4A Football Tour: Brett Brenton’s emergence mirrored Natrona's

By season’s end, Brenton was Natrona’s starter and had gained 1,588 yards and scored 17 touchdowns on 285 carries. His touchdowns and yards ranked third and fourth, respectively, in Class 4A.

“We had a lot of inexperienced guys playing all over the field last season,” Brenton said. “The offensive line was especially young, and they didn’t know what to expect from the varsity level.

“But the better they got and the more experience they got, the better I played and the more yards I gained.”

Longtime Mustangs coach Steve Harshman agrees Brenton’s growth mirrored his offensive line’s, but says Brenton also deserves a lot of credit for helping Natrona go 6-6 and finish as 4A runner-up.

“He carried a lot of the load, especially early,” Harshman said. “Once we got going, we were able to spread the ball around a little bit, but (Brenton) carried a lot of the load.”

Brenton finished third in 4A in all-purpose yards with 2,489. His rushing yards obscure the fact he had more catches (31) than any other Natrona player and had the second-most receiving yards (323).

Brenton did all of that despite lacking the biggest attribute many associate with standout running backs.

“I’m not a breakaway runner. I don’t have that kind of speed,” Brenton said. “I just try to find holes, bust through them and make moves on guys in the open field. If I have to truck a guy, I’ll try.”

Brenton is able to find holes better than most, Natrona quarterback Jesse Harshman said.

“He has great vision, and that’s un-coachable,” said Jesse Harshman, who is Steve’s son. “He is pretty quick, too. There are guys who are faster over long distances than he is, but he’s still pretty fast.

“But vision is his best attribute. That and his ability to make multiple guys miss. Those two things are pretty special about him.”

Football isn’t Brenton’s best sport. That distinction belongs to wrestling, where he won the 138-pound state title as a sophomore and the 152-pound crown as a junior. Brenton spins the scale at 175 pounds, Steve Harshman said.

Brenton’s wrestling background helps him on the gridiron.

“He has tremendous balance,” Steve Harshman said. “He’s hard to hit and hard to bring down.

“He is right when he tells you he may not beat you in the 100-yard dash, but he is quick going forward and going side-to-side, and he is great about making people miss.”