Hard work during offseason pays off for Squalicum’s Burgoon

Two years ago, Squalicum senior two-way offensive and defensive line starter Jacob Burgoon was only 150 pounds playing junior varsity football. Burgoon admitted he wanted more out of the game and soon made a commitment to wake up everyday at 5 a.m. to train.

Squalicum coach Nick Lucey has raved about his offseason work, and all of that effort has seemed to pay off, as the 6-foot, 200-poun Burgoon has helped the sixth-ranked Storm get off to a 3-0 start this year.

Question: How did you start playing football?

Answer: I started playing football when I was in fourth grade. I used to live in Minnesota and moved to Washington. I thought about coming back and starting playing football again. I was nervous and didn’t have very many friends being new in town. I started in eighth grade, came out to Squalicum’s football camp. Squalicum has great senior classes and I fell in love with it and have stuck with it ever since.

Q: What do you like most about playing football?

A: I am a competitor, so I love going out and competing and competing against myself and trying to get better every day. I’m a huge team player, and I hope to help out my varsity teammates, but also the JV guys, help make them better and they will help make us better.

Q: What is your favorite part of game night?

A: The preparation leading up. I go out onto the field early, listen to music, imagine the lights on, imagine the plays we are going to run. The preparation is my favorite part, because once it’s game time, I’m going 100 mph. ... I listen to everything from rap to some Christian rap and Christian rock. It gets me really pumped.

Q: What is your favorite football memory?

A: My favorite memory would have to be during football camp. During the summer we go to Evergreen State College and have a tournament. It’s two plays, hard-nosed, you versus the other team, and my favorite moment was beating the team that was bigger than us, a 3A school. Beating them and staying in the tournament going as long as we could, I think we won 10 to 12 plays in a row.

Q: What is your usual/favorite pregame meal?

A: I got to have some steak fajitas. I cook them myself sometimes. I just like digging into some meat and getting some vegetables. I’m huge on science and getting the right amount of nutrition to be prepared.

Q: Is there a reason you chose your jersey number (63)?

A: My freshman year I chose 59 because my dad wore that number throughout high school and college. Sophomore year I had to get a new number, and coach said the closest I could get was 63. I’ve stuck with that since sophomore year.

Q: What position, other than the ones you currently play, would you like to try and why?

A: I’ve always wanted to be a quarterback, because the quarterback gets most of the attention from the girls. Really I like being a leader, and I know that the quarterback gets to lead.

This story was originally published September 24, 2015 at 7:34 PM with the headline "Hard work during offseason pays off for Squalicum’s Burgoon."