Where Are They Now? featuring Jake Abraham!

Today, we are featuring Rubio Long Snapping Jake Abraham!

What is your occupation? Financial Analyst at Fisher Investments

Where do you live? Tampa, FL

Married? Kids? Not married, no kids.

What is your fondest memory of your time playing college football?
It’s tough to pick just one honestly. If I had to go with a favorite on field moment, it has to be storming the field with fans in 2014 at home after securing an 8-0 Sun Belt record and our first Sun Belt championship in our first year as a member of the conference.

There’s a ton of moments off the field where I’m just hanging out with my teammates or messing around in the locker room that bring a bigger smile to my face though. Those moments are the best part of being on a team.

If you could give ONE bit of advice to the current Rubio Long Snappers, what would it be? Snapping PARENTS, what would it be?

Advice to current Long Snappers: Pick a school and a location. Don’t pick a coach. Don’t pick based on a person or people. Pick for yourself. Every other person that you interact with in recruiting could be gone. I had 3 different coaching staffs and only 1 single coach that was the same when I left Georgia Southern. My senior class stuck together and of the roughly 20 of us, I think all but maybe 2 or 3 had been there for a full 3-4 years. That bond made us much closer and made everything far more important and just meant more to us as a group in our Senior Year. I still have relationships with them and love them to this day.

Advice to Parents: Please let your kid mature and grow up. When they get to the college recruiting time and choosing a college they’re 16-18 years old. Let them make some decisions for themselves. My parents stayed completely out of my recruiting process except for proofreading emails to coaches for spelling mistakes and simple items like that. They let me speak for myself in recruiting meetings unless they were directly addressed by the coaches. When it comes time to make a decision, offer support and guidance but don’t sway your child. This is one of the first times in their life that they get to make a huge decision for themselves and their life trajectory. Let them be the ones to steer that ship and just be there to help if called upon.

When was the last time you snapped a ball and for what reason? About a month ago I coached a youth camp with an old teammate of mine who’s an Atlanta Firefighter, Ironhead Gallon. We put on a free camp in North Florida and it was mostly just to get kids together and have fun. Did some combine drills, some 7 on 7, and just having fun with a football. Ironhead asked me if I could still snap and I gave a quick stretch and snapped right to his hip of course. I had a good coach.

If you could go back and play football in college again, would you go to the same school or a different one? Why?  I’d go to the same school. I don’t have any regrets about where I went to school. It was a really fun university and was in a great location. The professors and classes prepared me well for the real world and being a professional in the job market. I made wonderful connections there that I still utilize to this day. I am extremely thankful and grateful for the life that my decision to go to Georgia Southern has given me.

Any regrets during college? Anything you wish you had done or hadn’t done? Regrets? Absolutely, but you can’t go through life without a single one of those. One thing I wish I did a little more in college, was try to interact with non-football organizations on campus. Maybe join a club or two with similar interests. I started to get into that when my eligibility ran out and I was still there studying for my MBA because I had the time at that point. I think it’s easy to get caught up in the groups and people that are naturally around you, but make sure you don’t lose yourself and who you are in that. I let some of my interests and hobbies from when I was a younger take a backseat and rediscovering those as an adult has made me happy, but I wish I didn’t have to rediscover them.

What tremendous thing have you been a part of or experienced since you graduated? I think traveling the world a bit. I’ve been able to meet a lot of amazingpeople and see some incredible cultures. I’ve visited Israel, Italy, Austria, and Germany since graduating and I highly recommend going abroad for some time. We forget that America is incredibly young compared to the world. I’ve eaten at restaurants that are older than our country in Germany. I’ve seen buildings that are 3x the age of America. Grabbing perspective from other cultures and learning how they live life a bit differently, for better or for worse, is very important. There’s an infinite number of ways that we can go through life and everyone does it differently, you’ll never do it properly if you don’t try to look at other people’s examples and history’s examples for guidance.

 

Rubio Long Snapping is, by far, the biggest and best resource for Long Snappers in the country. Rubio has been featured in the Washington Post, the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the USA Today, Deadspin, Sports Illustrated and countless other publications.

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 20 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 1,850 Long Snappers earning full scholarships and preferred walk-on opportunities to major colleges and universities just for Long Snapping and many into the NFL as well.

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Rubio Long Snapping Lessons Weekend of January 28 – 29

Second from the right: Jason Bertoni, Senior Rubio Long Snapping Instructor, hold lessons in Southern California.

The off season is the perfect time to take advantage of any instructors in your area. The list is constantly growing and changes are posted each week.

Rubio Long Snapping has Senior Instructors and Staff Members all over the country running private lessons and holding group sessions.  The objective is to get Long Snappers ready for upcoming Rubio Long Snapping camps.  The instructors teach the Rubio way by getting Long Snappers ready mentally as well as physically while still having fun.

To find out more about upcoming Rubio Long Snapping events click HERE.

