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Meet the “TOP 12” Long Snappers!
Talent
Just woke up with Long Snapping on my mind. Happens quite a bit as you can imagine. Almost always good thoughts and ideas, but every once in awhile something will creep into my dome and upset me. This thought was one that woke me and wouldn’t allow me to fall back asleep with a smile on my face.
I just recently received a message from a parent that one of my Long Snappers has decided to “retire” from Long Snapping. It happens. I know this. Long Snapping is not for everyone. I get it and I completely understand. I would never want someone to do something they are not really happy with in life.
HOWEVER, it drives me crazy when I think back to some of my Long Snappers that have “retired” simply because they were met with a challenge and couldn’t stand up to it. I think back to many that I have had that hung it up and wasted all of their talent as they came to a new bridge to climb over. They didn’t cross the bridge. They got to the edge, looked at it, turned back around and headed for easy street.
Not everything in life worth doing is on easy street. The sooner you figure that out (talking to all of my Long Snappers right now), the better you will be in every aspect of your life.
Things getting a little tougher? Suck it up. You are fine. Whenever I get stuck in a very difficult situation in life I always think of this statement: Am I the first person to be doing this? If the answer is no, then I am pretty darn sure I can do it. And I do! I use that little statement continuously in everything I come across (from playing football, to going through hell week, to graduating, to finding a job, to getting married, to having kids, to having my wisdom teeth removed, to flying for hours at a time, to making deadlines, to simply getting out of bed sometimes).
As some point in your life you need to realize how much talent you really do possess. You need to realize that if someone else can do it, that you also can do it and, for the love of all that is holy, you can do it better. What is stopping you? YOU?! Get up and go. Get it done. Do your drills. Do your homework. Eat your food. Don’t eat your food. Be a human being that people want to respect and hang out with….for good reasons. Enough excuses.
DO NOT WASTE YOUR TALENT! If for any reason alone, you will upset me:) Now go have a great day. Make today better than yesterday. Go!
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Rubio Long Snapping is, by far, the biggest and best resource for Long Snappers in the country. Offering the best instruction and most exposure in the world. Rubio Long Snapping can help you to become the best snapper you can be!
In just 12 years, Chris Rubio, President and Owner of Rubio Long Snapping, has become the #1 Long Snapping instructor in the country and the go-to man when a college coach needs a Long Snapper. Colleges from across the country rely on “Rubio’s” word day in and day out on who the best Long Snappers are in the country. Rubio Long Snapping has assisted in over 300 Long Snappers earning FULL SCHOLARSHIPS to major colleges and universities just for Long Snapping and many into the NFL as well.
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What to do…What to do…..
Recently, I have had some conversations through text with some of my college Long Snappers and it brought up a very common problem. Therefore, I shall now spray. See if you can relate…..
Rubio Long Snapper “My head coach comes up to me at spring ball this morning and tells me I do the exact same thing every time before I get set. He said I was like a pitcher. Given it took everything in me not to ask if he would want his pitcher to throw balls or strikes?”
Rubio Long Snapper “My coach told me to do something that I know is completely off from what you have taught me…..help”
Sound familiar? If you have been Long Snapping for more than 18 seconds in your career I can almost guarantee that someone, usually a coach, has spoken to you about your snapping. And, usually, that spray will completely counter what someone with knowledge has told you prior about Long Snapping (you should be nodding your head right now). So, one would wonder, how do I respond to such person?….especially if it is someone that can control my fate a little (playing time, making sure you get a college letter, etc).
Here is what I used to do: nod my head, with respect of course, and pretend they were Charlie Brown’s teacher (remember to click on the blue or you lose a lot of what I am saying here).
I came to the realization early on in my snapping adventure that not many know about the wonderful art of Long Snapping. That is obvious with most any conversation you have with the average Joe. However, I’m smart (given, since I am a Long Snapper) and I knew I didn’t want to disrespect and/or upset the coach that was in charge of who would be starting in the game so I simply nodded and listened to exactly what they were telling me to do. I would even go as far as actually practicing what they told me to do in front of them. Key phrase: in front of them (one must not look like a complete moron at all times while doing some outlandish drill a person of authority thinks will get you better even though they have never snapped a ball a day in their life).
Then, when it was live, I would do exactly as I was properly taught (side note: you remember how I was taught, right) and the ball would zip back there. It was great to watch how happy the coaches were that their method worked (wink, wink)! Shhhh, don’t tell them that you actually really just went back to what was already working or did a new way that I taught you. They will just care that the ball is back into the punter’s/holder’s hands. They will not be able to see the intricacies of the actual snap so don’t over stress about it.
