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36 DAYS TO 2017 KICKOFF: Mason Barta

In which BracketCat counts down the 36th day until the 2017 kickoff with a profile of fullback Mason Barta.

By BracketCat Updated
#37 Braden Wilson
Like Braden Wilson (37), Mason Barta is a Kansas-bred fullback with a nasty streak. Another connection between them is that Wilson played for Mason’s grandfather, Roger, at Smith Center.
Photo by Matthew Holst/Getty Images

#36 Mason Barta

True Freshman | 6-1 | 222 lbs. | Holton, Kansas
Mason Barta
Mason Barta
Courtesy Kansas State Athletics
  • Position: Fullback
  • Previous College: None
  • Projection: Redshirt
  • Status: On Scholarship

Mason Aaron Barta (b. Dec. 16, 1997) is an in-state product whose father played for K-State as part of Bill Snyder’s first team. He originally signed his National Letter of Intent in 2016, but deferred his enrollment to spring and is likely to redshirt in 2017.

A four-year letter-winner for Holton High School under his head coach and father, Brooks Barta, Mason was rated the top outside linebacker in the state of Kansas for the class of 2016 by Scout. He has the talent to play either position.

Barta earned first-team all-state honors as a senior from The Wichita Eagle and The Topeka Capital-Journal, while he was an honorable mention selection from those media organizations as a junior. He also was named to the USA Today Sports/American Family Insurance All-USA Kansas team as a senior.

Barta helped to lead the Wildcats to a trip to the Class 4A Division II state championship game in 2015. The team went 14-0 and was the Class 4A state champion in 2012. He totaled 1,718 career rushing yards and 21 touchdowns, including 1,051 yards and 15 scores as a senior.

Barta also recorded 285 career tackles, including 128 during his senior campaign, with 8.0 tackles for loss and three interceptions in 2015. He was selected to play in the 2016 Kansas Shrine Bowl. He also played basketball and was a high school teammate of current K-State linebacker Trent Tanking.

Brooks Barta was a linebacker for the Wildcats from 1989 to 1992, earning first-team All-Big Eight Conference honors as a junior in 1991 and Academic All-American accolades as a senior in 1992. He still ranks second in school history in career tackles with 436.

Mason’s grandfather, Roger, was a legendary high school coach at Smith Center High School and was the subject of The New York Times’ bestseller book, “Our Boys: A Perfect Season on the Plains with the Smith Center Redmen.”

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