Call_Of_Ktulu Posted February 17, 2021 Posted February 17, 2021 Funny story, one of my good friends was our MLB when I started playing flag. He went state in wrestling was about 6’1 250 lbs and his nickname was the Mule. The very 1st game and 1st play we called a double A gap blitz. They don’t block him and instead of grabbing the flag he tackles the QB. Our whole sideline was just laughing and yelling you ***** dumb Mule. The not so funny part was the full team brawl afterwards, but that’s a whole other story. 1
Juice_32 Posted February 17, 2021 Posted February 17, 2021 Played in HS, Kawika Mitchell was actually on my HS team, go silver hawks. I was a WR/DB, had 1 D2 offer in Ohio. I went to college to run the 60 and 100 meters in a D1 program instead. Football is the greatest team sport there is. 3 1
LanderPoke Posted February 17, 2021 Posted February 17, 2021 (edited) High school for me. Wyoming. Some of the best memories of my life. I cherish the time I got to play. Loved every second. Edited February 17, 2021 by LanderPoke 1
Bleeding Bills Blue Posted February 17, 2021 Posted February 17, 2021 Capped at JV, played a little varsity baseball but I was a smaller kid so I wasn't going to see the field in varsity. Between that, working in restaurants, and wacky tobacky I wasn't as interested in all that would've entailed (lifting, diet, conditioning etc). 1
msw2112 Posted February 17, 2021 Posted February 17, 2021 I played 4 years of HS football. 1 year freshman, 1 year JV, 2 years varsity. I played offensive tackle, defensive tackle/nose tackle (depending on which defense we were running) and a lineman spot on special teams. The only time I touched to the ball was when I forced a fumble....I went to a college with a top-10 football program, so I wasn't good enough to earn a scholarship and wasn't interested in being walk-on/tackling dummy. I had the (limited) speed of a lineman, but was smaller than many of the LBs on the team. They played in the Rose Bowl and many went on to the NFL, while it was academics (+ beer and girls) for me. I played some intramural sports for fun. It's been a few years since then. Having played gives me a bit of a connection and perhaps a heightened sense of the action when watching NFL football, compared to someone who didn't play at all, but to be honest, I don't remember much from my playbook from all those years ago and the NFL playbooks are way more advanced. Plus, I was only in the trenches, so I have no idea about WR route trees, etc. That stuff I just know from watching years of football like everyone else. I tend to see holding plays along the lines and great and/or missed blocks much sooner than the folks I watch games with, and often sooner than some of the network guys. 1 1
Bobby Hooks Posted February 17, 2021 Posted February 17, 2021 I was a sandlot all Buffalo all-pro. My coach told me the ball was coming to me on the last play of the championship game, he said if I didn’t catch it I wouldn’t just be letting myself down id be letting my team down as well. Had the corner faked right out of his pads using my Dad’s famous triple deke, ball in the air. Boom, right off the facemask. Hung up the cleats for good that day. Long story short, I became a hotshot lawyer. Got in a little trouble with the law and was forced to be of service to my community and became a sandlot coach. Ended up playing against my old coach in the championship and won! That experience made me remember my love of the game. Thinking about giving it another shot in the arena league. But first things first I’m coaching my team in the junior goodwill games in Los Angeles. Wish me luck! 1 1
teef Posted February 17, 2021 Posted February 17, 2021 24 minutes ago, Bobby Hooks said: I was a sandlot all Buffalo all-pro. My coach told me the ball was coming to me on the last play of the championship game, he said if I didn’t catch it I wouldn’t just be letting myself down id be letting my team down as well. Had the corner faked right out of his pads using my Dad’s famous triple deke, ball in the air. Boom, right off the facemask. Hung up the cleats for good that day. Long story short, I became a hotshot lawyer. Got in a little trouble with the law and was forced to be of service to my community and became a sandlot coach. Ended up playing against my old coach in the championship and won! That experience made me remember my love of the game. Thinking about giving it another shot in the arena league. But first things first I’m coaching my team in the junior goodwill games in Los Angeles. Wish me luck!
Jeebus Posted February 17, 2021 Posted February 17, 2021 Played through High School. MLB or DE. Had a tryout scheduled with a semi-pro team, Buffalo Gladiators, back in the 90s but went off into the Marines instead. I've done some coaching at the youth level off and on when my kids have played 2
Ray Stonada Posted February 17, 2021 Author Posted February 17, 2021 2 hours ago, Brennan Huff said: Free local calls... Wow, back in the era of normal life.
NoHuddleKelly12 Posted February 17, 2021 Posted February 17, 2021 Played HS and walked on at my DIII college to play backup QB/scout team O for 2 seasons before realizing this was never going to result in NFL glory and hung up the cleats for good—I feel like having to learn plays/ D formations/line rush keys (we ran a lot of triple option RPO type stuff bc our coach was enamored by Marshall and Navy) helps me to at least have a glimmer of a clue as to what goes in to the X’s & O’s, but as stated upthread the game at the pro level is so far beyond what I was tasked with I don’t pretend to be conversant there. 1
chaccof Posted February 17, 2021 Posted February 17, 2021 (edited) I imagine experience in an intermural flag football league in college doesn't counts? Edited February 17, 2021 by chaccof 1
Ray Stonada Posted February 17, 2021 Author Posted February 17, 2021 1 minute ago, chaccof said: I imagine experience in an intermural flag football league in college doesn't counts? Sure, it counts! I remember a flag football game where we thought up a play for me (always lined up outside) to run a jet sweep type action, take a pitch and then drop back to pass, the idea being our QB would be wide open. (This was in 1992, but kinda sounds like a Bills 2020 play!) I had never played QB, ever. I got the ball, looked up, everything looked like a blur, got sacked. Ever since I've been impressed by what QB's do.
