Entering third varsity season, Jack Coates wears leadership role well for Jacobs

Jacobs’ Jack Coates was always one of the biggest kids in his age group. It led him to dream big, so the junior linebacker/tight end wanted to start on varsity as a freshman for the Golden Eagles.

That’s a lofty ambition, but with the work he put in leading up to entering high school, he turned that desire into a reality. But once there, he had other things on his mind for the varsity.

“That was always the goal, to get the ‘he’s a freshman’ chant,” Coates said. “I’d heard the ‘he’s a sophomore’ chant, but never the freshman one. I always wanted the freshman one.

“I got it one time.”

Coates went from precocious freshman starter to Jacobs’ defensive stalwart last season, recording 122 tackles. Now, while trying to attract college interest, Coates takes on a leadership role for the Golden Eagles.

“We’re really excited for him,” Jacobs coach Brian Zimmerman said. “I keep forgetting that he’s only a junior. You realize you’ve got him for two more years. We’re pretty blessed to have a high character kid like that who also is on top of that a really good athlete.

“I think he needs to be getting a few more looks from schools. He’s under the radar a little bit.”

Junior quarterback Austin Stennett has known Coates since middle school. Coates’ quick emergence came as no surprise to him.

“He was a guy that grew pretty early and kept that trend and kept going,” Stennett said. “That kid is a beast.”

Zimmerman confirmed program numbers dictate whether or not a freshman will be needed on varsity. In the case of former four-year stars Paulie Rudolph and Grant Stec, it was based on merit.

You can add Coates to that list.

“He didn’t look like a freshman,” Zimmerman said. “We knew coming in that he was going to be a good player. Sometimes it’s a numbers game. Jack showed he belonged right away.”

With early development often comes increased leadership roles, with everyone looking to him. It’s something Coates has embraced and something Zimmerman expects out of him this fall.

“It’s definitely a role I’ve played before in Pop Warner,” Coates said. “Being one of the better kids, you have a leadership role. It’s not going to be that hard to step into because we had some good people like Luke Gormsen, guys I can look up to and copy some of the stuff they did.”

Zimmerman is confident Coates is built for that role.

“He’s a high-character kid,” Zimmerman said. “Those are the kids you want on your team to be leaders. I told him the expectation is to be like a captain this year. That’s our expectation for him.”

Coates pointed out that his personal goals are to eclipse 140 tackles and also earn all-conference honors. His role on offense continues to grow as well.

Stennett is more than happy to have him on that side of the ball.

“It’s a privilege,” Stennett said. “I’ve seen him the past four or five years — what he does in the offseason, how much work he puts in. I know that kid will do anything to get us in the right spot.

“Having him on offense makes it significantly easier on me.”

Zimmerman’s expectations for Coates this season, though, don’t just involve being all-conference or all-area. With Coates’ talent and experience, Zimmerman is aiming even higher.

“The ceiling, it’s more like can he raise it to be an all-state athlete,” Zimmerman said. “I’d like to see him eventually get an offer this season. But for him and all of us, we want to win games.”