Lions QB Poot doing big things
“You’re 5 foot nothin,’ 100 and nothing,’ and you have barely a speck of athletic ability.” — groundskeeper Fortune to Rudy Ruettiger in the movie “Rudy.”
Galileo football coach Mark Huynh didn’t exactly repeat that iconic movie line 3½ years ago when Adrian Poot asked if he should go out for quarterback.
But, frankly, his response was even less encouraging.
“I laughed,” Huynh said. “All our coaches did.”
Though they got a good chuckle, they didn’t squash Poot’s dream. If he really wanted to give it a shot, why not? The Lions weren’t exactly stocked with Division I prospects at the position.
Then again, Poot was only 5-foot-3 and weighed about 160 pounds. He’s up to almost 170 now, but still stands 5-3.
“He’s basically a little box,” Huynh said. “He’s so low to the ground, he’s hard to tackle. He’s a load. He just makes plays.”
As a second-year starter, the senior has made a lot of them for the 8-2 Lions, who take on Mission (8-3) in Saturday’s San Francisco Section title game (1 p.m. at Kezar Stadium).
Poot had a hand in four touchdowns — two running and two passing — and threw for a career-best 233 yards in the team’s regular-season game against Mission, a 40-36 defeat. Overall, he has thrown for 1,165 yards and accounted for 20 touchdowns to prove a solid complement to 5-10, 200-pound sophomore tailback Yarvell Smith (1,218 yards rushing, 19 TDs).
When Poot arrived at Galileo, Huynh considered putting him on the line.
“He’s never been very fast,” he said. “And he couldn’t even throw a bubble pass. But for four seasons he’s just worked and worked and worked to get better. Now he can make that pass. And he can escape trouble and make plays. The best part is his teammates love him.”
Galileo’s camaraderie is a big part of its success, Huynh said, just like when it won section crowns in 2009 (Huynh’s first season) and 2013.
The Lions will need all the togetherness they can get while trying to corral the many offensive threats of Mission, which went 6-0 to win its fourth consecutive Academic Athletic Association regular-season title.
Greg Hill, Mission’s secondyear coach, said the Bears, who relied on two-time AAA Player of the Year Niamey Harris to make all the plays last season, have divvied up running duties this year among Jamal Dixon, Jelani Al-Malik, Cheeko Wells and I’Jah Pratt. All are adept at catching passes from quarterback McKinley Oliver, too.
“We feed whoever has the hot hand,” Hill said. “Everyone gets their touches. We’ve bought into the team approach.”
Oliver (linebacker) and Dixon (safety) are equally effective on defense, as is fullback and middle linebacker U’Jah Pratt. Other than the 36 points it gave up to Galileo, Mission allowed just 29 points in league play before a 30-2 win last week over Washington in the playoffs.
The victor will be the first AAA team to qualify for the state tournament. “The guys are aware of it, but we’re very much focused on Saturday,” Hill said.
Said Huynh: “They ended our season last year and beat us in a close game this season. One hundred percent of our attention is on Mission.”