Wisconsin High School Sports | Wisconsin Sports Network | WisSports.net

Wisconsin Sports Network and WisSports.net are happy to announce Columbus' Colton Brunell as the 2023 recipient of the Elroy "Crazylegs" Hirsch Award as the most outstanding senior running back in Wisconsin, part of the WSN Senior Football Awards.

Colton Brunell of Columbus is simply one of the best high school football players the state has ever seen. He recently broke the career rushing record in Wisconsin, as he finished his career with 7,416 yards, adding 106 rushing touchdowns.

In his senior season, Brunell carried the ball 309 times for 2,298 yards and 32 touchdowns, as he went over 2000 rushing yards for the third time.

Brunell is also a four-year starter at linebacker for the Cardinals, with 83 tackles and 11 tackles for loss this year and 303 tackles for his career.

"This young man is one the best running backs this state has produced," said head coach Andrew Selgrad. "He has great vision, a high football IQ, and is a tough runner. Any time he has the ball in his hands, he has a chance to score. And, on top of all of that, he is a two-way player. He rarely comes off the field."

Brunell is a two-time WFCA All-State choice as a running back and this year added First Team honors as an inside linebacker. He was named the WFCA Small School Offensive Player of the Year.

Finalists for the award were Brunell, Demetrius Bergmann of Pepin/Alma, Owen Carlson of Kewaunee, Jayden Gordon of Kenosha St. Joseph, Chase Matthias of Two Rivers, and Terrance Shelton of Franklin.

Past winners of the award include Appleton North's Steve Lichtfuss (2009), Kenosha Bradford's Melvin Gordon (2010), Waunakee's Leo Musso (2011), Big Foot's Mason Dixon (2012), Saint Mary's Springs' Ike Floyd (2013), Waunakee's Troy Laufenberg (2014), Kimberly's Blair Mulholland (2015), Darlington's Hunter Johnson (2016), Waukesha West's Peter MacCudden (2017), Iola-Scandinavia's Bryce Huettner (2018), Racine Lutheran's Tyler Tenner (2019), Muskego's Alex Current (2020), Durand-Arkansaw's Simon Bauer (2021), Mukwonago's Wynn Stang (2022).

The award is named after "Crazylegs" Hirsch, a legendary athlete from Wausau High School who later starred at both the University of Wisconsin and the University of Michigan. Hirsch spent 12 seasons in professional football, including nine seasons with the Los Angeles Rams who moved him to end. His 1951 season is one of the greatest receiving years in NFL history. He caught 66 passes for a record 1495 yards and 17 touchdowns. The yardage mark wasn’t broken for 19 years while his 17 touchdowns tied the record and wasn’t broken until 1984. He later served as the Wisconsin athletic director from 1969 to 1987, overseeing a revival of UW athletics. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1968. Hirsch passed away in 2004. 

The voting panel for the WSN Senior Football Awards consisted of:  Travis Wilson, WSN General Manager and Head Football Writer;  Norbert Durst, WSN Content Manager; Dennis Semrau, ESPN Madison; Bob Brainerd, Thursday Night Throwdown broadcaster; Jimmie Kaska, Civic Media; Dan Barwick, WSN Contributor; Colton Wilson, WSN Content Producer; Fan Vote

Travis Wilson serves as the WisSports.net General Manager, Football Editor, and contributing writer for other parts of the site. Wilson was selected as part of the Sports 40 Under 40 list by Coach & AD Magazine and the National High School Athletic Coaches Association for 2019. The Wisconsin Football Coaches Association (WFCA) named Travis the 2015 recipient of the Dave McClain Distinguished Service Award. He currently serves on the WFCA Executive Board and is a member of the Executive Board of the Wisconsin Basketball Coaches Association. A graduate of Richland Center High School and Mount Mercy College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Travis was a three-sport athlete in high school (football, baseball, basketball), inducted to the Richland Center High School Hall of Fame in 2023, and currently resides in Reedsburg. You can follow him on Twitter at @travisWSN.

For the latest and most up to date football news and recruiting information, follow Travis on Twitter @travisWSN. Email story ideas, recruiting info, etc. to Travis at travis(at)wissports.net.