MHSAA picks Dundee's Layton for prestigious multi-sport award

DUNDEE — Dundee athletic director Ross Crow kept a pretty good secret in late June.

When Dundee senior Ethan Layton picked up a prestigious statewide honor from the Michigan High School Coaches Association, Crow held on to the breaking news until the Dundee scholar athlete awards banquet just before graduation.

“I had no idea about it,” Layton said. “They started talking about it and I kept thinking, ‘Wow, who is getting this award?’ They said my name and I was completely shocked. It was a huge honor. I had no idea.”

Layton was the Class B recipient of the Rich Tompkins Multi-Sport Athlete Award, who recognizes student athletes from around the state who have excelled in varsity of athletic, academic, school and community endeavors. Academics, leadership and community involvement are factored into a scoring system to choose the winners.

The son of Rod and Kelly Layton played varsity basketball and baseball for four seasons, JV football for two and varsity football for two.

Last fall, Layton showed his versatility on the football field, being among the county leaders in rushing (326 yards), receiving (228 yards) and passing (513 yards). He scored seven touchdowns and passed for seven touchdowns.

In basketball, he made 47 three-pointers, averaging 11.7 points a game and finished fourth in the Region by averaging 3.5 assists per game. Dundee won back-to-back district titles his junior and senior seasons.

This past spring he appeared in 34 baseball games for the Vikings and was 3-1 as a pitcher.

Layton almost didn’t get to play football — his favorite sport — as a freshman due to COVID. When the season was pushed back, he thought about running cross country instead.

“Thinking back to my freshman year, I was close to just running cross country because they didn’t know if they were going to have football,” he said. “It seems like three or four days ago now, but it’s been four years and it’s off to college.”

Balancing sports, academics and family life became part of his life at a young age.

“There’s nothing like high school sports,” he said. “At times it seems like a lot, but I just wanted to enjoy it.

“It becomes a habit — school, practice, go home, family time and repeat. You have to enjoy every minute. I’m a senior now and it’s gone. I know I’m going to miss every sport. I loved every second of it. I wouldn’t change anything about it.”

His parents and brother Jarrod, he said, have always been big influences on him.

“My family, my mom and dad have always been there, guiding me along the way and pushing me to do my best and not give up when times get tough,” he said. “My brother has always been a role model. He told me to just keep going.”

He plans to play football at Adrian College while majoring in secondary education. He’d like to be a teacher.

“I want to be a teacher,” he said. “The dream is to be a professional or college football coach.”

This article originally appeared on The Monroe News: MHSAA picks Dundee's Layton for prestigious multi-sport award