Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports

WEST BRANCH – In each of his first three seasons in the West Branch football program Keaton Gates has been tasked with taking on a new role.

Just as most freshmen do Gates saw limited action in his debut season.

As a sophomore he stepped into a starting role on defense and excelled, ranking fourth on the team in tackles.

Last season Gates took on an even bigger load when he became a full-time, two-way player and starred on both sides of the ball.

As one of only two returning starters for West Branch this fall Gates adds yet another assignment to the list.

Linebacker, running back and now – leader.

“He has got to be kid that doesn’t leave the field, he’s our best tackler, he was our best tackler last year, he’s our leading rusher, I would call him the leader of both sides of the ball,” West Branch second-year head coach Matt Hughes said. “People are just following him and they are watching him. They see he’s our leader and they are looking at how he is reacting to things and it’s always positive. I couldn’t be more proud of how he’s taken this role.”

Each season Gates has taken on a heavier workload.

The 6-foot, 180-pound senior hasn’t just accepted his increased responsibilities, he has thrived.

The more Gates is asked to do the more he seems to produce.

That has been the case this season as Gates embraces his role as leader on a young West Branch team that features just five seniors and is filled with underclassmen.

“There are a lot of young guys so I have to lead by example,” Gates said. “That’s the best way to do it. They see you do it and they want to do it. That’s how I take it by just trying to be the best I can.”

Gates gained experience early in his career making a career-high 39.5 tackles and intercepting two passes as a sophomore in 2024.

When Hughes took over the program prior to last season one of the first moves he made was to insert Gates as the lead back in his run-heavy offense.

Gates delivered in a big way last season ranking fifth in Class 2A in rushing with 1,289 yards with 13 touchdowns while averaging 7.5 yards per carry on his way to earning second team all-state honors.

This season Hughes is seeing a more experienced, more football savvy Gates.

“He’s a coach on the field and that’s really where I’ve seen the biggest improvement from Keaton,” Hughes said. “He understands schemes. It’s not just take the ball and hit the hole, he knows what the line is doing to create the hole and he knows that he has to make his cut off this block. That is the difference maker for someone like Keaton is to understand the schemes and strategies behind the play not just run the play.”

A three-sport standout, Gates was a state wrestling qualifier at 150 pounds last season and a member of the West Branch state title 4×200 team last spring.

That multi-sport competitor is part of what Gates loves about being the leader in the West Branch backfield.

“You have a lot more responsibilities when everyone is counting on you and that’s what I like,” Gates said. “You have third and five and you are getting the ball you know you have to make a play and you have to do what you have to do.”

Gates enters his senior season with 85 career tackles and is focused on being an even bigger part of the West Branch defense this season than he was a year ago.

Last season Gates ranked fifth on the team with 39 tackles including 4.5 for loss and 1.5 sacks.

What does Gates like about defense?

Simple.

“It’s always fun hitting people,” Gates said. “That’s what I love about defense.”

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