Stratford linemen sign college letters
SPORTS
Both will play for Divison 1 football teams
Stratford seniors Ben Barten and Easton Kilty finally put the pen to the paper in signing their official National Letters of Intent to play Division 1 college football next fall, during a ceremony last Wednesday at the high school.
Ben stands at six-feet, six inches tall and 275-pounds. He gave a verbal commitment to the University of Wisconsin- Madison football program on Oct. 28, 2018, to play offensive line for the Badgers. He is the son of Todd and Denise Barten.
Rivals.com has Barten rated as a three-star football player. Barten won the Tim Krumrie Award this season as Wisconsin’s top senior defensive lineman. He was an all-state football selection on both offense and defense this year, along with being named the Wisconsin Small School Defensive Player of the Year.
Barten also received football scholarship offers from Big Ten college Iowa and South Dakota State, but his heart was always to play for the Badgers.
“Signing with the Badgers has always been a dream of mine,” he said. “I am very excited to be a part of the Madison family and I can’t wait to get down there. While growing up, I always admired watching the Badgers football teams play.”
Barten and Kilty both helped Stratford’s football team achieve 12 shutout wins this season. These two linemen also helped the Tigers win two straight WIAA Division 5 state championship runners-up trophies.
Easton stands at six-feet, five inches tall and 270 pounds. He gave a verbal commitment to North Dakota on June 21 to play offensive tackle for the Fighting Hawks. He is the son of Pat and Keresa Kilty. Easton chose to play football for Division 1-FCS North Dakota after also receiving football scholarship offers from Division 2 schools Bemidji State, Minnesota State, Minnesota-Duluth and Southwest Minnesota State.
He is excited for the opportunity to continue playing football in college after he graduates from high school this spring.
“It feels good to finally make my decision on where to play college football official and to be able to know that I made the right choice,” Easton said. “I liked the North Dakota coaches and how they care about you not just as an athlete but as an individual. I like the college campus and my future teammates I met there.”
Ben and Easton’s college football signing ceremony was a great day for Stratford football head coach Jason Tubbs and Tigers offensive line coach Kellen Kafka. The coaches witnessed the culmination of their football skills instruction to Ben and Easton pay off over the past four years, with them receiving Division 1 college football scholarships.
“It’s a dream come true as a coach to have Division I college athletes in my football program,” Tubbs said. “Both Ben and Easton are extremely hardworking athletes that come from great families who have guided them in their pursuit of playing college football.”
