BFS 1981 High School Athlete of the Year

BFS High School Athlete of the Year Scott has paced his team to a 11/ ranking sofar this season up to press time.

Scott. a wishbone QB. ran for /369 yards as a sophomore We had many coaches tell us about outstanding athletes in their areas. It was a touch decision. We are proud to announce that Scott Runyan is our pick for the BFS High School Athlete of the Year. Scott is from Artesia High School in Artesia, New Mexico. His coach. Mike Phipps. did not want to start a sophomore at QB and he didn't the first game last season. Artesia lost 6-0 against Hobbs. However. a sophomore by the name of Scott Runyan did well enough in that game to start the next game. The rest is history. Scott led his team to 13 straight victorics and the State 3A Championship.

He ran the wishbone offense to perfection as he rushed for 1369 yards and a 6.6 yard per carry average and managed to throw for 380 more yards and 6 touchdowns. He scored 19 touchdowns and 23 extra points which was a new record for scoring by a sophomore in New Mexico. He was the leading AAA scorer in the state. The following honors came as a result of those records: 1st team All District QB. Back of the Year in District 4 AAA. Player of the Week 2 times for Southern New Mexico and West T~xas. First Team All-State QB in Class AAA. First Team All-State punter in Class AAA. Coaches. how would you like to have a player like Scott back for two more years?

Scott was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota on December 13. 1963. He moved with his family to Lander. Wyoming when he was in the sixth grade. He played football. basketball. baseball (in the summer) and ran track when he was in Junior High in Lander. When he was in the seventh grade, his father started him on his first weight lifting program. In August of 1979, he moved with his family to Artesia, where he played football and basketball in the ninth grade program at Park Scott has continued his rushing average this season at /00 yards per game, Junior High. In the spring of 1980 he started the off-season progra m for high school football and has been on a power-lifting program ever since.

His progress is charted below:

Scott is 17 years old now and is 5'9" tall. He hopes colleges will overlook his lack of height and give him a chance. He'd like to play major college ball close to home. Besides being great on the ficld, Scott is great in the classroom with 3.96 GPA. He is also a baseball pitcher and his fastball was clocked last spring at 92 MPH. Coach Phipps. who has one of the top high school programs in the country. states that. "Scott is a very dedicated hard-working athlete. He even has his own olympic set and power rack at home." Coach Phipps lets Scott check off at the line of scrimmage and call a few of the plays. When I asked Scott what he did besides lifting to train he responded, '" run a lot.

ride my bike and run ropes for agility. I keep regular hours and never eat junk foods. I also take protein and vitamin supplements." With all his awards and honors coming at such an early age, I wondered how Scott handles all this attention. I can tell you: like a real winner. he is confident yet humble and very respectful to his elders. He fits every criteria one could have for the BFS Athlete of the Year. Congratulations Artesia High School. Coach Mike Phipps and Scott Runyan'

From BFS Magazine — November/December 1981. Part of the BFS Magazine Archive (1980–2014).