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Isaac Schrantz is the newest offensive weapon for the James Wood Colonels in Frederick County, VA after shedding a whopping 60+ pounds and moving from the offensive line—where last year he won second team All-Conference 21 West honors—into the fullback position. Now in his senior year of high school, Schrantz will play out his last season in this station and he is already standing out as the leader of the James Wood Colonels’ offense, having rushed for 59 yards over 14 carries during his team’s last game against Heritage and 68 yards against Park View.Creatively thinking about the future of his football career inspired this noteworthy change in the 17-year-old athlete.
“I’ve always wanted to play college football,” says Schrantz, “But when I reached out to those coaches, they came back with feedback saying I was small.”
While 6 feet tall and 270 pounds is far from “small,” Schrantz’s height is less than the average for defensive linemen whose average height and weight has increased by 16 percent since 1974 (SB Nation, Feb. 16, 2013). To have a better shot at getting picked up by a college team, Schrantz’s coach, Mark McHale, suggested that he lose weight and aim for the fullback position. The teen took the advice and set off on a course of weight loss noting that he was inspired to undertake the challenge and stay the course largely because of the values instilled in him by his parents, Charlie and Angie.
“Growing up I had to work for everything I wanted. There was no slack given. Because of that, I feel like I can accomplish anything I want,” Schrantz remarked.
Losing the weight—and keeping it off—has been no easy task, but Schrantz is doing it the old fashioned way with a big change in diet and an intensive exercise regimen that includes running track, strength training, and up to three hours at a time in the gym in addition to his football practice. Food wise, he eats between 1,500 and 2,000 calories per day, mostly consisting of protein, in order to maintain his weight, and when he wants to lose?
“I cut back on calories even more and amp up my running,” he says.
In a world of quick fixes with pills, surgery, and fad diets, and where teens are constantly bombarded by advertisement for fast food, losing weight and keeping it off requires a lot of discipline, which is clearly in no short supply for Schrantz. While other kids his age are eating burgers and fries, he’s eating wraps and yogurt, and while they’re drinking sodas, he’s drinking protein shakes and water—lots of it. Schrantz estimates he guzzles up to two gallons of water per day which has played a big part in shedding the pounds and keeping them off.
Another thing that Schrantz has shed due to his changes in diet and exercise is time off of his 40-yard-dash. Since going from 270 to 210 pounds, he’s shaved more than half a second off of his run, impressing Coach McHale.
“He amazed me,” says McHale. “He really got down and really worked hard and worked on his speed. We’ve got to be able to run the ball and control the clock, and I think we’ve got the right guy there to help us do that.”
In addition to helping the team with his running skills, Schrantz’s size—which is on the larger side for a runner—and experience as an offensive lineman will also come in handy as a fullback.
“Coming from a lineman, I know where the cuts are because we blocked and set up the holes,” Schrantz comments. He has also seen how the weight loss is helping his stamina, noting that where he was once winded after five or six plays, now “I’m running all over the field…and I’m not winded. Everything just feels like lightning speed and I can use that against slower offensive linemen.”
Schrantz is looking forward to using his new found speed and agility to help usher the Colonels to victory and to make a name for himself which he hopes to further expose to potential colleges with the aid of his recently launched website, created at his mom’s prompting. And of the extra attention his change in appearance and position is attracting in the hallways of James Wood? Schrantz says simply:
“It feels good. It feels really good knowing your hard work pays off and knowing people are looking and paying attention.”
Contact Info:
Name: Angie Schrantz
Email: Send Email
Organization: Isaac Schrantz
Phone: 540-327-9692
Website: http://www.isaacschrantz.com
Source URL: http://councilofeliteadvisors.com/liftmedia
Release ID: 136198
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