FZN Senior Izaiah Hartrup recently signed a “Letter of Intent” to play football at Southern Illinois University located in Carbondale, Illinois. Hartrup completed an outstanding season that saw him emerge as one of the St. Louis area’s most complete players. He was one of the keys to a successful 2019 season for the Panther football program. A season that saw the Panthers go 12 – 1 while capturing a sixth straight district title. The Panthers reached the state semi-final round for just the 4th time in program history. Hartrup stood out for the Panthers in all aspects of the game: offensive, defense and special teams. On the offensive side of the ball, Hartrup rushed for 673 yards and 12 touchdowns while also racking up 557 receiving yards to go along with 6 receiving touchdowns. He was the top Panther receiver last fall. Serving as the team’s primary return specialist, Hartrup tacked on an additional 524 multi-purpose yards while returning both punts and kicks for the Panthers. He scored on both a punt-return and kick-off return during the season. On the defensive side of the ball, Hartrup was an outstanding cover-corner who tallied 33 tackles while nabbing 4 interceptions. He returned 2 interceptions for touchdowns, making his number for total touchdowns on the season 23! Hartrup received numerous post-season honors for his play last fall. He was selected to the GAC Central “All-Conference” teams for both offense and defense. In addition, he was recognized state-wide by being placed on Missouri’s Class 5 “All-State” team as an offensive weapon. In addition to being a member of the FZN football team, Hartrup is also an accomplished track athlete for North High competing in both the sprints and jumps for the Panthers.
Southern Illinois (SIU-C) is a NCAA FCS (formerly 1AA) institution that competes in the Missouri Valley Football Conference. Last fall the Salukis narrowly missed the FCS playoff after finishing the season with a 7 – 5 record. At SIU-C, Hartrup is expected to narrow his focus to the offensive side of the ball.