There was no answer last week for Lanier County against Malton Hitson. The 2019 running back from Atkinson County was determined to get his team in the win column after an 0-4 start to the season, and was ready to carry the load for the night. Hitson crossed the endzone 5 times and his team was finally victorious with a 49-30 decision. He accounted for 35 of the 49 points, including a crazy pick six that left flags on the field and fans at the game amazed.
The play was so miraculous, and with out question was the top play from last weekend. That is not just our personal opinion though, he ran away with over 40% of the community vote. So what made the play so great?
Well first you got to see the speedy 2019 athlete catch the ball over his shoulder, cut it up field, fake out a handful of tacklers, somehow spin off two more players (that’s the 2nd time this year that has happened to win the top play), and then ran the rest of the way for a score.
So what about the penalty flags you mentioned earlier? Well, Hitson did so happen front flip into the endzone, but can you blame him? He just made the play of his life and sometimes youthful exuberance takes control. That sort of passion needs to be corralled, but the physical attributes and balance he showed on the field would be welcomed across many a college campus.
Earlier this week we caught up with Hitson to hear about how his season has been going thus far. “I’m having a pretty good season. I want to continue to be a leader and build our chemistry up. My teammates look up to me to make big plays and I do not let them down,” Hitson said.
Hitson has started off the season strong and is hopeful that he can continue to improve. “I’m going to continue on making myself a better player each week. I want a chance to make it to the league and play with the best players possible.”
Right now, Hitson has no concrete plans yet for college visits, but says that his coach and him are working out plans for future visits. Considering his quickness and toughness (watch 2017 film vs last year’s state runner-up Fellowship Christian) he shows running the ball, we think several local colleges will be interested in his talents.
At 5’8″ and 182 pounds Hitson is a compact body, but shows a nice athletic burst and a good quickness in-between the tackles. He was ripping off 10-15 yards all game against Lanier County, and they simply had no answer for the determined junior. Considering his frame, his weight lifting numbers suggest that he will only continue to add weight, and could potentially be closer to 200 lbs a year from now.
With Hitson over halfway thru his high school career now, we asked what his favorite part about playing on Friday night’s, to which he had a great ‘multi-part’ response.
“My favorite parts about playing on Friday night is that you get to show make you are made of. I just love to play the game – the passion, the excitement, the momentum, the chemistry, and the joy of the game. All of those reasons are why I love to play it.”
Interesting in recruiting Malton Hitson? Click HERE to visit his recruiting profile to view his measurements and film.
