2020 CTA's Blue Chip Chat: Ellwood City's Ryan Gibbons

Ellwood City football player Ryan Gibbons has been the team's starting quarterback since his freshman year of high school since 2017.

SOURCE: (TWITTER | Ryan Gibbons)

Ryan Gibbons

School: Ellwood City

Position: QB

Year: Senior

Height: 6-1

Weight: 175

The Scoop

Ryan Gibbons will be the starting quarterback for Ellwood City for the fourth straight season as he became the team's starting quarterback since his freshman year of high school in 2017. Ryan's Ellwood City football teammates, that are part of the Class of 2021, have gone 5-24 in the past three years. One of his goals for the upcoming football season is to make the WPIAL football playoffs for the first time in his high school career. As a quarterback, he has thrown for 1,725 yards and has scored nine touchdowns in his first three seasons.

College Talk

Ryan is also an infielder and pitcher on Ellwood City's baseball team. NCAA Division III schools are interested in recruiting Ryan for both football and baseball. He is currently stuck on deciding which sport to play in college.

Questions and Answers

What would you say are your goals for your senior year of high school football?

My goal this year is to lead my team to a winning record and to secure a playoff spot.

Your Ellwood City team got shut out six times while going 0-10 last season. What would you say was your team's problem last season?

Inexperience was our biggest problem last year. We had a lot of young guys that were asked to take on big roles and perform even if they weren’t ready. Now they have a whole season under their belts, and I believe that will help us this year.

What would you say is the biggest thing that your team fixed in the offseason to become better?

We’ve definitely matured a huge amount from last year and we’ve gotten better at working as a team. All eleven players on the field are really focused on working as one unit.

What do you think is essential to become a good quarterback?

Leadership and intelligence are essential. The quarterback is usually asked to be one of the leaders of the team. There are also many things a quarterback needs to know to be successful from the plays to coverages and defenses.

You were just named as a captain on your football team. How did you feel after being named a captain?

It was such an honor. It was a great feeling to know that my teammates trust me with that responsibility.

On your regular season schedule, which team are you most excited to play? Definitely Riverside, they are our cross-town rivals and it’s always a big game every year. The atmosphere surrounding the game is always amazing as well.

So, did anyone else in your family play football besides yourself?

My dad played quarterback for Ellwood in the early 80’s and my brother played and graduated a few years ago.

Would you want to see yourself playing football or baseball in college? What schools are you currently interested in?

I’m stuck between choosing football and baseball right now. I’ve gotten some interest from some Division III schools in both sports. It’s been definitely more difficult for baseball after losing my junior year.

Music wise, who do you listen to before games?

I don’t really have a go to before games. I just try to listen to something that will keep me calm so I can focus on what needs to get done.

AND FINALLY

What is something that people would be surprised to know about you?

I almost quit playing football in middle school.

Brentaro Yamane: bkyamane@gmail.com and Twitter/Instagram @BYHilton13