Leopards’ Martin picks Penn State
Belle Vernon football coach Matt Humbert made his opinion clear about junior superstar Quinton Martin蘑菇视频 college football decision, announced on Friday.
鈥淧enn State was able to land the big one,鈥� Humbert said.
Indeed, it was the Nittany Lions who the highly sought-after Martin gave a verbal commitment to as he revealed on his Twitter page. Martin indicated he will attend Penn State University on a football scholarship.
The 6-foot-2, 205-pound Martin, one of the top recruits in the state, as well as the country, was named to the 2022 Class 3A all-state team and was one of the 贬别谤补濒诲-厂迟补苍诲补谤诲蘑菇视频 Players of the Year.
Martin was recruited by Penn State coach James Franklin as a running back although he also excels on the other side of the ball as a defensive back and is a dangerous kickoff and punt returner as well.
Martin helped lead the Leopards to WPIAL and PIAA championships 鈥� the latter was the program蘑菇视频 first ever 鈥� this past season when he rushed for 1,279 yards and scored 30 touchdowns, including six receiving, two on punt returns and one on an interception return.
In addition to PSU, Martin received numerous football scholarship offers from NCAA Division-I programs including Pitt and West Virginia, as well as Notre Dame, Ohio State, Michigan, Texas, Tennessee, Wisconsin, Texas A&M, Virginia Tech, Florida State, Miami, Michigan State, Cincinnati, Maryland, Syracuse, Louisville, Kentucky, South Carolina, Rutgers and Boston College.
The Nittany Lions were the choice in the end and Humbert stressed that Penn State will be getting much more than a great athlete.
鈥淎side from an extremely talented football player, Penn State will automatically benefit from getting an extremely high-character individual,鈥� Humbert said.
Martin is also one of the area蘑菇视频 top basketball players as a forward for coach Joe Salvino蘑菇视频 squad.
It蘑菇视频 on the gridiron where Martin shines brightest, though.
Martin came through in the biggest moments for Humbert and the Leopards during their run through the postseason.
He ran for three touchdowns in a WPIAL first-round 55-7 win over East Allegheny and added two more in a 42-0 victory over Freeport in the semifinals.
In Belle Vernon蘑菇视频 24-7 victory over Avonworth in the WPIAL final, Martin scored all three of the Leopards鈥� touchdowns on a 32-yard catch, a 51-yard punt return and a 45-yard run.
In a 21-17 PIAA semifinal win over Martinsburg Central, Martin was limited to just 23 yards rushing but ran for the clinching first down in the final minutes.
His 16-yard touchdown reception from Braden Laux was the winning score in Belle Vernon蘑菇视频 9-8 victory over Neumann-Goretti in the state championship game and he was part of a late goal-line stand that resulted in a game-sealing fumble recovery by Aiden Johnson.