A lot of players say they’ll do anything it takes to get on the field.
Rob McConnell proved that.
McConnell is a senior quarterback on the Archbishop Ryan High School football team, and when he was a sophomore, the team decided to go with Cole Lowe as the starting signal caller. McConnell could have spent his season as a backup, but instead, he showed his stuff on scout team at other positions and found himself in the huddle.
“I was playing tight end on scout team, and I was giving good looks, and they moved me there,” said McConnell, who lives in Somerton. “I got to make some plays in the game. I loved it. I just wanted to be out there.
“They made sure I knew what I was doing. They made sure I knew how to block. I definitely think it helps me as a quarterback. It helps my reads. It also let me know how hard the linemen work. That’s not an easy position to play. It helped me with everything.”
McConnell was expected to make his debut as the Raiders quarterback last year, and he did play in the first scrimmage, but three plays in, he suffered a knee injury. The injury didn’t seem serious at first, but it lingered into the first game of the season and McConnell was quickly pulled from the game.
Turns out it was pretty serious. A torn ACL.
“It didn’t really hurt, so I had no idea it was torn, I was able to do everything,” McConnell said. “It was rough, though. I’m always doing everything, and then I got hurt, and with COVID, everything was shut down. I couldn’t do anything.
“I was trying to stay active. I was shooting basketballs on one foot and I was trying to lift to do upper body strengthening, but I couldn’t do much. It was definitely not what I’m used to. I’m always doing something.”
McConnell, who also plays basketball and baseball at Ryan, made his return to the field during the middle of baseball season as a pitcher, and he felt great.
Now he’s 100 percent and he’s just waiting to get back on the field.
He played in some seven-on-seven tournaments during the summer and also worked with his team at getting better, mostly in the weight room.
Last year, the Raiders didn’t win a game, but he has high hopes coming into the fall.
“I think we’re going to be a lot better than a lot of people think,” said McConnell, who was expected to play linebacker last year, but thinks he’ll focus mostly on quarterback as a senior. “We’re working really hard. They got better last year, they were young. I think we have a really good line, and we have good players. I’m looking forward to getting back.”
It will certainly help that the Raiders are getting their quarterback back.
Last year, McConnell spent the season around the team. He watched with coaches. He worked with the healthy quarterbacks. And while he was teaching his teammates, he was picking up tips that will pay dividends this year.
“I think it helped me a lot,” said McConnell, who will be joined this year on the team by his brother Gavin, who is coming into the school as a freshman. “I think I learned a lot by helping. You just see things. When you’re watching and talking to coaches, you see things that you don’t really see when you’re on the field.
“I think I’m a pretty good all-around quarterback. I’m good from the pocket, I can run a little bit. I can throw and run when needed. And I worked really hard on becoming a smart quarterback. I think that will help a lot.”
McConnell believes his future is in football and ideally would like to be a quarterback beyond high school. It’s also his immediate future, as he doesn’t believe he’ll see a lot of time on defense this year.
He loves his other sports, too. Last year baseball was the perfect way to get back in the game, and he’s looking forward to joining a basketball team that advanced to the state championship over the winter and has high hopes heading into next year.
“I can shoot a little bit, but I’ll do a lot of my work underneath with put-backs and just working hard,” said McConnell, who will play forward in basketball. “And baseball was great last year. I didn’t get to start the season because I was coming back from the injury, but I felt good out there. It definitely helped keep my arm strong.”
McConnell hopes to have a strong final year to get some tape to send to college. He’s unsure where he wants to go, but he’s leaning toward a career in either law or engineering. Colleges will be interested in him for his athletics, but his academics are a huge plus.
“I’ve always been pretty good in school,” said McConnell who is ranked in the top 20 of his senior class. “When I was younger, my parents pushed me, but now I do it on my own. I really want to put myself in position to play in college, and grades are a big part of that.”