Patrick Duffy Posted February 17, 2021 Posted February 17, 2021 (edited) I played in high school. The last 3 years and I was damn good too. Could have easily went to the college level, but was too busy chasing booty, drinking, drugs and getting in trouble. Definitely did not have my head on straight at that time. I played on offense and defense. Was LB on D and I guess you could call it TE on O. Wasn't the fastest but could catch everything thrown to me. I honestly don't remember ever dropping a pass. Edited February 17, 2021 by Patrick_Duffy 2
Chicken Boo Posted February 17, 2021 Posted February 17, 2021 Played one year of youth football. As much as I loved the sport, I enjoyed racing MX more.
buffalonian Posted February 17, 2021 Posted February 17, 2021 I played 4 years of high school football in the 80s-90s, both offense and defense (and sometimes special teams). I'm not sure that the experience gives me any special insight into the game today, probably not. But while I was playing I certainly learned about and took interest in aspects of the game that I would not have otherwise cared much about had I not been playing. I have concerns about kids playing today given all the neurological studies, but playing on a high school team was really a good experience for me. 1
GoBills808 Posted February 17, 2021 Posted February 17, 2021 2 hours ago, Juice_32 said: Played in HS, Kawika Mitchell was actually on my HS team, go silver hawks. I was a WR/DB, had 1 D2 offer in Ohio. I went to college to run the 60 and 100 meters in a D1 program instead. Football is the greatest team sport there is. Nice, we played against Max Unger in HS
ExWNYer Posted February 17, 2021 Posted February 17, 2021 (edited) 4 hours ago, buffaloboyinATL said: By the way, regarding the original question, I played for 3 years in High School. It was tough starting in 9th grade because many of the guys on the team had already been playing for several years and knew the game, blocking techniques, etc. much better than I did and it took a couple of years to catch up. I had the "intangibles" to be a good QB (6'4" roughly 200 lbs., strong arm etc.) but when the coach tried me there, it was obvious that I did not have the game knowledge at that time to be a QB, so they threw me on the line because of my size, but I was never really that good. Ironically, my strength and knowledge of the game caught up when I got to college, but by then I wasn't playing any more. I always wondered if I would have been better if I started earlier. (My mother was a nurse and never let me play before HS because she said she didn't want me to get injured) I played 3 years in high school, as well. Sophomore year (JV) and Junior and Senior years (Varsity). Played C my JV year and OT my varsity years but mostly Special Teams. Had never played organized football prior to this and we had just moved to VA prior to my first year of high school (9th Grade) so I was behind the eight ball, not knowing the coaches or players that first year in JV. We were not good...I was 6' 0", 155 lbs my first year and weighed 166 lbs my last year...and I was a lineman. 😂 Of course, this was the early '80s. I had some speed and had great hands (seriously) and probably should have been at TE but we didn't pass anyway so it wouldn't have mattered. Our coaches, other than the DC on the varsity team, were completely horrible and clueless. The varsity HC was also the wrestling coach which was his background and they were semi-decent. My 'claim to fame' was that I returned a squib kick as the upback on the KOR team my Senior year. I caught it along our sideline and the HC was yelling at me as soon as I caught it, "GET DOWN!, GET DOWN!!" I remember thinking, "F you, you wuss, I'm taking this!" I got about 7 or 8 yards before my cleats gave out on a dewy turf and I hit the deck trying to make a cut. Ah, good times. lol I went to a basketball only D-I college so there was never any thought of playing football post-high school. I did attend every home basketball game though. BTW, my younger son played WR and DB (mostly) from about 11 years old all the way thru high school and ended his playing days at that level, as well, and is at my alma mater now. Edited February 17, 2021 by ExWNYer 2 1
DC Greg Posted February 17, 2021 Posted February 17, 2021 Played all 4 years of college ball at defensive end. D-III. It definitely made me aware of how your body reacts much differently to age/injury playing the game than it did in high school. It also leaves me amazed that NFL players have a 4 game preseason, 16 game regular season, followed by even more playoff games. It's crazy. I think a 14 game schedule with 1-2 preseason games would be much better, personally. Too many key players are banged up for the playoffs/super bowl these days. But they'll never shorten the season, of course, because $. 1
Ray Stonada Posted February 17, 2021 Author Posted February 17, 2021 2 minutes ago, DC Greg said: Played all 4 years of college ball at defensive end. D-III. It definitely made me aware of how your body reacts much differently to age/injury playing the game than it did in high school. It also leaves me amazed that NFL players have a 4 game preseason, 16 game regular season, followed by even more playoff games. It's crazy. I think a 14 game schedule with 1-2 preseason games would be much better, personally. Too many key players are banged up for the playoffs/super bowl these days. But they'll never shorten the season, of course, because $. All great reasons not to go to a 17 game season too! Also it just annoys the hell out of me that the mathematical balance and perfection of the 16 game season will be ruined, and stats will no longer be truly comparable, forever.
JohnNord Posted February 17, 2021 Posted February 17, 2021 4 hours ago, ProcessTruster said: I was good enough, but not good enough for the recruiters to give me a scholarship to play (Colgate). So I didn't as I was pretty banged up coming out of HS (DE, OT) and could see myself getting blown up pretty good by much bigger guys at the college level ( I was young and lighter for my grade). Would have been fun to try to earn the scholarship after 1 year, but glad I did not. Pro game is very recognizable to me albeit executed with so much more size, complexity, speed and talent. The game is still pretty much the game. I just didn’t have the size and probably not enough athleticism to play at the next level. Part of me does wish that I picked a D3 school and tried out for a spot because sometimes I think I would’ve had an outside chance. But who knows?
Recommended Posts