Enjoyment nets success for Setzer: St. Pauls’ 4-sport star named Robeson County All-Around Male Athlete of the Year | Robesonian

ST. PAULS — The whole point of playing a game is to have fun.

As someone who plays more of them than just about any other high school athlete around, Theophilus Setzer does plenty of that.

“Being an all-around athlete, it’s just special that I’m able to compete in everything that I do,” the St. Pauls rising senior said. “I don’t play sports just to pass time, I enjoy playing sports. I feel like it helps me get through high school and have more fun in high school, just enjoying all the sports I play.”

After a junior year in which he not only played four sports but had a big impact in all of them, Setzer has been named as Robeson County All-Around Male Athlete of the Year by The Robesonian.

Setzer is most known for his football skills as the standout quarterback for the Bulldogs, but also starred in basketball, baseball and track; the latter as part of the 4×400 relay team that won the 2A state championship last month.

“Since I was young I’ve been trying to play every sport that’s possible for me to play,” he said. “I just enjoy playing other sports, and it just keeps my body active, ready to play, which football is my main sport, but just playing sports throughout the year keeps my body active and keeps me in shape, so I’ll always be ready at any time.”

“He never stops,” said Mike Setzer, his father and St. Pauls’ head football coach. “His brothers were also multiple-sport athletes, but he has excelled more than they have in other areas, and he continues to surprise me. Obviously being his dad, I’ve known that he’s a very talented young man, but I’ve been impressed how he continues to improve every year, every game, and I don’t think he’s close to his ceiling.”

Being that all-around individual continues beyond the athletic field and into the classroom, as Setzer was the school’s chief marshal as the top student in the junior class.

“He covers a lot, he checks a lot of the boxes,” St. Pauls boys basketball coach Corey Thompson said. “Good student, check. Good athlete, check. Good teammate, check. … He had his hands on a lot of the athletic programs at St. Pauls, he’s been involved, and he’s a leader on the court and also off the court.”

His football recruitment, Mike Setzer said, spans from Power Five programs to Ivy League schools.

“With him excelling in sports, sometimes it’s really very tough for him to continue to do that,” Mike Setzer said. “But the ability to turn it around, to continue to find ways to work hard in the classroom and continue to stay No. 1 in his class … I’ve seen him growing, his study habits have grown stronger over the last part of the year.”

Setzer has now completed nine varsity seasons, with three in track and two each in football, basketball and baseball; he is likely to finish 13 before graduation.

“It’s rough at times, you don’t want to get up early in the morning to work out, but you’ve got to look at … motivation to get stronger and better every day,” Theophilus Setzer said. “You’ve got to be committed; if you’re not committed it’s not going to work out for you.”

One thing that is universally true across all four sports Setzer plays is his leadership and how impactful that has been for each team.

“Sometimes as a leader you’ve got to be a servant, you’ve also got to know how to hand that baton off sometimes, not just talking about track but you’ve got go ahead and let some people get the lead sometimes, and you’ve got to problem solve,” Mike Setzer said. “I think that’s what makes him such a dangerous leader in football in being the quarterback, the field general, because him having to do those in different areas of sports allows him to play chess when other kids are playing checkers.”

Setzer was named Robeson County Offensive Player of the Year in football after throwing for 1,204 yards and 10 touchdowns and rushing for 442 yards and two touchdowns last fall. He had four games with 160 passing yards or more while also rushing for 74 yards or more in four games.

“One of the biggest things he was able to do was to keep us calm,” Mike Setzer said. “Last year we were going through a rebuilding season. … I think we were going through some tough situations last year, and he was able to keep us grounded and the fact that he was able to let the kids know this too is going to pass and it’s going to be alright, I was most impressed with that. I was most impressed with him as a leader; I felt like he kept the glue on the team.”

On the basketball court, Setzer averaged 6.1 points, 4.2 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.2 steals for the Bulldogs.

“He brought toughness, and he was that Mr. Reliable,” Thompson said. “And I mean by Mr. Reliable, as far as scoring-wise it would fluctuate, but he was going to bring that toughness and that will and that’s what we needed. He was a really great asset to our program this year.”

“Basketball is a fun sport for me, I love playing basketball,” Theophilus Setzer said. “From 10th-grade year to 11th-grade year I made a big jump in basketball, definitely playing my role well. If I didn’t play football, basketball would probably be the next sport.”

Come springtime, Setzer played baseball and ran track at the same time, putting to rest any remaining doubt about how hard he works.

“That is probably the hardest worker I’ve ever seen in my life,” St. Pauls baseball coach Bladen Strickland said. “For him to do track and baseball in the same season and to come out as a state champion, that’s amazing. And on top of that, spring football too. So the kid works; it’s really a testament to him and his family and how they’ve raised him, and he’s by far one of the better athletes I’ve ever seen in my life.”

On the diamond, his biggest impact came from his speed and defense.

“Towards the end of the season, he started swinging the bat really well for us,” Strickland said. “But when it comes to defense, he could run down a fly ball in center field, he could go 70, 80 feet on a line to catch a ball. As far as baserunning, everybody in the crowd knows he’s going to be on second, then on third, in two or three pitches. So he’s a game-changer.”

That speed was also pivotal in his track success. This was particularly true in the 4×400 relay, in which Setzer ran the second leg at the state championships, taking the baton from Quintell McNeill before handing it to Markeon Fletcher, who eventually made way for anchor Charles Johnson. The quartet finished in 3 minutes, 23.48 seconds to claim the title.

“Markeon, Charles and Quin, I’m always going to remember those guys, because that’s going to stay with me for the rest of my life,” Theophilus Setzer said. “Those guys were able to pull that off and that was a big moment.”

While many coaches and multi-sport athletes will say that each sport helps them get better at the others, Setzer’s track involvement in particular helps him stay conditioned and builds up his speed to help on the field and court.

“Track keeps me way in shape, because I run the 400 (meters), and the 400 is rough,” he said. “Running that and then going into summer ball when it’s hot, wearing shoulder pads and everything, I don’t really have to get conditioned because I’m already conditioned from track.”

The Robeson County All-Around Male Athlete of the Year is being awarded for a third year by The Robesonian, and Setzer continues a string of St. Pauls honorees in each year. KeMarion Baldwin, Setzer’s former teammate, won the award in each of the last two years.

“K.B. has always been a big role model since he was at St. Pauls; he always looked out for me, always wanted to work out, always wanted to help me get better,” Theophilus Setzer said. “So just knowing that I’m the next one right after him, that’s a big moment for me. His accomplishments in football compared to mine are way ahead of me right now, so knowing that I’m on track to be up there with him is a great accomplishment.”

As Setzer prepares for his senior year, he’ll also have the chance to repeat as the award’s recipient, just as Baldwin did.

“I think with that young man the sky is the limit,” Mike Setzer said. “I don’t think he’s scratched the ceiling. I’m excited to see. We’ve got some more mature athletes around him, and I think his senior season could be one for the ages. I think a lot of things go into that; if he puts God first, and can stay healthy, I think he can have one of the most memorable seasons that we’ve seen, if he continues to trust the process.”

It’s time for him to have even more fun.