Blankenship elevates game to college play

Published on February 11th, 2010

By VAN WILLIAMS

Former Barrow High School football player Colton Blankenship signed a National Letter of Intent with NCAA Division II Chadron State College last week, making him the first Whalers player to play at the next level.

Blankenship played three seasons in Barrow before his family moved to Wyoming, where he played his senior season for Wind River High School.

The 6-foot-6, 280-pound offensive lineman picked Chadron State in Nebraska over the University of Montana, Montana State, Lindenwood and South Dakota School of Mines & Technology. He was also in contact with Utah State and had spoken with coaches from Wyoming and Air Force Academy.

Blankenship announced his decision Feb. 2 during a teleconference call in Wyoming among family, friends and coaches. He made it a point to thank the community of Barrow for helping him reach the next step of his football career.

"My time in Barrow taught me that you really have to be committed to something," the 18-year-old said. "When you're out there (playing) and every bit of your body is frozen, you'd better learn to love the sport.

"The coaching staff in Barrow ... they were men you could follow and their coaching and their guidance, and their love of their players, it really helped me out. Barrow provided me the platform that made this possible."

Blankenship was an all-conference lineman at Barrow, where he was named Greatland Conference Lineman of the Year in 2008. He was also an all-conference lineman at Wind River. Between his junior season in Alaska and his senior season at Wyoming, his teams were a combined 16-2 and each made the playoffs.

"You talk about a team player; he was the type of kid that tried to help everyone around him and he's probably one of the hardest working kids we've had," said Barrow assistant coach Jeremy Arnhart.

"He would listen to his coaches and he would try to apply it. In his time here, his improvement was dramatic. I'm sure he just kept on getting better because I know he could move anywhere and fit into a system. He was a real smart kid. He loved to learn."

Blankenship spent much of his 15-minute press conference talking about how much he appreciated the people of Barrow.

"First and foremost I would like to thank everybody in Barrow," he said, thanking coaches such as head coach Mark Voss and assistants Brad Igou, Brian Houston and Arnhart.

"Coach B was a heckuva man. He always preached being moral and being the best you could possibly be at every moment. He taught me since I was a freshman to be the best I ever could.

"Coach Igou first saw me when I when I was a freshman and helped me with offensive tackle, despite the fact that I absolutely hated the position. He coached me up and to where I was able to play. He was always there to help me workout.

"Coach Mark Voss, the guy who stepped up to the plate in Barrow. He was kind of like my grandfather, I guess in a way. He always used humor. He always was sympathetic and caring toward his players. Gosh, you just don't find a lot of men like Coach Voss.

"And finally we have Jeremy Arnhart, our offensive coordinator and offseason training coach. I just have to thank Coach Arnhart for allowing me to come to the gym and having access to the weight room whenever I wanted. It was definitely one of my stronger points."

Blankenship also thanked members of the community such as Charlie Brower, Sone Pili and his Whaler teammates.

"I'd really like to give a shout out to my Barrow team," he said. "Those guys stood by me in 40-degree-below-zero weather and they'd always take a lick. I just really respect those guys."