Drew Hatch is headed to a place that feels like home.

Oregon State University in Corvallis “reminded me of Marysville — but with a big university,” he said.

Drew, 17, is a member of Marysville Pilchuck High School’s class of 2015, a group whose senior year was marked by tragedy. Last Oct. 24, the unthinkable happened when a ninth-grade shooter killed four classmates and injured another before killing himself. After that awful day, “a lot of good happened,” Drew said.

A relative of several teens who died that day, Drew reached out to help and felt the embrace of family and community. “You could walk around and just know you were loved,” he said. “It was a reminder you need to spread your love.”

On June 22, he will be at OSU as a walk-on football player. “You don’t get the scholarship — yet,” said Drew, who hopes to play for the Pac-12 Conference school.

A linebacker and one of his football team’s captains, Drew also wrestled in high school. In December, he was named The Daily Herald’s Defensive Player of the Year. He also earned 3A second-team honors on the 2014 Associated Press all-state football teams.

Football, in his senior season, became so much more than a game. While school was closed the week after the tragedy, the team practiced and then played at home Oct. 31, winning the Wesco 3A football title.

“That week it was definitely hard,” Drew told Herald sports writer David Krueger in December. “Once we saw the community rallying for us — it was like, ‘We’ve got to do something about this.’ We’re not going to forget what happened but we’ve got to rally around it and help get everybody better.”

On May 19, Drew was one of five Marysville Pilchuck students — along with Sierra Price, Jordan Reynolds, Nicholas Alonso and Corbin Ferry — honored with the Moyer Foundation’s annual Kids Helping Kids Award. During a luncheon in Seattle, the teens were recognized for their support of other students after the tragedy. The nonprofit foundation supports programs that help children experiencing grief and other distress.

Catherine Porciuncula, the foundation’s regional development manager, said Drew visited and delivered food to grieving Tulalip Tribes families, and drummed at Tulalip funerals. At the luncheon, where the Seattle Storm’s Sue Bird received the Moyer Foundation Humanitarian Award, Drew and the other teens received a standing ovation.

“He’s truly something — a special kid,” said Marysville Pilchuck counselor Scott Stokes. “He’s a gifted athlete and a tremendous leader.”

Julie Muhlstein: 425-339-3460; jmuhlstein@heraldnet.com.