On Saturdays, Sam Carlson spends his time blocking, hand-fighting and grappling with 275-pound defensive linemen whose goal is to destroy anything in their path on the way to whoever is holding the ball at that time. He often leaves games bloodied, bruised and beat up after battling men his size or bigger for 60 minutes.
24 hours later, he is holding his toddler-aged niece, Olivia, and performing with the band at River of Life Church in Wellington, which sits about 15 miles north of the Colorado State campus in Wellington. He plays a role in the youth ministry and helps his father Rick, who also doubles as the church’s pastor.