I wanted the ball. I wanted to throw, catch, carry, and score. Highlights of Barry Sanders, Randy Moss, and Brett Favre filled my living room each fall weekend. Just like any other boy who adored the athletes they watched on Saturdays and Sundays, I wanted to make plays and be the target of the crowd’s cheers. I kept that dream alive for as long as I could until I got a dose of reality. It came during the youth football camp my local high school put on as I was preparing for 6th grade.
Growing up in a small town in northern Michigan, we did not have Pee Wee Football. So starting in 3rd grade, I attended the youth camp every July. As with most youth camps, everyone gets some time at each position group. One half each camp day was for offense and the other for defense. That was the routine for each of the three days, and it was capped by a punt, pass, and kick competition on the final day. These were camps I looked forward to every summer that generated a lot of great memories for me. Eventually, I got to participate as a high school player and coach. Needless to say, those camps left a huge impact on me.
But one sobering encounter with a high school offensive line coach still sticks with me the most today.
The group of campers that I was in rotated to the offensive line station. Of course, the first thing we were taught was the basics of a 3-point stance. I can remember the instructions we received, and they have replayed in my head each summer as I echo similar coaching points to groups I have had the pleasure of coaching. Get your feet a little wider than shoulder-width apart. Bend your knees and engage your hips. Then, we held our bodyweight for about 30 seconds to really get the feel for our stance and “embrace the pain”. Once our muscles were warmed up, it was time to really look like a football player.
The Varsity offensive line coach stood in front of his line of future players and peered down his glasses as a bead of sweat trickled down the side of his head.
“Okay, fellas. Now, put your hand in the dirt.” I unsteadily reached my right hand down and was unsure if I was doing it correctly.
How much do I lean forward? Are my knuckles supposed to hurt? Is this even the correct hand? Do I look dumb?
Then the final blow to my ego came barreling down from the coach. “Some of you will need to get really comfortable doing this over the next few years of your lives if you plan on playing on Friday night.”
I swear he was looking right at me. Hell, now I know he was looking at me.
At the time, it brought my aspirations of being a touchdown-scoring superstar to a screeching halt. Looking back, it was exactly what I needed to hear, and it set me on a route that was more fulfilling than any amount of carries, receptions, or TD passes ever could be.
_____________________________________________
Junior High football was my first taste of “real” football. I can vividly remember trying to put my pads on for the first time. I didn’t even know what a girdle was, and I definitely had no clue how to put the pads in correctly. It was so uncomfortable. Even my helmet hurt my neck for the first week or so as my body adjusted to moving with what felt like a medieval suit of armor.
During the first days of practice, I became more comfortable with my equipment, and the coaches assessed our team to see where each player fit best. That familiar feeling of wanting to “make plays” came back. This time, I had my sights set on being a linebacker.
I wanted to be the next Ray Lewis or Brian Urlacher. I wanted to stuff the opposing running back in the hole, decleat a wide receiver over the middle, or intercept a screen pass before taking it back for a pick six. And this time, my dreams became a reality… kind of.
From my experiences, not many youth or Junior High football teams are two-platooning. Everyone plays offense and defense. Obviously, this helps with practice planning. But more importantly, it gives the players a chance to experience both sides of the ball and optimizes their skills while they continue to progress. So that meant I would play both an offensive and defensive position.
For defense, I was grouped with the linebackers. I was ecstatic! I would not be labeled as a “fat guy” or part of a non-skill position group… at least on that side of the ball. On offense, I was told they needed another player to train at center.
Nope, no way. Wouldn’t be me. Those guys are generally the biggest guys on the team. Sure, I was a bigger kid. But there were at least 3 or 4 other kids who were bigger than I was. Also, snapping the ball was not something I wanted even to try to learn. I was out.
Then, one of the Jr. High coaches called me over between practice periods and asked if I would give it a shot. “I think you would make a great center! You touch the ball every play, you are smart, and you are strong.” I knew he was buttering me up. But I also knew that he advocated for me to play linebacker based on whispers from his son, who was also on the team.
I begrudgingly agreed. But hey, at least I got to play linebacker.
_____________________________________________
Once I got into high school, the winds of change began to hit my perspective on being an offensive lineman. Just by chance, the class right above mine only had a handful of kids come out for JV football (we were a small school of about 500 kids, so we did not have a separate Freshman team). So, we played a JV schedule with a team that was made up of mainly Freshman players. That means that many 9th graders, including myself, got a lot of meaningful practice and game reps. Needless to say, it was a rough year. We went 2-7, but both of our wins came against our rival schools, with the last game of the year being against a powerhouse in our area of the state at the time.
Even though it was not a successful season record-wise, that first year of high school ball really set the tone for the rest of my playing experience. I began to get more comfortable with offensive line technique. The stance, steps, double teams, angles, leverage, etc. I started to take ownership as the center by making calls, communicating with the coaches on the sideline, and setting a standard for the huddle.
Most importantly, I started to love being a part of an offensive line unit. Having a group of guys to bond with, joke around with, and get better with. 4 of our 5 starting offensive lineman started all 4 years together in high school – from JV to Varsity. Our OL group as a whole grew closer, and we gained enormous respect for each other, even if we were not all “best friends” in school.
Were we highlighted in the paper? Nope. Did we get any of the glory or recognition outside the locker room? Not really. Did we have any official stats? Not one.
But we loved the game. We loved being together in the locker room, on the bus, grabbing food before Friday nights, and hanging out after the games ended. That is why being an offensive lineman is so fun, cool, and memorable. You are part of a “special club” within an already hugely transformative group that is the whole football team.
_____________________________________________
After I graduated from high school, I went off to college and struggled to find who I was. In my infinite wisdom, I decided to ignore the advice from my high school head coach. He suggested that I become a teacher and get into coaching. He knew I was passionate about the game, lived in the weightroom, and understood the basics of techniques, as well as blocking schemes. I was unsure if that was what I wanted to do. Honestly, I was too concerned with what others thought of my college and career choices.
I chose to major in criminal justice to become a police officer. It seemed like something I was passionate about, but I really had no clue what I was doing or what I wanted to do. I did fine academically, and I was having fun as a college Freshman, but something was missing. After that first year of college, I knew I needed to make a change, but I was still uncertain as to what that would be.
Then, about halfway through July of that summer, I got a call from my old football coach. His OL coach suddenly resigned, and he was looking for someone who knew the offense. He asked if I wanted to coach. He was unsure what my plans were for the upcoming fall, but he would love to have me coach if it were possible.
I could have jumped through the phone from the rush of excitement. I tried my best to hide how giddy I was, and I even told him I needed ot ask my parents permission first. But I knew what I was going to do. I was going to coach football. I was going to get back into the game that I loved.
As for school, I opted to take classes at the local community college. I would change my major to English in hopes of becoming a teacher. I am surprised that my old coach has never said, “I told ya so” because he easily could. I felt like I found my path. It was different from what I imagined for myself after high school, but it felt right. It gave me purpose and a clear direction. Although this role for a football team was different than the one I grew to love, it was one that I approached with open arms.
I have been able to coach high school football for 13 years now. I have been in different programs, on different levels, and in different roles. I still love the game. I still love the camaraderie. I still love offensive linemen. Hopefully, I have been able to nudge a kid down a positive and productive path by telling them to put their hand in the dirt.
