Dr. Lecter
09-01-2013, 04:15 PM
When coach Darnell Moore got his hands on EJ Manuel at Bayside High School in Virginia Beach, Va., he resisted the temptation to let his prized freshman quarterback simply use his size and speed to overwhelm opposing defenses. » “We didn’t run the option or anything with him his first two years, because we wanted him to concentrate on being a pro-style quarterback,” Moore recalls. “We didn’t want him to get labeled as an athlete playing quarterback. We wanted him to be seen as a quarterback who’s a good athlete.” » Nine years later, Manuel considers his ability to focus on his receivers a great strength. » “I think I have the ability to know when to run and when to run in order to throw,” Manuel said early in his first Buffalo Bills training camp. “When I break out of the pocket, I’m still looking downfield for my receivers. You have to distribute the ball to your playmakers.” » The fact Manuel completed 70 percent of his passes at Florida State on throws from outside the pocket is just one small example of his single-minded ability to focus. It’s a trait that seemingly extends to all areas of his life. » Manuel knew he wanted to be a quarterback from the time he first stepped on a football field as a 6-year-old. He was determined to excel in the classroom from an early age, so much so that his father remembers him crying a rare time he brought home a C grade.
He gave up basketball, at which he excelled, at age 16 to concentrate on football.
He won Bayside’s award given to the school’s top two all-around students. He picked Florida State in part because its pro-style offense would better prepare him for the NFL. He graduated from college in 3½ years and is halfway to a master’s degree. He was the winning quarterback in four bowl games.
And he became a first-round NFL draft choice when the Bills picked him 16th overall in April.
Manuel is nothing if not driven to succeed as the quarterback of the future – and present – for the Bills.
“EJ at 10 was bigger than most other kids, but that’s not just what made him different,” recalls Demarco Henderson, who coached Manuel in basketball from age 9 to 16. “When you’re in practice with 10-year-olds, they’re running all over the place. You have to tell some kids things over and over. Not EJ. He wanted it so bad. EJ seemed so much more focused and more mature than the other kids his age.”
One day in 2000, Henderson was driving with his assistant coach, Erik Manuel Sr. Henderson pulled the car to the side of the road.
“We were riding back from a game and I stopped the car and said, ‘Your son is going to be the No. 1 player in the country some day,’ ” Henderson recalls. “ ‘You’ve got to begin to prepare him for what’s to come.’ ”
http://www.buffalonews.com/sports/nfl-preview/need-to-succeed-drives-bills-manuel-20130831
He gave up basketball, at which he excelled, at age 16 to concentrate on football.
He won Bayside’s award given to the school’s top two all-around students. He picked Florida State in part because its pro-style offense would better prepare him for the NFL. He graduated from college in 3½ years and is halfway to a master’s degree. He was the winning quarterback in four bowl games.
And he became a first-round NFL draft choice when the Bills picked him 16th overall in April.
Manuel is nothing if not driven to succeed as the quarterback of the future – and present – for the Bills.
“EJ at 10 was bigger than most other kids, but that’s not just what made him different,” recalls Demarco Henderson, who coached Manuel in basketball from age 9 to 16. “When you’re in practice with 10-year-olds, they’re running all over the place. You have to tell some kids things over and over. Not EJ. He wanted it so bad. EJ seemed so much more focused and more mature than the other kids his age.”
One day in 2000, Henderson was driving with his assistant coach, Erik Manuel Sr. Henderson pulled the car to the side of the road.
“We were riding back from a game and I stopped the car and said, ‘Your son is going to be the No. 1 player in the country some day,’ ” Henderson recalls. “ ‘You’ve got to begin to prepare him for what’s to come.’ ”
http://www.buffalonews.com/sports/nfl-preview/need-to-succeed-drives-bills-manuel-20130831