This is the fourth year we’ve had the opportunity to cover the Gatorade High School Athlete of the Year awards, and we’re definitely seeing a pattern. These awards have been introducing future sports stars since the awards were created in 1985, and that trend is certainly continuing. Just consider the last three athletes to win Boys Basketball Player of the Year – Karl Anthony Towns, Andrew Wiggins and Jabari Parker, three stars who have dominated the top of the NBA draft in recent years. Then consider recent Girls Basketball Player of the Year Breanna Stewart, who has won three-straight national titles at UConn.

Now she’ll be joined by this year’s Girls Basketball Player of the Year and winner of Girls Athlete of the Year Katie Lou Samuelson at UConn as she goes for four straight and Katie Lou tries to start her own streak. The rich get richer!

This year’s winner of the Boys Athlete of the Year, Kyler Murray, will be taking his considerable talents to Texas A&M. Kyler talked about the recruiting process, and explained that his decision to go play for the Aggies wasn’t influenced that much by the fact that his father played there. Kyler talked about how the style of play at A&M suited his ability, and how he bonded with the coaching staff. When talking to a young man like Kyler calmly explaining the approach he took to his future, you realize how mature many of these high school athletes can be these days as they get so much more attention and learn to handle it early in their careers.

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2013 was great for DeMarco Murray. After an injury-riddled second NFL season in 2012, Murray broke out with 1,471 yards from scrimmage, 10 touchdowns and was named to the Pro Bowl, where he scored the game-winning touchdown.

Thanks to a partnership with Old Spice’s new “Mandroid” robot, Murray is entering 2014 brimming with “Smelf-Confidence.”

We asked DeMarco about Old Spice, “RoboCop,” his career thus far and the upcoming Cowboys 2014 season.

Are you hanging out with the new Old Spice robot as we speak?

“No, but I wish I was; he’s my robotic friend. Later on, I get to hang out and have dinner with him. He’s still sleeping from last night.”

Well, according to these new ads, he picks up all the hot babes.

“He does! That’s the guy to be around.”

Speaking of robots, who would win in a fight between him, RoboCop and the Terminator?

“Old Spice robot man, of course.”

Entering week seven in 2011, you were second on the depth chart. You rush for a franchise record 253 yards in the game against the Rams, a game you didn’t even start. Talk about your progression from that performance to being named to the Pro Bowl in 2013.

“I was given the opportunity to play because a couple of guys got banged up. And I was fortunate to have the game that I had. I never thought in a million years that I’d ever have a day like that. But I knew my time would come, so I made sure I was prepared to make the next step. Once I got the opportunity, I never looked back.”

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