FOREIGN-EXCHANGE STUDENT WINS JOB

LINCOLN — Knowing extrapoint kicks and field goals have to be absolutely, positively over the uprights to count and needing a kicker, Lincoln turned to an express delivery service.

Emilio Marrufo, a foreign- exchange student from Merida on the Yucatan peninsula in Mexico, was recruited to go out for football upon his arrival.

“In Mexico we don’t have football like this,” Emilio said during a recent workout. “We only have soccer and a little baseball. There is a lot of soccer there.”

Host Family

For Lincoln sophomore Garrett Prater, 15, the joy of taking in Emilio this school year has established a new level of camaraderie in the Prater household with Garrett’s parents, Corey and Shannon Prater, of Lincoln, serving as the host family.

“I like having a brother, it’s awesome,” Garrett said. “It’s pretty fun having somebody to do something with. We go outside and play catch. Just having somebody to be there to do stuff with is the main thing.”

“Most of the [ football] team wanted him to play,” Garrett said. “We said he would like it. Since he has played soccer, he would be able to kick the ball a little bit. Then he just wanted to join.”

Kicking A Football

Emilio, who has grown up playing soccer with friends on the streets of Merida, the capital of Yucatan which has a current population of 1.2 million, has quickly adapted to kicking a football in the small rural community of Lincoln, population 2,200.

“In soccer you see the ball in front of you and you try to kick the bottom of the ball,” Emilio said. “The strength is right there. It’s the same in football.”

Coming into the 2013 football season there was a question on how the Wolves would fill the kicker position with the graduation of Manual Ortiz in the spring but Emilio has transformed those concerns into optimism. He has kicked 47-yard field goals during practice and his athleticism gives Lincoln an option to go for a field goal, something that has coach Brad Harris excited.

“We’ve got a good one. He has a strong leg, he has picked it up really quick,” Harris said. “He’s by far our best kicker and he’s going to bring that to us on kickoffs.”

Transition

For Emilio

the

biggest

Emilio has done all this while mourning the passing of his younger sister, Valeria Maruffo-Biachi, 4; on Sept. 4 with a decision to stay in school at Lincoln.

“It’s tough but life goes on. I’m still here,” Emilio said candidly after Friday night’s game.

Valeria had heart problems, which Emilio said required extra care and he had frequently looked after her. Emilio was originally listed as wearing jersey number eight on the Lincoln preseason roster but switched with sophomore Noah Swayne so he could wear number four in memory of Valeria. The entire team is wearing a

Emilio is the second son of the Marrufo family to come north as a foreign-exchange student. His older brother, Luis Jr., now 19, went to high school at Canada where he met a Polish student. The two became sweethearts and Luis Jr. is now attending college in Poland with his girlfriend.

Emilio is the youngest of three children, including sister Regina, 21; born to Luis Marrufo Sr., owner of a uniform company, and Carmen Gonzales, a sixth grade elementary teacher. After a divorce, Luis Sr. remarried and Emilio has a stepmother, Laura; and stepbrother, Ramiro, 18 months.

Baseball Prospect

His dad played baseball and Emilio likes to wear the same baseball jersey number, 19. Emilio has played baseball with an American team in the Top American Prospects league after being invited by his cousin, Alex Rodriguez, 19, of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and anticipates he may go to high school there for his senior year but for now he’s enjoying the relaxed atmosphere at Lincoln.

“It’s so different than my city. It’s a new experience in my life,” Emilio said. “To live in a small town like this, it’s good because all the people enjoy it.”

Em i l io ha s been constantly introduced to more and more people. He chuckles recalling a conversation in his native Spanish with Ron Mooney, who teaches the language at Lincoln High School and doubles as an avid Wolves’ fan with a camera.

“He’s a good person, too,” Emilio said smiling. “It was good.”

Emilio is also teaching Garrett to speak some Spanish and feels welcome at Lincoln.

“I’ve been in New York two times, San Francisco and Florida six times but all of those towns is too big,” Emilio said. “This is so different. I like this.”

Editors Note:

A condensed Spanish version of this story translated by Abigayl Sandate, a 2012 Farmington graduate and current NWACC Hospitality Management major, has been posted on the WASHINGTON COUNTY ENTERPRISE-LEADER Facebook page.