Eric SorensonMany have been hit hard by the news that schools will not return to campus for the remainder of the academic year. It’s a tough and transformative time for all, but especially for the senior class, the class of 2020. Sports360AZ wants to hear from those seniors on how they’re adjusting, what they’re feeling and how this experience can make them stronger moving forward in a segment we call “2020 Vision.”
Tziah Quint has always taken the road less traveled.
The South Mountain two-way standout lineman and all-region wrestler has gone from the lowest of lows to the highest of highs. Soon, he’ll be off to Montana to continue his academic and football career at Rocky Mountain College, an NAIA program who frequently recruits Arizona.
Quint’s story is one of perseverance, both on and off the field. It started somewhat unceremoniously at Mountain Pointe High and ended with a region championship last fall at South.
“I went out my sophomore year – didn’t get much playing time, I was a bench warmer,” Quint explained in a recent Skype interview with Sports360AZ.com. “I chose to move to South [Mountain], which was the place I originally wanted to go to. When I got here the [Carter] twins treated me just like family. When you’re out there with people who love you on the field…we make each other better…you have to get comfortable with being uncomfortable.”
Former South co-head coaches Mark and Marcus Carter turned The Mountain from an annual bottom feeder to kings of the area in 2019 behind a small, but driven senior class – like Quint and a handful of others who helped the Jaguars back on the high school football map.
With Quint’s on the field success, paired with strong grades, came opportunity at the next level.
When it was all said and done, Rocky Mountain simply stood above the rest.
“I had other offers to choose from but they were the best fit,” he said of the school who first showed interest in him as a junior. “They have a great place out there – Billings. It’s a nice city and I connected with a lot of the coaches. Plus, there are a lot of kids up there from Arizona, so I won’t feel left out.”
