Friday, May 30, 2014
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Neighbors | Submitted.Austintown Middle School students Evan Shobel (left) and Nate Fowler participated in the NUC Football Combine April 27 in Pittsburgh. Both received recognition for their play during the combine.
By TIM CLEVELAND
Austintown Middle School football players Evan Shobel and Nate Fowler got an early start on preparing to play for the Austintown Fitch High School football team this season by participating in the National Underclassmen Combine on April 27.
More than 130 players participated in the combine, which was hosted at Pittsburgh Indoor Sports Arena. The combine was conducted by Coach Dave Schuman of Palisades Park High School in New Jersey.
After spending the day doing their best in the 40-yard dashes, shuttle drills, broad jumps and vertical jumps, the players went into one versus one and two versus two competitions, then a seven versus seven workout with their respective position coaches.
Shobel, a 5 foot 11 1/2 inch, 203 pound center, had a 6-6 broad jump and a 6.28-second 40 time. Fowler, a 5 foot 9 inch, 151 pound quarterback, had a 5.0-second 40, a 7-7 broad jump, a 4.21-second shuttle and a 24-inch vertical leap.
For their efforts, Shobel was named offensive line MVP for grades 7-9 and Fowler was selected overall MVP for grades 7-9 as well as best quarterback in grade 8.
“I was surprised and honored because there were several others who could’ve gotten he award,” Shobel said.
“Honestly it felt amazing.” Fowler said. “Hearing my name being called out and representing my community made be feel proud and accomplished. To know that I won that award makes me want to push myself even more, because I believe hard work does pay off.”
Both players said they liked participating in the combine.
“I thought it was really fun to be doing nothing but football all day long,” Shobel said. “It’s giving me an idea what I need to do if I’m going to play college or high school football.”
“I loved the camp. It was a great experience,” Fowler said. “I had a lot of fun meeting new people and competing against great quarterbacks. Meeting athletes from other areas and learning more about their drive for the game was amazing.”
Both Shobel and Fowler will also be going to the Ultimate 100 Camp in Fairfield on June 28.
Fowler said participating in the combine had a positive influence on his game.
“I believe the camp helped my game by making me feel more confident going up to the line and understanding coverages I’m facing,” he said. “Going against juniors and seniors really gave me a chance to open up and really throw. Going up against juniors and seniors, I really got to see what I was made of and what areas I still need to work on.”
Both play positions, center and quarterback, are considered leadership positions.
“It’s like a very fast-paced position to snap the ball and be able to block,” Shobel said. “I think that’s what I’m going to be doing in high school.”
“The thing I like most about playing quarterback is taking control of the offense, being the leader of the team,” Fowler said. “Being able to take my team down field when we are down saying, ‘Let’s go, we got this.’ Being in that huddle and looking at my brothers as they trust in me to get them to the end zone. There’s nothing else like that,”
Fowler said he gives a lot of credit for his improvement to his position coach at AMS, Matt Roselle.
“I’d really like to thank my position coach, Matt Roselle,” Fowler said. “He’s been my coach/mentor for the past four years. He is the one who makes it possible for me to make it to these camps. He took me down to Pitt. out of his own time. I can’t thank him enough for all of the time and effort he has put in with me with my offseason training. He really pushes me to be a great person. He does a lot for the youth in this community and I’d really like people to see exactly how much he means to us.
Entering ninth grade this upcoming school year, Shobel and Fowler will be playing for Fitch coach Phil Annarella, one of the most successful coaches in the area. They expressed excitement about being able to play for Annarella this season.
“I think that it’ll be extremely fun to be able to move up from middle school to high school football,” Shobel said.
“Being able to play for Coach Annarella is going to be an absolute honor,” Fowler said. “Everything coach stands for and incorporates within his program is why I’m very excited. To learn and progress under one of best high school coaches in Ohio is going to be amazing. With all of the talent Austintown Fitch has and the staff that coach has put together, the future is looking very bright for us future Falcons.”