Terriers lineman 'Thumb Drive' holds loads of determination

TAMPA There was a time, says veteran Hillsborough coach Earl Garcia, when high school football was less about off-season combines, internet recruiting services and Division I scholarship offers, and a whole lot more about guys like George Blake, aka "Thumb Drive."

Blake, you see, is a 5-foot-2 senior who, if he gets a good meal, might tip the scales at 200 pounds. For an offensive lineman at a school the size of Hillsborough, Blake is one of the smallest players in the state. He has no fantasies of playing college football because he knows guys his size just don't get those kind of chances, not even in Division III.

"It's a physical impossibility for Thumb Drive to play at the next level," Garcia said. "But if it wasn't for his spirit, it would be a physical impossibility for him to play even at this level."

That spirit is fierce and competitive. And it earned Blake the starting job at left tackle for the Terriers early last season. Despite playing for one of the top football programs in the county in arguably one of the toughest districts in Florida, no one has managed to take Blake's job away from him.

Thursday night, Blake will square off against defensive linemen from nationally-ranked Armwood. Every player he tries to block will be at least a foot taller, at least 50 pounds heavier and all of them either have Division I scholarship offers or have already made a verbal commitment.

And like most nights, Thumb Drive will probably hold his own against them.

"I try to inspire everyone by putting into their head the thought that 'If I can do this, hey, c'mon, you can at least try,' " Blake said. "The reality of me not playing in college has long since come and gone, but it doesn't stop me from playing as hard as I can right now and enjoying every minute while it lasts."

Blake has been playing football since he was a 7-year-old, when he played for the West Tampa Spartans. Back then, just about everyone on his team was small. But at around the eighth grade, Blake says he stopped growing. And when he got to Hillsborough as a freshman, kids around him shot up above him.

Still, Blake came out for the Terriers' junior varsity team as a ninth grader and, with plenty of work in the weight room, became a starter. After the JV season ended, Garcia moved several of the freshmen up to the varsity for the remainder of that year. At first, Blake wasn't one of them. So Blake came to Garcia and convinced him to let him join the varsity. And he did it again at the end of his sophomore season.

"His freshman year, George told me, 'Coach, why didn't you move me up?' " Garcia said. "I just looked at him and said, 'Who are you? What are you? What planet are you from where people are so small?' He said, 'Coach, you're making a mistake. You have to move me up.' So I thought, 'I gotta move this little guy up with that sort of attitude.' "

As Blake moved into a starting role as a freshman and sophomore, Garcia kept asking his JV coaching staff "Guys, is that all we have over there? Thumb Drive?" The answer kept coming back to Garcia "Coach, he's a tough little guy."

How does Thumb Drive block guys seemingly twice his size? Garcia, who at 5-5 was himself a small offensive lineman in high school and college, says blocking is all about leverage. And at 5-2, quick on his feet and strong, opposing defensive linemen find it difficult to get under or around Blake.

"Let me tell you, I'd like to have him on our football team," said Armwood defensive coordinator Matt Thompson. "That kid gets after it. He drives his feet and gets to where he's supposed to be. I've seen a lot of film on Hillsborough and I've yet to see anyone physically dominate him."

Blake says a big help to his game is his strength. He can bench press 325 pounds and owns the school record for the squat at 625. But more importantly, Blake motivates his teammates with an infectious attitude and indomitable spirit.

"He's the littlest guy out here with the biggest heart and no one should ever, ever underestimate him," said Terriers defensive end Jordan Sherit. "I see guys come up to the line and laugh at him and say 'Hey, it's the little guy from film.' And the next play, he's knocking them on their butts."

"He has this mentality where he feels like no one can get past him," said Earl Moore, Hillsborough's star defensive lineman with multiple Division I offers. "He's just gets into this mindset where he doesn't think about how big the guy in front of him is."

Blake credits former Terriers player and offensive line coach Joe Sipp for much of what he has learned as a guard. They still talk just about every day and Blake says Sipp was once considered a relatively small lineman, too. But even Sipp was about 6-0 and went on to play four years for the University of South Florida.

For Blake, whose 3.9 grade point average is his best bet for a college scholarship, the football road almost certainly ends this fall. And for the most part, he's OK with that.

"Sometimes it bothers me when I come into the field house and see guys with all these letters (of interest) from college teams in their lockers and I think 'Man, I wish that were me,' " Blake said. "But like I said, I accept the reality. This is fun and something I'll always have to look back at to say 'Hey, I did it and I gave it everything I had.' "