Lawrence offered FB scholarship at Carroll College

SANDPOINT — It’s the kind of play a linebacker dreams about, the kind of play that makes college recruiters take notice, and a play that helped land Sandpoint’s Mat Lawrence a football scholarship to NAIA football power Carroll College.

The play was one of the clips on a highlight video that Bulldogs head coach Mike Mitchell had sent out to the schools interested in signing Lawrence, a 6-3, 230 pound linebacker/tight end/quarterback. It was third and inches against Lewiston, and Lawrence came from his linebacker slot, leaped over the pile and collisioned the running back in mid-air, knocking him backward and sparking the Bulldogs to a win.

“We sent a film up there and they called back the next day,” said Mitchell, noting the Carroll coaches loved that play in particular. “The minute they saw that they loved him as a linebacker. They loved the way he moved for a big kid and they’ll be looking at him as either a linebacker or tight end.”

Lawrence, a 3.5 student, is excited to play at a school with not just a winning history, but strong academics, as he hopes to study both business and biology at the school in Helena, Montana. There was also the allure of playing alongside former teammate Kurt Stoll, a running back for the Fighting Saints, which played a large part in Lawrence’s final decision.

“It’s definitely something I’ve dreamed of, what I’ve been working for,” said Lawrence of playing college football. “Injuries were keeping me from getting there.”

Lawrence is a classic case of a Division 1 caliber athlete falling through the cracks. A torn rotator cuff as a sophomore and a broken foot as a senior may have kept Lawrence from becoming a prime time Division 1 recruit. He’s completely healthy now, has been working out five days a week, and is even entertaining thoughts of playing quarterback once he gets to college, a position he excelled at before the shoulder injury.

Lawrence said the coaches will let him tryout for whichever position he wants, so he’s keeping his options open at this point. Washington State and Idaho both wanted him to walk on, but he opted to be part of an emerging pipeline of Inland Empire League players heading to the Frontier Conference.

“It’s a really good fit,” said Mitchell, lauding a Saints’ program that has won five of the last six NAIA national championships and even graced the cover of Sports Illustrated last year. “They’re very competitive. They’ll get him in the weight room and he’ll be pushed.”