Sumner’s Wilson looks forward to eventful summer after exploding onto the scene

The Ben Wilson summer tour is in full swing as many college programs are discovering one of Sumner High football’s no-longer-hidden gems.

It started with a simple visit, one where Wilson always dreamed of taking. It was April 9, and Wilson was up in Seattle visiting the University of Washington and the football staff.

“It was a good visit (and) it would be a dream to go there and play for them,” Wilson said.

Wilson’s life since that day has been a whirlwind as the soon-to-be junior has picked up offers from Idaho, Montana State, and recently, Hawaii. He also helped the Sumner baseball team to a fourth-place finish at state.

It’s been a busy few months, to say the least.

“It was fun playing in both football and baseball state playoffs,” Wilson said.

Coming into his sophomore season, Wilson was already a spectacle of sorts. A hitter and gunner on kickoffs, Wilson put a display the year before as a freshman, so there was a certain level of expectations when he put on his varsity gear last fall.

“I had a lot of expectations of myself. I wanted to make my way on the starting defense, and I was fortunate enough to be selected from game one,” Wilson said.

Just cracking a Keith Ross-coached team as a sophomore is hard. Skill position players or gigantic linemen have a better shot at making the squad than a player listed as a linebacker. But Wilson was a hitter on special teams, so there was hope that could translate early enough to support Sumner’s vaunted “Black Flag” defense.

All Wilson did was blow those expectations away.

Starting all 11 games last season, Wilson led the team with 181 total tackles (118 solo and 63 assisted), averaging 16.5 tackles per game. He also had 12 tackles for a loss.

“To have a sophomore burst on the scene like that, I’ve never had anything like that in my 18 years of coaching Sumner,” Ross said. “To go from freshman football to the most dominating defensive player in the league (is incredible).”

He was the best player on the team on one of the state’s best defenses, compiling arguably the best numbers on defense in Class 3A.

So it’s no wonder that Wilson’s stock is on the rise this summer. He’s found the attention of several Division I colleges, including those in the Pac-12.

“It would be nice being able to go (to Hawaii), knowing you can go to the beach right after practice and school,” Wilson joked about the possibility of playing for Rainbow Warriors. “I’m still looking at my options, but mainly I’m just focused on making the Black Flag defense the best defense in the state.”

No matter the classification, Wilson added.

As Wilson and the Sumner program use the next few months to prepare for the move up into the new-look and challenging 4A South Puget Sound League, it will be the second consecutive summer where hype follows Spartan camps.

Last summer it was Connor Wedington, who brought eyes to Spartan practices as Sumner’s playmaker was seeking to find his college by the end of his junior season. Wedington committed to Washington and plans to attend the school at the start of 2017.

Now it’s Wilson’s turn in the spotlight.

“I think I benefited a little early on because of (Wedington),” Wilson said. “He’s been one of my biggest supports out there.”

This story was originally published June 22, 2016 at 12:12 PM with the headline "Sumner’s Wilson looks forward to eventful summer after exploding onto the scene."