SABINE, Texas — Last Friday, Sabine Cardinals quarterback Colt Sparks ran for more than 315 yards and collected five touchdowns against Spring Hill.
"Just really thankful for my teammates honestly. With all the accolades, all the awards, it's not Colt Sparks getting the award, it's the Sabine Cardinals. Sabine Cardinals program getting that award. Every time I get the ball I'm thinking I want to score the ball, and so that's kind of how it worked last week," Sparks said.
It was an explosive performance on the field, but head coach Cody Gilbert said his QB is just as valuable off of it.
"I think he gives our team a ton of confidence. When you have a guy that's able to make plays in the way that he does, I think that really rallies the troops around him. He's an outstanding young man. He does great in the classroom; he does great in meetings and preparation. He's everything that you would want in a high school leader, and Texas Tech got a steal," said Gilbert.
Talking about making plays and being versatile, Sparks is the QB-one for the Cardinals, but he's committed to play tight end at Texas Tech. Seems pretty difficult but Sparks says they're not too different.
"When you're playing tight end, you find open zones, that's where you run to. You're the guy that gets the first downs, they're trying to find the ball, so you got to get to open zones. So when I'm playing quarterback it's almost the same thing. I'm trying to find the open receiver, trying to find that open zone," Sparks said.
Sparks is a hard worker, a multi-sport athlete, and Coach Gilbert said he's just scratching the surface of how good he can be.
"But I think one of the things we're most proud of as a coaching staff is how he's grown between the ears. He just carries himself with a ton of confidence. He prepares daily to be successful. I think those are things you learn as you get older and as you get more mature," Gilbert said. "And I don't think we're close to seeing what his ceiling is yet. I think he's gonna be able to make some very special plays this year."
Whatever the challenge -- bring it on because Colt Sparks is ready.
"I've told the coaches all year long I feel unstoppable," Sparks said.