North Laurel LT long-snaps w/ grades to underwrite costs. He’s “sitting pretty.”
We may have gotten “carried away” with the puns in this article. However, Gabe Claybrook is “sitting pretty” heading into his senior year with an enviable frame (6’4,” 245), enviable length, an enviable skill always in high demand (long-snapping), and the GPA (3.5) to get academically funded. That’s a lot of ways to get home if you catch my drift.
Fletcher W. Long, Chief of KPGFootball‘s Scouting Division
There is a tremendous poem about the value of never quitting, never giving up on one’s goals, soldiering on until you scale the mountain and reach its peak.
The poem (interestingly enough) is entitled “Don’t Quit.” It was written in the 1920’s, by Edgar A. Guest, as a gentle reminder to us that even in the darkest of times there are sunnier skies on the horizon.
One rather poignant stanza says, “Life is queer with its twists and turns,/As every one of us sometimes learns,/And many a failure turns about,/When he might have won had he stuck it out;/Don’t give up though the pace seems slow-/You may succeed with another blow.”
Guys possessing the type skills of a Gabe Claybrook bring that poem to our combined consciousness around our offices. You see, Claybrook has put himself in very good position to play, next level, if he should want that for himself.
There are reasons we say this.
First of all, Claybrook plays left tackle at North Laurel, a team which competed at the 5A, District 8 level a year ago. Left tackles are often the best athletes, with the best frames, on an offensive front owing to the onus of having to protect the QB’s “blind side.”
Claybrook is 6’4,” and a svelte 245-pounds. There are many pounds which may be added to his long and lengthy frame without impacting either his mobility or agility.
Last year, in an offensive attack which greatly leaned on the ground game, the Jaguars gained 3,178-yards from scrimmage in 457-carries. That is 6.95-yards per carry. Pretty darned-impressive for a team competing at the 5A level.
Behind Claybrook and associates, the Jaguars scored 34-rushing TD’s, or a TD every 13.44-carries. The offense averaged 288.9-yards a game and 3.1-rushing TD’s every night.
Now the Jaguars weren’t completely inept at passing the football. We’ve seen better, but they still gained nearly 1,300-yards through the air and scored 10-TD’s passing.
Claybrook played limited defense. He made his appearances count, as he numbered three (3)-TFL’s and a sack amongst those 11-stops.
That reminds us of another of our favorite sayings. “There are no small roles, only small actors,” famously crafted by Konstantin Stanislavski, the father of modern acting.
So what’s all this “soldiering on” business? Well, it is simple, to insure he will gain a spot on a college roster, Claybrook has mastered the art of long-snapping. Colleges always need one of those, as they are both important and in short supply.
Do you know what else is in short supply? Football players with 3.5 GPA’s don’t just grow on trees.
Claybrook being a prime-time performer in the classroom allows prospective football programs to package academic funding in with their athletic dollars. This means signing him permits the program to stretch the athletic budget to corral additional talent, getting the most “bang for its buck.”
In other words, Claybook is sitting “in the cat-bird’s seat.” Oh, we may get PUNished for that last one!
This is Coach HB Lyon, reporting for KPGFootball, and we’re JUST CALLING IT LIKE WE SEE IT!
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