Fulton junior shines at linebacker, guard

 

John Raffel

Sports Scene

 

It was quite a season for Colin Stahl, junior middle linebacker/outside guard from Fulton High School.

But Fulton fans won’t soon forget his performance during a two-overtime win vs. Bath. In that game, Stahl had 11 tackles and one sack from his middle linebacker position, and was a huge blocker from his guard position to open up the winning drives during overtime.

“Up until this year he’s played running back,” Fulton Coach Paul Hungerford said. “Due to the numbers situation and the needs of our team, he unselfishly committed to playing offensive guard for us instead of carrying the football. In the middle linebacker spot, he’s been the staple of our defense as far as being able to do anything successful we’ve done defensively. He’s a huge contributor and leader for us there. He’s averaging about eight tackles a game.

“Colin does a nice job of controlling the field. He’s our best defensive player. He has an unselfish attitude and has been leading by example. That’s been a positive point for us this year.”

It’s been Stahl’s first varsity season.

“He came up at the end of last year for the one playoff game,” Hungerford said. “He helped us on some special teams. He made the transition well. He’s a very athletic kid. He’s a football minded kid. He’s not afraid to put work in. He’s quiet verbally. But his ability to lead by example and unselfishness has been a great role model for our kids.”

Stahl also plays basketball and runs track as a sprinter.

“He really loves football,” Hungerford said. “He loves the contact and the work that goes into playing football. I’m looking foward to seeing his growth between his junior and senior year.”

Fulton ended its season at 3-6 but set the stage for a playoff run next year.