KELTON STIPE-ADA

An early season knee injury may have slowed Ada senior linebacker Kelton Stipe physically, but he sees it as a growing opportunity. “I’m just grateful that it’s not an ACL tear which would put me out for the rest of the season and so I’ll just miss a game or two now and honestly, having to sit out for a while will help me grow as a person.” A three-year starter, coach Wade Boyles says Stipe’s absence will be noticed. “Kelton has a real nose for the ball and has a knack of being able to shed blockers and get to the ball carrier maybe better than anyone I’ve ever coached. He brings a lot of energy and emotion to the team and that energy is contagious.” Kelton’s dad got him involved in 7-on-7 and he’s been at it ever since. “I like football because it’s physical and I like to hit people, and I really like myself when I’m out there.” At 5-8, 185 pounds, Stipe is probably a little undersized for a middle linebacker, but Kelton gladly accepts the challenge. “It’s a mental thing really. You can’t look at anybody as being better than you. We all bleed the same and that’s the mentality I take to the field. One of my role models is Ivan Pace Jr. of the Minnesota Vikings. He’s also an undersized guy but he’s a dog and that mentality reminds me of myself,” said Kelton who also runs the 100- and 200-meter dashes for the Cougar track team. While Stipe averaged nearly nine tackles a game last year, he says that stats are not really all that important to him and his main individual goal this year as a senior is to make All-State while being a strong senior leader for his team. “I’m a pretty vocal guy and I think a good leader has to be the kind of player that others want to follow and I think you have to show a lot of grit to be that player.” A highlight of his career came for Kelton in his sophomore year. “We beat Clinton in the state quarterfinals, and our defense was really riled up and I had a bunch of tackles and a couple of tackles for loss.” Kelton desires to play college ball after this year and would like to be thought of as someone that was a good leader and good example to look up to.