Mtn. View football: Collin Sale profile

In early December, I interviewed Collin Sale, a senior at Mountain View (Idaho) High School. He had a fine football season, but it turns out he's quite a wrestler and baseball player. Here's the article I wrote about him that will appear in the Mavericks' 2012 football yearbook.

Collin Sale:

 

‘Mr. Do-It-Everything’ was a factor

in all parts of the Mavs’ success

By Bruce Smith

Matchup

             Collin Sale wanted to get a head start on Mountain View’s 2012 football season.

            A three-sport athlete, his junior year ended on a sour note. A shoulder injury suffered during the winter wrestling season forced him to miss baseball. By the time he had healed, he couldn’t wait for football.
            “It ended up being a blast, hanging out with the boys at practice and making tons of unforgettable memories,” he said.
            Sale made memories everywhere. Before he was hurt, he was a candidate to win district and possibly state at 138 pounds. During the Box Elder tournament in Utah, he won all four of his matches and was given a plaque as the outstanding wrestler.
            “It was a total surprise. The coaches voted on it and the first thing I did was hug my mom,” he said. “The kid I wrestled in the championship match was killing me but I got a good hold and pinned him with 15 seconds left. It’s been my biggest sports highlight.”
            Mountain View coach Judd Benedick said Sale was a team captain and one of the Mavericks most important players. Sale said he spent most of the season playing slot receiver and strong-side safety but – after further review – he was much more than that.
            “He’s not a vocal guy but he leads by example. He gives 100 percent all of the time,” said Benedick. “He was Mr. Do-It-Everything for us. We couldn’t get him off the field.”
            At just 5-foot-9, Sale also played special teams. He ended up being Mountain View’s second-leading receiver, catching 36 passes for 428 yards. He also rushed eight times for 50 yards and returned a kickoff 73 yards. Sale was selected second team all-SIC.
            Sale’s extra-involvement started during the summer. He worked at Buck’s Bags in Garden City, which was the company that Benedick directed to produce Mountain View’s fancy new uniforms. Before anyone else saw the finished product, Sale was one of the guys putting the shirts and pants in boxes and arranging for delivery.
            “That was awesome,” he recalled. “I was in the shipping department and helped clip them, stack them and count them. A kid I worked with played on Eagle’s football team and he saw them, too. His grandpa owns it (the store), so he was trying to get them to do it.”
            During the season, he said his best memory was his 64-yard touchdown reception from quarterback Kai Turner. The play broke open what had been a close game in the Mavericks’ 48-28 win.
            Here’s how Sale described it:
            “I had a good move off my defender. Once I got past him, I found an alley to get open and Kai saw me. I caught the ball and undercut one defender and juked another to get to the end zone.”
            Sale was one of several good Mountain View receivers, which included Connor Armstrong, Josh Buss, Marshall Pack, Kenny Webster and others. Turner, a three-year starter, was often on target, and that gave the Mavs a potent attack.
            “Our receiving corps was really good so they (opponents) couldn’t really concentrate on any of us,” Sale said.
            That was never so evident late in the season when Mountain View whipped Eagle, celebrating its “Senior Night” with a 48-22 victory.
            “When we play them, it gets so heated,” he said. “We just wanted it more.”
            The Mavericks didn’t make the postseason, but ended the year on a winning note by thrashing Vallivue. The next week, he was on the wrestling mats, preparing for another season. After that, he hoped to play baseball again.
            And after high school?
            “I’m trying to play football somewhere,” he said. “I’m sending my video out. I’ll see what happens. I would take playing any of the three sports.”