For more detailed information on lessons, please contact Samantha@RubioLongSnapping.com

Here is a complete list of available instructors throughout the country:

Arkansas

  • Ryan Eustace – Jonesboro

California

  • Jason Bertoni – Santa Monica
    • Sunday 1/29 from 9am – 11am (Virginia Park)
  • Casey Hales  – Bay Area
    • Sunday 1/29 from 2pm – 4pm (Sacramento)
  • Ryan Simmons – San Diego
  • Scotty Thompson – Ranch Santa Margarita
  • Matt Wigley – Anaheim
    • Sunday 1/29 10am – 5pm (Private & Group)

Colorado

  • Tanner Gibas – Denver/Colorado Springs

Florida

  • Ryan Farr – Gainesville
  • Billy Miller – Tampa

Georgia

  • Jake Abraham – Statesboro/Savannah
  • Jeff Abraham – Atlanta
  • Harrison Elliott – Atlanta/Macon
  • Danny LaMontagne –  Atlanta

Illinois

  • Josh Appel – Central IL
  • Nolan Owen – Chicago

Indiana

  • Josh Appel – Terre Haute

Kansas

  • Corey Adams – Kansas City

Louisiana

  • Aaron Golub – New Orleans
  • Blake Ferguson – Baton Rouge
  • Geron Eatherly – New Orleans

Minnesota

  • Nick Monaghan – Minneapolis

Nebraska

  • Gabe Miller – Lincoln

New Jersey

  • Alan Lucy – New Brunswick

New Mexico

  • Steven Romero – Albuquerque

North Carolina

  • Jake Abraham – Charlotte
  • Tyler Griffiths – Raleigh
    • Saturday 1/28 at Noon

Oregon

  • Christian Yount – Portland

Pennsylvania

  • Carson Vey – Philadelphia

Tennessee

  • Derrick Lopez

Texas

  • Kevin Ballinger – Houston
  • John Finch – Dallas Fort Worth
    • Saturday 1/28 from 9:30am – 11am
  • Chris Roberson – Houston  

Utah

  • Matt Foley – Provo

Washington

  • Brendan Lopez – Seattle

*All of the gentlemen listed are Rubio Long Snapping Senior Instructors or Senior Staff Members.

For more detailed information on lessons, please contact Samantha@RubioLongSnapping.com

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r4ubio5Rubio 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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Why Not Coach, Rubio?

One of the hardest habits I have to break on my Long Snappers has absolutely nothing to do with snapping. It has to do with that they/you call me. Like I have said, I am a private football coach that teaches Long Snapping. So, therefore, one would want to call me coach.

Please don’t.

“But Rubio (see how I am already training you here), you are a coach so we should call you coach.” True, but I am out with it.

Here are my reasons…..I won’t just coach you about Long Snapping. Anyone that has spent any time with me knows this for a fact. I make it a point to get to know each and every Long Snapper (and quite often their parents if they embrace) I encounter and my spray of Long Snapping is just a tiny aspect of what I actually do and teach. If you have been with me at a camp, lesson, event, on the phone, through Twitter, whatever and think all I do is coach Long Snapping, you seriously need to have your head examined.

Here are a couple images to show different things that I have taught my Long Snappers:)

Modeling poses with Drew Ferris (FL)
How to be a Harlem Globetrotter
How to send out a quality Twitter message with Harrison Elliott (Air Force)
How to be a table
And who can forget, getting ready for prom with Corey Gibas (Texas A&M)

Being an athlete (former, unless you count the domination of random Long Snapping contests, ping pong, wiffle ball and arcade basketball as maintaining my athlete title). I have had MANY experiences with coaches as I am sure you have as well. Now, I want you to think back to all the coaches you have had. Go ahead and think. Now, out of all of them, how many bring a massive smile to your face? Maybe ten percent….if you are lucky? I’m not talking about a smile because you “remember just how crazy Coach _____ was” but a legit, “man, Coach ______ was just a flat out great guy” type smile. Getting my point?

Most (not all, but most and this is my point….the bad ones leave a terrible taste in your mouth and I don’t want that stigma associated with me) coaches can coach but they can’t speak. What that means is that many/most coaches know the games in which they are leading but have lost, and choose not to gain, the ability to speak to another person/their player as a human being. Side note: pathetic and sad. 

What I like to do, and would have appreciated being done to me, is to treat each and every one of my Long Snappers like they are my own child. That is what I do….always. Is that what a coach will do….not always. 

Will I say some outlandish things every once in awhile? Yup. Do I speak like that to Alec, Cruz and Damon? Yup. Will I get in a Long Snapper’s face every once in awhile? When needed, yup. Am I mean or rude about it? Nope. No need to be. I can convey my point with words and not berating or yelling. In my opinion, those that yell and intimidate those that are younger (players on their team) are insecure and essentially really don’t know what they are doing. They need to yell to show their “power” and “dominance” because they can’t do it any other way. I am beyond out with that. (note: not all coaches are like this and if you are solid coach, I respect you and will give you a big hug the next time I see you)

You know that coach you had that did tackling drills all practice long? Guess what, he had no idea what he was doing. When you advance and have good, solid coaches (yes, they do exist and I have had several) you will rarely do tackling drills. Not because you don’t need to know how to tackle, but because you can learn without abusing your body, and often your demeanor and/or mentality, over and over and over again. I am beyond out with that. There is no need for it. How about speaking to the player and simply explaining what you would like them to do? If a coach can’t explain what they want a player to do in great detail and in a way that they (the player) can comprehend, maybe they shouldn’t be coaching.

Getting my point? I’m not saying that all coaches are evil demons that remind you of the Sergeant on Full Metal Jacket, but many are. It is not always their fault. Many have been raised that way in their sporting life, but one would think they would want to break that cycle. God knows I did.

Bottom line: You will have hundreds of coaches in your life, some will be great and some will be bad, but, I promise you this….you will only have one Rubio!

 

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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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