This past summer, The Baltimore Sun featured a story about Baltimore native Gino Culotta, a senior football player at the International School of Brussels. Culotta, 16, plays in Brussels because his dad works there. He spends his summers in Joppatowne.

This past summer, Culotta went to a number of Division I and Division II schools asking about an opportunity to earn an athletic scholarship. While his talent was judged as worthy of the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Division, the fact that he plays in Brussels makes his prospects slim.

But Culotta said he planned to play hard to make an impression on coaches in the United States. He has not let up in his efforts.

This week, the 6-foot-3, 210-pound running back was named Athlete of the Week by the European military high school system that includes more than 2,000 athletes. Giving the award to a player from the International School of Brussels, which plays in the military system but is not a military-base school, is very rare.

But Culotta made it virtually impossible to ignore him.

Last week, he carried 29 times for 239 yards and four touchdowns while helping his team to a 34-6 victory over 2008 European Division III Champion AFNORTH. The win also propelled the Brussels team to the Division II North championship in the European League.

This season, Culotta has scored 13 touchdowns and rushed 97 times for 799 yards. A two-way player, Culotta also has 19 tackles and two fumble recoveries.

To read The Sun's profile of Culotta, click here.