Post by rkozak201 on Mar 7, 2008 12:21:00 GMT -5
BY DUSTIN HALUSKA
STAFF WRITER
dhaluska@republicanherald.com
03/07/2008
Last November, Schuylkill Haven native Corey Gipe wrapped up a stellar collegiate football career at Bloomsburg University.
He hasn’t put his helmet or shoulder pads away quite yet.
Saturday night, Gipe begins a new chapter in his storied football career as a lineman for the Reading Express.
The Express open their third season in a nationally televised American Indoor Football Association game against the Baltimore Mariners at 7 p.m. from Procak Associates Field in the Sovereign Center.
“Football has been a big part of my life and the Express have given me a tremendous opportunity to keep playing,” Gipe said. “I can’t wait to put the helmet back on and step onto the field again.”
Playing football was the last thing on Gipe’s mind in late December when he underwent surgery on cartilage in his left knee.
It didn’t stop the Express, who scouted the Bloomsburg standout through his senior season, from keeping in contact with Gipe and urging him to participate in their Jan. 12 tryout.
“I had a quick recovery, but I was really thankful for the faith the Express put in my knee. They really worked with me,” Gipe said.
“At the end of high school I asked myself do I really want to keep playing football and towards the end of my college career it hit me hard again.”
Gipe graduated from Bloomsburg University in December and is currently employed at Access Services in Orwigsburg, working with behavioral health clients.
He finished his career at Bloomsburg with 87 tackles, nine for loss, and four sacks. His senior season earned him first-team All-Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference East Division honors.
The former Schuylkill Haven standout will no longer be playing in the open air stadiums on Saturday afternoons, but the atmosphere of seeing his family in the stands remains the same.
“When you have someone in the stands it means the world to any athlete,” Gipe said. “My parents (Cheryl and Lon), brother (Lon) and girlfriend
(Leslie Shoener) have always been there for me.”
The Gipe clan tailgated before and after each of Corey’s collegiate games.
According to Corey Gipe, the change of venue from Bloomsburg to the inner city of Reading may not stop his father from carrying on the family tradition.
“I don’t know if my dad will be cooking in inner city Reading, but he’ll probably find a way to have a couple of festive drinks before the game,” Gipe said.
Gipe’s off-the-field humor is a polar opposite to his intensity and demeanor on the field.
A defensive lineman at Bloomsburg, Gipe is learning the defensive end position as well as keeping his options open for some work on the offensive line.
“I’m willing to do whatever I can to get on the field,” Gipe said.
At 6-foot-2, 284 pounds, Gipe used his speed to slip past bigger offensive lineman in college. He is fully aware that he will have to rely more on his technique at the arena level.
If his speed, size and technique don’t cut it, his hard work and team-first attitude will.
While playing under late coach John Davis at Schuylkill Haven, Gipe’s football character was molded.
Through four successful seasons at Bloomsburg, Gipe never forgot where he came from.
“Coach Davis always told us to play like a bundle of sticks. He said it was possible to break a stick, but when you play together as a team, it’s a lot harder to break the sticks,” Gipe said. “That always stuck with me to this day.”
©The REPUBLICAN & Herald 2008
STAFF WRITER
dhaluska@republicanherald.com
03/07/2008
Last November, Schuylkill Haven native Corey Gipe wrapped up a stellar collegiate football career at Bloomsburg University.
He hasn’t put his helmet or shoulder pads away quite yet.
Saturday night, Gipe begins a new chapter in his storied football career as a lineman for the Reading Express.
The Express open their third season in a nationally televised American Indoor Football Association game against the Baltimore Mariners at 7 p.m. from Procak Associates Field in the Sovereign Center.
“Football has been a big part of my life and the Express have given me a tremendous opportunity to keep playing,” Gipe said. “I can’t wait to put the helmet back on and step onto the field again.”
Playing football was the last thing on Gipe’s mind in late December when he underwent surgery on cartilage in his left knee.
It didn’t stop the Express, who scouted the Bloomsburg standout through his senior season, from keeping in contact with Gipe and urging him to participate in their Jan. 12 tryout.
“I had a quick recovery, but I was really thankful for the faith the Express put in my knee. They really worked with me,” Gipe said.
“At the end of high school I asked myself do I really want to keep playing football and towards the end of my college career it hit me hard again.”
Gipe graduated from Bloomsburg University in December and is currently employed at Access Services in Orwigsburg, working with behavioral health clients.
He finished his career at Bloomsburg with 87 tackles, nine for loss, and four sacks. His senior season earned him first-team All-Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference East Division honors.
The former Schuylkill Haven standout will no longer be playing in the open air stadiums on Saturday afternoons, but the atmosphere of seeing his family in the stands remains the same.
“When you have someone in the stands it means the world to any athlete,” Gipe said. “My parents (Cheryl and Lon), brother (Lon) and girlfriend
(Leslie Shoener) have always been there for me.”
The Gipe clan tailgated before and after each of Corey’s collegiate games.
According to Corey Gipe, the change of venue from Bloomsburg to the inner city of Reading may not stop his father from carrying on the family tradition.
“I don’t know if my dad will be cooking in inner city Reading, but he’ll probably find a way to have a couple of festive drinks before the game,” Gipe said.
Gipe’s off-the-field humor is a polar opposite to his intensity and demeanor on the field.
A defensive lineman at Bloomsburg, Gipe is learning the defensive end position as well as keeping his options open for some work on the offensive line.
“I’m willing to do whatever I can to get on the field,” Gipe said.
At 6-foot-2, 284 pounds, Gipe used his speed to slip past bigger offensive lineman in college. He is fully aware that he will have to rely more on his technique at the arena level.
If his speed, size and technique don’t cut it, his hard work and team-first attitude will.
While playing under late coach John Davis at Schuylkill Haven, Gipe’s football character was molded.
Through four successful seasons at Bloomsburg, Gipe never forgot where he came from.
“Coach Davis always told us to play like a bundle of sticks. He said it was possible to break a stick, but when you play together as a team, it’s a lot harder to break the sticks,” Gipe said. “That always stuck with me to this day.”
©The REPUBLICAN & Herald 2008