FAYETTEVILLE — Reserve, La., Riverside Academy head coach Chris Lachney is a big fan of his tailback Jeremy Gibson, but it is not just because of the electrifying play on the football field of the Arkansas commit.
Lachney, whose team opened the season with a 54-0 win over Baton Rouge Southern Lab, also raves about Gibson's character is off the field and the fact that he truly understands what the word committed means.
“In terms of Jeremy, what is there not to say,” Lachney said. “He is one of the best football players that I have ever been around and just such a joy to watch, not only to compete on Fridays, but I feel like the people who only get to see him on Fridays get cheated out of the best part of Jeremy.
“I see him on the field every day, in the weight room every day, in the classroom and and I get to see that work ethic and the kid has a fun-loving approach to life that really is inspiring. He inspires me to have a better day just by watching him.
“He is one of those rare people who God has given the ability that he seems to never have a bad day. You never see that kid have a bad day. I make a point to recognize that with our team.
“Now we are not foolish enough to think that he actually never has a bad day, but he just never lets it affect him to where his life infects another.
“He has got a great ability to compartmentalize - when it is time to take care of school work, he does that 100 percent; when it is time to go to football practice and be 100 percent involved, he does that and not let the two affect each other and then he has his social life and just really has a great knack for compartmentalizing all that.
“All that really makes him one of the most enjoyable kids I have every been around.”
Gibson (5-11, 190, 4.4) rushed 204 times for 1,319 yards and 20 touchdowns last season, including 125 yards and a touchdown as Riverside Academy won the Division III state title for select schools by beating St. Charles Catholic 47-20 on Dec. 2 at The Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans.
He had 8 carries for 55 yards and two touchdowns in the first game of the 2017 season in a contest that the starters got limited time after jumping to a 30-0 lead in the first quarter.
“I think one thing that really makes him really, really special is his vision and the way he sets up blocks,” Lachney said. “I don’t think that is something that the average fan would necessarily see. They are going to see his breakaway speed, they are going to see his power, they are going to see his change of direction - those are evident.
“But it is the things that you don't realize that he did until you put on the tape after the game that really make you appreciate how natural and talented a football player he is.
“What he needs to continue to work on - just like all running backs - is to continue to improve his pass blocking. He is already a good pass catcher out of the backfield and has a lot of stuff going for him, but I would say his pass protection techniques could continue to be developed and worked upon as well as his ability to operate without the ball.
“None of it is effort issues and I don't want to make it sound like that, but he has to understand when you are Jeremy Gibson and you have eyes on you wherever you go, then if you can sell that fake a little more, if you can carry out that fake a few more steps, that might really be the difference in the play going the the distance.”
Gibson chose Arkansas over Missouri, Utah, Purdue, Arizona State, Texas Tech and numerous other scholarship offers.
“I think it is a good match and I think any situation where both parties truly want to be a part of is going to be a good situation,” Lachney said. “I don’t know that there is not another running back that could be just as good as him for Arkansas and I don’t know that there is not another school that could be just as good for him.
“I’m not saying that the two parties are a match made in heaven, I am just saying that they have a mutual respect and a mutual desire for each other so that right there is a recipe for success.”
Lachney noted that it was not imperative that Gibson get his decision out of the way quickly, but more important to make sure he was totally committed to the school of his choice.
“In terms of the recruiting process and the time he got it done, I am glad he got it done, but if he didn’t get it out of the way, it’s not as if I would have been disappointed,” Lachney said.
“…We talk to our kids all the time - especially when we are blessed every now and then to have a high-profile kid like Jeremy - that when you commit to something, that means something.
“These days in recruiting we seem to have developed this brand new vocabulary and new definition of words where the word commitment really doesn’t mean what it used to in the world of college football, but to the rest of the world it does.
“We try to teach our kids here that when you commit to something, you are committed. To me there is no such thing as a verbal commitment or a soft commitment. You are either committed or you are not and we teach that around here. If you have to de-commit from something, you were never really committed to it to begin with.
“When I read about kids that are committed to a school and they are still looking at other schools, I am the most confused person on the face of the earth.
“That would be like me telling my wife that we are married, but I am still dating, I am going to still keep my options open here just in case something better comes around. I don’t think she would take too kindly to that and I don't think anybody should.
“I am really proud of Jeremy because when I tell you that since the day he committed to Arkansas, he has not talked about one other school with me and we talk on a daily basis. He’s in, he's solid and the word committed still means something to him.”