NEW BETHLEHEM, Pa. (EYT/D9) — Mason Clouse said last week he was leaning hard toward one particular school to play one particular sport in college.
Less than a week later, the three-sport star at Redbank Valley made that all-important choice official.
Mason Clouse will play football at Grove City College.
(Pictured above, Mason Clouse, white shirt, poses with his twin brother, Owen, mother, Shannon, and father, Alan, with a lot of hardware won at Redbank Valley after making his choice to play football at Grove City College/photo courtesy of Redbank Valley High School football)
Clouse actually decided on Thursday, but with the Bulldogs’ basketball team set to play in the District 9 Class 2A championship game two days later, he wanted to wait to make the announcement.
He didn’t want to draw any attention away from the basketball team.
The decision wasn’t easy for Clouse. And that was a good thing. He had options — lots of options.
But Grove City College called out to him. It had the academic standing he craved and also a football program that is very much on the rise, not just on the local stage, but the national one.
Redbank Valley, Keystone, and Union/A-C Valley sports coverage on Explore and D9Sports.com is brought to you by Heeter Lumber.
“It’s the rest of your life, so it’s pretty stressful,” Clouse said last week. “It’s a big decision.”
When pressed about it, he smiled and said, “I’m leaning.”
Toward?
“Grove City to play football,” he continued. “I didn’t even want to play football. Mostly baseball. But then football just kind of came out in the middle of nowhere. I had coaches contacting me. It picked up mostly at the end of the season and in the playoffs. It was pretty cool. We’re a small school here. We don’t get much attention. But it’s pretty neat to get all of those coaches to come and talk to me.”
The Wolverines were the choice.
Not too long ago, Grove City was mired in a 30-game losing streak. But, as coach Andrew DiDonato always said, the program was rebuilt “brick by brick.”
Last season, the Wolverines won the Presidents’ Athletic Conference championship and also won an NCAA Division III playoff game for the first time in the 100-plus years of football there.
Clouse is no stranger to championships. He’s won three District 9 titles as a member of the Redbank Valley football team. He also won a baseball championship last spring and scored 27 points to help the Bulldogs win the district crown in basketball on Saturday.
Clouse has also shown the willingness to do anything to help his teams get wins.
With a rash of injuries at quarterback this fall, Clouse — who was a record-setting wide receiver for Redbank — started the D9 semifinal against Coudersport at quarterback.
Yes, quarterback.
The Bulldogs rolled, 46-13.
Clouse threw for 88 yards in that victory.
“I can’t say enough about Mason,” Redbank Valley football coach Blane Gold said about Clouse’s sacrifice after that win. “He’s trying to become the first player in the history of our program to go over 1,000 yards receiving (he eventually did, joining teammate Ashton Kahle), and to do what he did, essentially taking one for the team, shows he knows what the bigger picture is. He just wants to win.”
Clouse shined wherever he was lined up.
As a receiver, he ended up with 63 receptions of 1,149 yards and a single-season school record 18 TD grabs.
As a safety, he piled up 85 tackles and seven interceptions. He also had four passes defended, two fumble recoveries and one forced fumble.”
This season on the basketball court, he’s averaging 11.3 points, 5.6 rebounds and 2.1 steals per game.
Last spring, Clouse batted .353.
Next year, though, he’ll be a football player while studying mechanical engineering at Grove City College.
Hoping to continue his run of success.
He’ll see some familiar faces.
Former Redbank Valley players Kobe Bonanno, Dalton Bish and Trenten Rupp will also suit up in the fall for the Wolverines.
“I’m really excited, one, because I get to play with my former teammates again,” Clouse said. “Two, I love the game. Three, I’m grateful that I get to play for another four years.
“It’s a relief to finally make the decision that give me the best of both worlds — football and a great academic program,” he added. “I can’t wait to put the pads on again and play.”
Redbank Valley, Keystone, and Union/A-C Valley sports coverage on Explore and D9Sports.com is brought to you by Heeter Lumber.