Bottom line, you are going to have to deal with difficult people your entire life and you need to realize how to handle them. They will never go away and it won’t always be about Long Snapping. Trust me, if it was life would be a whole heck of a lot easier.
_________________________________________________________________
Rubio Long Snapping is, by far, the biggest and best resource for Long Snappers in the country. Offering the best instruction and most exposure in the world. Rubio Long Snapping can help you to become the best snapper you can be!
In just 12 years, Chris Rubio, President and Owner of Rubio Long Snapping, has become the #1 Long Snapping instructor in the country and the go-to man when a college coach needs a Long Snapper. Colleges from across the country rely on “Rubio’s” word day in and day out on who the best Long Snappers are in the country. Rubio Long Snapping has assisted in over 300 Long Snappers earning FULL SCHOLARSHIPS to major colleges and universities just for Long Snapping and many into the NFL as well.
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Nike Spring Camp in CA
I can’t sleep. It is 2:24 am and I am pretty much wide awake. Couple reasons: baby on the way (May 23 and I am a thinker so my mind is always rolling on this one), a certain Apple product has peaked my interest, I watched Short Circuit a couple hours ago and was shocked at how bad it/the acting was (I refuse to believe all classic 80’s movies I grew up with are the same way!) and, finally, I am thinking a ton about this weekend’s Nike Spring Camp in CA.
(Side note: thought this was known, but apparently it is not, when you see something in my blogs in blue, like the words Apple product, that means there is a link within that word…click on it for a whole new world of possibilities. Double side note: you might also need to meander back through some past blogs to clear some things up)
This weekend’s camp is the beginning of my spring and summer tour. Think first day of school. I didn’t dread school when I was younger. I enjoyed it. It was easy and I was able to hang out with my friends. Don’t get me wrong, I was not a fan of homework, but rest of it (socializing, etc) made that part worth it for me. This camp is my first day of school…and I am excited.
It is essentially a local camp (I live in Idaho, but travel back to California quite often) for me so there will be a lot of Long Snappers that I know and this won’t be their first rodeo at a Rubio Long Snapping camp. I am very interested to see who steps up. Being comfortable around me is one thing. Performing in front of me is a whole other. The “regulars” know the routine and what I expect. The new guys will not. I would love to see a new Long Snapper come in and just wow me. Love it, but will it happen?
2011 – Obviously, this class is stacked and there will be some key players in CA for this camp. I wonder if Scott Thompson and Tanner Gibas will show their dominance like they did in Vegas at the 9th Annual Event and blow everyone out of the water. Will Den Bleyker be confident and really let the ball fly? Will Longo show me how he has gained weight and prove that UCLA made a great decision in offering him a spot on the team? Will Gibbs stick his chest out, trust his form and let me see his improvement? How about Avila, the kid is built like a rock and is improving by the second.
2012 – This class is starting to really get their identity and it is solid. A lot of movement is going to occur in their rankings during the next nine months through the spring/summer camps and especially Vegas. This camp is their first step in a long journey and they need to start off on the right foot. The group in CA is filled with good Long Snappers…which ones will step up on Sunday and be great?
2013 – Several new sophomore Long Snappers will be attending this camp. Always intrigues me, but can they possibly keep up with some of the already old-timers? Key match-ups to see will be Lizanich (proven dominance), Mazza (up and coming, built like a 20 year old) and Thompson (form is best in class, and I am just waiting on the size to kick in). I am fully expecting a good amount of movement in this class.
Just read this post. Looks like I am putting a bit of pressure on the Long Snappers out in CA. That is not like me at all. I would never play a mind game like that now would I? Of course, being a Long Snapper is a position where one has to be able to handle an immense amount of pressure so maybe I would. Those that know me know the real answer is………
_________________________________________________________________
Rubio Long Snapping is, by far, the biggest and best resource for Long Snappers in the country. Offering the best instruction and most exposure in the world. Rubio Long Snapping can help you to become the best snapper you can be!
In just 12 years, Chris Rubio, President and Owner of Rubio Long Snapping, has become the #1 Long Snapping instructor in the country and the go-to man when a college coach needs a Long Snapper. Colleges from across the country rely on “Rubio’s” word day in and day out on who the best Long Snappers are in the country. Rubio Long Snapping has assisted in over 300 Long Snappers earning FULL SCHOLARSHIPS to major colleges and universities just for Long Snapping and many into the NFL as well.
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