By Drew Terhall

Dailyadvocate.com

NEW MADISON — Tri-Village senior Braden Keating will continue his academic and athletic career at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology. Keating will join the football program as a quarterback.

Keating said when it came down to making a decision, he wanted to go to the best place for engineering. After talking with the coaches at Rose-Hulman, he thought it was the best fit for him.

“Rose-Hulman is a really good engineering school and that’s what I want to pursue. It’s the best you can do. I loved their coaches and they have a great team there. A great program,” Keating said.

Keating was named to the Southwest All-District First Team Offense in Division VI his senior year and was All-WOAC First Team. He was the Southwest All-District Offensive Player of the Year his junior year in Division VI. Keating was also named to the All-Ohio teams his junior and senior year.

Keating was also a key contributor to the basketball program as well. Tri-Village boys basketball head coach and superintendent Josh Sagester said Keating is a great kid on the field, on the court and in the classroom.

He will be a tough person to replace in the athletic programs.

“He’s been a pillar in our athletic programs in multiple sports. Really proud of the work he has put in. For me on the basketball court and for us on the football field, the things he was able to do and accomplish and ultimately win he was a significant contributor to both programs recent success,” Sagester said.

Tri-Village assistant coach and defensive coordinator Brett Slone said Keating is a student of the game and is a tough, gritty player.

Slone also described Keating as a composed player. He goes back to how Keating got his first start filling in for an injured Layne Sarver to start the season. From that point on, Tri-Village had three straight 10+ win seasons.

“As a player, the first thing I think about is his sophomore year first game of the year Layne Sarver, all-state quarterback, goes down with a broken collarbone. He has to go into a huddle with a bunch of juniors and seniors. He walked in with so much confidence and tells all the guys, ‘We got this. We’re good,’.” Slone said. “He leads us to the first of three straight 13-2 records. We’ve won a league title and I don’t know how many records he has a quarterback.”

Keating said he wanted to pursue football at the next level because you can’t beat the teamwork and brotherhood that comes with the sport.

He has always put his teammates first during his time at Tri-Village. Slone said Keating is the type of guy you want to be in the foxhole with.

“Real smart guy. Always puts his teammates first. Always wants to do whatever he can to help his teammates. Has good character and comes from a good family,” Slone said.

Keating is going into his first year ready to learn. He expects to learn a lot and improve his first year on campus.

“(I expect) to learn a lot and to get a lot of practice in. Do my best to help everyone else out. Just learn as much as I can and get as good as I can in that first year,” Keating said.

Sagester and Slone said they are happy to see Keating go on and continue his academic and athletic career. Both believe Keating has a bright future ahead of him.

While at Rose-Hulman, Keating plans to study mechanical engineering.

Contact Daily Advocate sports editor Drew Terhall at [email protected].