April 20, 2007 Adam Minichino
LEESBURG - Leesburg High School football coach Charles Nassar admires Luke Freeze too much to call him a "pipsqueak."
Freeze, though, doesn't hesitate to use that word to describe his size and appearance three years ago.
These days, thanks to Freeze's hard work in Nassar's weight training system and football program, he has matured into a 5-foot-11, 235-pound senior standout.
But Freeze's accomplishments are only part of the story, and they only begin to illustrate why Nassar is so proud of his senior offensive lineman.
"Luke is the absolute model for what we tell our guys," Nassar said. "If you're good enough to play in Central Florida and start on a district competitive team and you take care of your business in the classroom, you're good enough to play somewhere."
Freeze realized that goal last week when he signed a letter of intent to play football at Lenoir-Rhyne College, a Division II school in Hickory, N.C. He made his decision official Wednesday, on his 18th birthday, at Leesburg High School.
He said he also considered Maryville College (Tenn.), Averett University (Va.) and Charleston Southern University (S.C.).
Freeze was a mainstay at center this past season for the Yellow Jackets (7-4). He also played some at linebacker early in his career at Leesburg.
Next season, Freeze figures to compete for playing time at both positions for first-year coach Fred Goldsmith, who inherits a program that went 3-8 in 2006 and loses 10 seniors from this past season.
Freeze said he visited Lenoir-Rhyne College last year during spring break. He said the coaches seemed very interested at that time, and he remained in touch with the program through the change of head coaches.
Freeze, who has a 3.8 grade-point average, plans to study sports management, with the hope of becoming a coach. He said he is just as proud of his work in the classroom as he is of his maturation as a football player. He thinks both played significant roles in helping him land a combined academic and athletic scholarship.
"I am kind of small, but my academics are good," Freeze said.
Nassar said Freeze has "worked his tail off" in the weight room to play at Leesburg and to realize the goal to play college football. Nassar said Freeze's bench press has improved 200 pounds and his squat has increased 350 pounds in three years. He said some of that is natural, but he said someone doesn't get as strong as Freeze is without being dedicated.
Nassar said Freeze's attitude about his work in the weight room and his studies are similar. He said Freeze's skills in the classroom helped him attract attention from nearly 20 schools at a college recruiting fair in February at Lake Wales High School.
"A lot of people think the high school coach has way more to do with the process of the scholarship than he actually does. The role of the high school coach is to introduce the player to the college," Nassar said. "Our job is to expose our athlete to those colleges where we think they best fit. Luke's academic prowess finished the deal. Anybody who starts for us or Eustis or Tavares, etc., is good enough to play college football somewhere."
Freeze said Nassar made him and the Yellow Jackets believe in him and his program. He said the belief in Nassar and his system helped him realize a goal to play in college that he has had since the first day he strapped on his pads.
"I came in a little scrawny and like a pipsqueak, and now I am bigger," Freeze said. "Investing in his program got me where I am today."
Resources
Adam Minichino
Daily Commercial
Article Provided by:
Gerald Lacey
CEO/President
Lacey LLC and OmariWholesale, Inc.
http://www.leesburgyellowjacketsfootball.com/
http://www.myebooksresell.com/
No comments:
Post a Comment