Young Shelton
Sophomore thrust into starting QB role takes control for Sandburg
As a sophomore quarterback, Sandburg’s Anthony Shelton had expected to be the backup, learning how to play the position at the varsity level from senior starter Christian Evans.
But when Evans tore his ACL in the second game of the 2022 season, Shelton was suddenly thrust into the starter’s role for the Eagles. And he’s been there ever since.
Fortunately, he’s a fast learner. “It was a horrible situation for our team,” Shelton recalled. “I was kind of feeling like, ‘I have to be ready.’ I was warming up at halftime — I did my best. I went play by play.”
He still does. In Friday’s season opener against St. Rita, the 6-foot2, 185-pound Shelton threw a pair of touchdowns in a 42-21 loss. He completed 11 for 17 passes for 149 yards.
One of those scoring plays was an 83-yard pass to junior receiver Charlie Snorek. Later, Shelton found Snorek again, this time for an 8-yard TD. In all, Snorek caught six passes for 121 yards and also rushed for a TD.
The benefit of Shelton starting most of last season is that Sandburg coach Troy McAllister has been able to open the playbook as opposed to “packaging” the offense game by game.
That, and the fact Shelton has innate leadership capabilities, has made the transition from the lower levels easier for newcomers like sophomore running back Luke Basiorka, who ran for 112 yards on 24 carries in his varsity debut.
“In our group chats, he’s always getting us ready for games, getting us ready for practices,” Basiorka said. “Two weeks ago, he was telling us, ‘Get ready for this game.’ “He’s a great leader overall.” What’s even more unique about Shelton’s capabilities is he didn’t really take up the position until he was a freshman. He played mostly