Andrew Stelter, a 2014 defensive end from Owatonna (MN) High, received a scholarship offer from Minnesota last year and was the lone non-senior named to the 2012 Associated Press All-State team.
Andrew Stelter, a 2014 defensive end from Owatonna (MN) High School, received a scholarship offer from Minnesota last year and was the lone non-senior named to the 2012 Associated Press All-State team.
Stelter led the Huskies to a 12-1 mark, losing in the 5A Prep Bowl title game to Totino-Grace 49-21. GopherHole.com caught up with Stelter Monday evening to learn the latest on his college recruitment.
Gopher Hole: Have you had a chance to go to any football camps this summer?
Gopher Hole: Have you had a chance to go to any football camps this summer?
Andrew Stelter: I haven’t yet. I am actually heading out to Stanford on Wednesday for a football camp there Thursday.
Gopher Hole: What are your plans after that camp? Are you going to anything else?
Andrew Stelter: Those are the plans that I have right now for camps. I think that I am just going to try to get up to a Minnesota one and not compete in it, but just kind of hang out in it. Hang out with the coaches and the staff and talk to them about stuff and watch them coach again. Something along those lines.
Gopher Hole: How many offers are you to right now?
Andrew Stelter: I’ve got eight right now.
Gopher Hole: Do you remember who they are?
Andrew Stelter: Minnesota, Iowa State, Duke, Northern Illinois, Army, Yale, Harvard and Princeton.
Gopher Hole: Have you had a lot of schools call you about getting up to camps?
Andrew Stelter: Yes. I have had Michigan State. They wanted me to come to camp Sunday, but I was in South Dakota for a wedding, so I couldn’t make it to that one. Iowa wanted me to come to their’s, but I couldn’t make it there. We had an invite to LSU’s, but that is kind of far and we are already going to Stanford. I got invited to a Michigan one. Those are probably the biggest ones.
Gopher Hole: Have you even thought about when you are going to try to decide on a school? Have you even thought that far yet or is that still far away?
Andrew Stelter: I think this fall sometime.
Gopher Hole: Like before the season starts?
Andrew Stelter: Either before or after official visits.
Gopher Hole: Do you know what schools you definitely want to visit?
Andrew Stelter: I want to go Minnesota. I would want to go to Stanford, if they offer this week. Iowa State, Duke and then probably Northern Illinois.
Gopher Hole: I don’t know how closely you follow it, but Minnesota gotten two big commitments the last couple of days from Gaelin Elmore from Somerset and Connor Mayes, whose brother is going to be a freshman this upcoming season at Minnesota. When you hear news like that, does that get you more excited about that school or does that even have much of an impact?
Andrew Stelter: It has a pretty big impact. Those guys are all great players. I talked to Gaelin quite a bit at the spring game in the recruiting room for about 30 or 45 minutes. I haven’t talked to Connor, but I met his brother. I was up at one of the bowl practices and he and his brother were up there for his (Alex’s) official visit, so I met him and his dad. I think that it helps because getting those big recruits just makes the decision easier.
Gopher Hole: Minnesota, to be honest, seems like they have always been your favorite school. Is that fair to say?
Andrew Stelter: Yes.
Gopher Hole: Obviously, Stanford has a lot to offer with great academics and a great college atmosphere. What would that offer, if they do offer this week, mean?
Andrew Stelter: It would mean a lot. They just have got a really good combination of football and academics, like you said. If they did, it would probably come down to them and Minnesota would probably be the top two.
Gopher Hole: What things have you been really working on this summer to continue to improve yourself as a football player?
Andrew Stelter: I have just been working on getting faster and quicker. My strength is already pretty good. I’m not bragging or anything, but I can move some weight around and stuff. I am just working on my foot speed and just getting better technique-wise.
Gopher Hole: I know that you were up to Minnesota for the spring game. Have you been up there since?
Andrew Stelter: I haven’t. I am going to try to get up there sometime next week.
Gopher Hole: Have you been able to do much with your high school team with school being out?
Andrew Stelter: We started workouts last Monday and I missed the Friday one because I was gone to South Dakota. We have our offensive camp this week, so I’ll have that and I think that is three days and we will have our defensive camp in the middle of July. We will also be doing 7-on-7 stuff, our O-line camp and just a lot of things like that to get together. The team is taking a trip out to Notre Dame. We did that last year, too and they had an O-Line, D-Line Challenge at the same time as the 7-on-7 tournament, so I tagged along for that and did that. I would do that again this year, but I’ll be in Stanford during it.
Gopher Hole: How did the track season go?
Andrew Stelter: Good. I ended up seventh in shot at the state meet. I fell short of what I was throwing the whole week before. I would have won by two feet, but I actually had a really good day that day. It is still not bad.
Gopher Hole: I know that you made some big strides in your improvement in throwing from last year to this year. Are you proud of how much you improved from your sophomore year to your junior year?
Andrew Stelter: Yes, I guess so. I just haven’t hit one of the big throws that I have in practice. I just haven’t reached my potential yet. I just still have a lot of things to fix with technique-wise. It will be exciting if I can do that next year.
Gopher Hole: Are many of the guys who finished ahead of you senior this season?
Andrew Stelter: Yes. There were a lot of seniors. There were a couple of juniors, but they all had good throwing days that day. I just had a crappy one.
Gopher Hole: That has to give you hope for next year that if continue to improve that you have a chance to do really well at next year’s meet.
Andrew Stelter: Yes. I was throwing like 58 and 59 feet the whole week before in the shot. My plan for next year is to be a double state champ in shot and disc.
Gopher Hole: How did you do in the discus this year?
Andrew Stelter: This year, my best throw was 153, but I was throwing 170 in practice. 160 won the state meet. It was really a down year. It was a down year for throwing in general because the weather did not help at all and you couldn’t get outside until halfway through the season. It was tough year for track in general.
Gopher Hole: Did you make to state for the discus or just for the shot?
Andrew Stelter: We went to sections and I scratched my first three prelims, so I didn’t even make it to the finals.