Marathon senior Christopher Paul signs with Coe College football program

Two Monroe County seniors turned four-year varsity careers into college opportunities, with Marathon’s Christopher Paul heading to Coe College in Iowa and Key West’s Sebastian Camargo bound for Upper Iowa University. Their signings carried extra weight in a county where 2024 was already marked as a banner year for prep football, when no Monroe County team finished with a losing season for the first time since 2017.

Paul will continue his football career as a long snapper while studying criminal justice at Coe College in Cedar Rapids. The Marathon senior was a four-year varsity starter, earned All-Keys Football recognition in his senior season, was named the team’s Outstanding Offensive Lineman and had already been honored as Marathon’s Special Teams Player of the Year in 2024. He also became the sixth Marathon player in the last four years to move on to college football, a run that points to sustained depth in a small-school program that has learned how to keep producing college-ready players.

His path was shaped as much by consistency as by talent. Marathon coach Sean McDonald said Paul “never missed a practice” over four years and shifted from tight end to center when the team needed him. That willingness to change roles was part of what made Paul such a dependable long snapper, and it fits a family story rooted in Marathon football and public service. He is the son of Marathon High School Principal Christine Paul and Monroe County Sheriff’s Office Captain Derek Paul, both Marathon graduates, making his next step feel like another chapter in a local family tradition.

Paul is also joining a program with a clear competitive history. Coe, a private liberal arts college, says its football team has won six Iowa Conference championships since 2002 and made nine NCAA Division III playoff appearances, giving him a college destination with established expectations and a track record of postseason success.

Camargo’s path was built on a different kind of versatility. The Key West senior captain was a four-year varsity starter who finished with eight goals and four assists despite being asked to play out of position for much of the season and seeing his year cut short by an injury shortly after the Christmas break. Earlier in the season, he scored the lone Key West goal in a 2-1 loss to Coral Reef on Nov. 12, 2024, added a goal in the Conchs’ 7-0 win over Coral Shores on Nov. 15, and had his sixth goal of the season on Dec. 3 against Boca Raton.

Camargo drew multiple offers, including chances to play overseas, before choosing Upper Iowa for what was described as the right academic and athletic fit. Coaches and teammates valued his leadership and team-first approach as much as his scoring line, a reminder that Monroe County’s college-bound athletes are reaching the next level by pairing production with discipline, adaptability and steady support from home.