2024 Trib HSSN Preseason Football All-Star Team: Upper St. Clair's Nate Stohl

As an all-conference lineman committed to an Ivy League school, Nate Stohl’s coaches could talk at length about the senior’s football skills.

Yet, Upper St. Clair coach Mike Junko’s favorite story about the 6-foot-3, 270-pounder comes from a school assembly a couple of years ago, where Stohl serenaded his classmates.

“At the spring pep assembly, kids are sort of into it, or maybe not,” Junko said. “At the end, the activities director said, ‘Hey, we’re going to sing the alma mater.’ … Nate was on student council, and he grabbed the microphone in front of the entire student body and sang with pride.”

Stohl can block and tackle. Can he sing?

“I’m a terrible singer,” Stohl said with a laugh.

That’s what made the moment all the more impressive to Junko. Stohl might have many talents, but singing isn’t one of them.

“He can’t sing to save his life,” Junko said. “That’s just what kind of kid he is. He’s a leader. For a sophomore to take that microphone and sing that song, I was so impressed with him to have the guts to go up there in front of the whole school.”

Junko said those leadership qualities carry over nicely to the locker room, the weight room and the football field. Stohl, a Princeton commit, will be a three-year starter this fall for Upper St. Clair.

A guard and defensive end in the tough Class 5A conference, Stohl earned first-team all-conference honors on both sides of the ball last season. Allegheny Six coaches also voted him to the first-team defense and second-team offense as a sophomore in 2022.

Junko said Stohl hardly leaves the field.

“I like to lead by example,” Stohl said, “and I like everybody to be on the same page. Everybody should be trying their best, and I try to push people to be the best versions of themselves. That’s just part of who I am.”

Upper St. Clair’s offense averaged nearly 300 yards from scrimmage last season, when the Panthers went 8-2. That included 183 yards per game on the ground, and running backs benefited from Stohl’s athleticism as a blocker.

He had a team-high four sacks on defense, but guard is the position he’ll play in college.

“He’s the kind of kid who’s so nice and friendly and has a great heart off the field,” Junko said. “But something happens when we cross that line because he plays violent. He plays with an edge, like a completely different person. And then the game’s over and he’s back to just Nate.

“Some kids can do that. He can.”

Stohl committed to Princeton in June, choosing the Tigers from a list of 18 Division I offers. He drew interest from more than half of the teams in the Ivy League, bolstered by a GPA that’s above 4.2.

Junko said he’s the seventh or eighth USC player to choose the Ivy League in his six seasons.

“When you think of Princeton, you’re really getting the best of both worlds,” Stohl said. “It’s a prestigious university with great football.”

Upper St. Clair returns four of its five offensive linemen but again will ask Stohl to be an anchor on both sides of the ball. If so, don’t be surprised to see his name on the all-conference list a couple more times.

“I think he has the respect of the other coaches in this conference,” Junko said. “Because they know what a pain in the butt he is.”

Tags: Upper St. Clair