

The West team's Brigam Bert is slowed by Crandell Casey (42) of the East. Brigam's squad won the Native American All-Star football game Saturday night at Haskell Stadium, 30-7.

Martinez also was indefatigable. Most of the players were pretty much gassed in the second half, but Martinez didn’t miss a down, playing both ways.

“I got a little tired, but I tried to hide it,” said Martinez, who was named his league’s Iron Man of the Year as a senior. “I played both ways in high school, too.”

Martinez rushed for 55 yards on 14 carries and caught five passes for 31 yards in addition to his two pass thefts.

Martinez, who is headed to Southeastern Oklahoma State along with three of his high school teammates in a couple of months, impressed the 72-year-old Madison, who has coached in the high school ranks for decades.

“He has great speed and great agility,” Madison said. “I thought he did a great job.”

At least two of Martinez’ teammates did great jobs, too. Brigham Bert, a wide receiver/defensive back from Crooked Oak, Okla., caught six passes for 144 yards, including a 65-yard TD pass from Anselm Henry in the fourth quarter. Bert also intercepted a pass.

And Zach Mendez, a defensive back from Horton, intercepted two passes, returning one 33 yards for a touchdown.

Bert and Mendez each earned a trophy as the West’s offensive and defensive players of the game respectively.

East coach Dominic Bramante had promised a wide-open passing attack and quarterback Lee Laster threw the ball 41 times, completing 18 for 239 yards and a late 14-yard TD pass to T.J. Smith. But Laster was intercepted five times.

Novan Felix of the West team leaps against the East's Tyrone Tsosie and Konan Swimmer for a pass intended for Felix. The West won the Native American All-Star football game, 30-7, Saturday night at Haskell Stadium.

“We put a lot on our quarterback’s shoulders,” Bramante said. “He missed a lot of receivers and made the wrong reads several times. But he came from a running offense and didn’t have the coaching he should have. He played hard and he played strong, though.”

Madison alternated Henry with Jody Franklin to keep his quarterbacks fresh.

Lionel Bell, a wide-receiver-defensive back, and Owens Mares, a nose guard, were named the East’s offensive and defensive standouts respectively. Both are from Riverside Indian School, the Anadarko, Okla., school where Bramante coaches.

“Having them both come from our school means a lot for our program,” Bramante said.

Bell caught eight passes for 113 yards, including a 44-yard reception from Laster that set up the TD pass to Smith.

A crowd of about 500 watched the second annual all-star game. Both have been at Haskell, but the contest is expected to be moved to an unannounced site in South Dakota next year.