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Hard work in hopes of remaining invisible

They are like a baseball umpire, an Internet connection, mayonnaise on a carryout sandwich.

You don't notice them until something goes wrong.

Long snappers. The football players who, head down and peering backward through splayed legs, are the first step to successfully executing - or not - a punt, field goal or extra point.

"It's a little thing until it becomes a huge thing, and that's why coaches now are so into going out and getting the best because it's something you no longer have to worry about," said one of the craft's expert instructors, Chris Rubio of Rubio Long Snapping, whose home office is in Lewiston, Idaho.

Since coming aboard with Chris Sailer Kicking - the two were teammates at UCLA - Rubio has expanded from one or two camps annually to more than 30 around the country, including one Nov. 22 at Lewis University in Romeoville. Others have emerged to train these niche positions including Kohl's in Wisconsin and, more locally, Nolan Owen Long Snapping.

Among players from the Class of 2015 who attended Rubio Long Snapping camps more than 130 of them went into college football programs. A current Loyola senior, John Shannon, is rated No. 1 nationally by Rubio and has netted a Notre Dame scholarship. A Fenwick junior out of Elmhurst, Joe Calcagno, is Rubio's No. 8 rated snapper in the Class of 2017.

The Class of 2016 includes two highly regarded DuPage County long snappers, Wheaton Warrenville South's Paul Monaco and Benet's Trent Kramer. Nationally, Rubio rates the two seniors as Nos. 48 and 22 in the country, respectively.

"At Benet we've always had good luck with long snappers," said Redwings coach Pat New. "Typically I think there's a lot of opportunities for kids who want to maybe play in college. It just adds to the whole repertoire of skills."

Kramer and Monaco seem to typify the two types of long snappers colleges seek. Rubio describes Kramer as "a bear" of a player, a strong young man who stands 6-foot-2, weighs about 260 pounds and rules at defensive tackle.

"His snaps are so fast we're working more with our holders than we are with him," New said.

Monaco is a sleeker model, a starting strong-side linebacker for WW South at 6 feet and 200 pounds with 23 tackles, 4 for loss and 2 sacks under his belt.

"If a college wants you to block they're going to want a bigger guy," said Monaco, who picked up the long-snapping bug his sophomore year from Tigers graduate Greg Hohenstein, who now does that job, and only that job, for Bowling Green.

"If they want you to run down the field and make a tackle they're going to want a quicker guy that can move well," Monaco said.

Regardless of size, strength and 40-yard dash speed, the bottom line of the quality long snapper is how fast he can get the ball back to the holder or punter, with consistency and accuracy. It's what Rubio calls "a finite skill" measured to the 100th of a second.

Starting with a 0.3-second movement of the body, any serious snapper must send that football back 15 yards in no more than .75 seconds, the quicker the better.

"It looks like an explosion when it's done right," Rubio said.

What ticks him off is when a client attends a camp and returns to another without any improvement. Monaco has attended about 10 camps overall nationwide, and works daily on some of the "dozens" of drills Rubio Long Snapping provides. Some involve hitting targets. Others are repetitive, muscle-memory exercises he can perform without a ball.

"He's a student of the art," Rubio said. "He soaks it all in and he's done a great job. He keeps improving, improving, improving."

"Any good long snapper, it's all about form," Monaco said. "Your form's going to increase the speed of your snap. So form is everything."

Tellingly, Monaco said he's never had an embarrassing, haywire moment on the field.

"It's not as easy as people think. It takes a lot of practice, a lot of time," Monaco said.

"When you make a good snap nobody says anything, nobody gives you credit, you're under the radar. But once you make a bad snap, that's when you get a lot of attention. But I love the position."

That's a wrap

Hardly breaking news but worthy: Entering this school year the National Federation of High Schools announced its list of "Elite" and "Select" schools that had participated in its Network School Broadcast Program.

Of the 37 schools nationwide who gained "Elite" status - quality broadcasting as well as revenue generating and solid promotion - nine came from Illinois and three from DuPage County. The latter are Glenbard West, Hinsdale Central and Wheaton North.

Those excellent programs that earned the "Select" nod included Glenbard South and Hinsdale South.

Congrats

On Friday seven people will be inducted into the Northern Illinois University Athletics Hall of Fame, its 32nd class of inductees. Among them is Downers Grove North graduate Sandy Menard, the only Huskies gymnast to earn a bid to the NCAA championships. Her 9.925 score on vault in 1996 remains a school record, and she graduated as the 1998 Mid-American Conference uneven bars champion.

Back on Sept. 26, Aurora University honored its 2014-15 athletes of the year. Among them was Naperville North graduate Max Obriecht, a lacrosse player who won the honor a third straight year. A midfielder who scored 49 goals with 29 assists, Obriecht was the Midwest Lacrosse Conference offensive player of the year, a United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association honorable-mention All-American and a USILA scholar All-American.

Old school

On Tuesday USA National Women's Volleyball Team member Kelsey Robinson returned to her elementary school alma mater, St. Isadore School in Bloomingdale, to detail her experiences to the young students.

An All-American at St. Francis and again at Nebraska, where in 2013 she was the Big Ten Conference player of the year, Robinson is in her second year playing professional volleyball overseas.

In 2014-15 she played in both China and Puerto Rico and will soon head to Italy to play for the professional Imoco Conegliano squad. Her United States squad will attempt to qualify for the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.

St. Isadore director of development Mike Yerly - who sent daughter Liz and sons Neal and Craig through Lake Park, athletes all - said that despite Robinson's litany of volleyball achievements, her message to the students focused on time management, sportsmanship, family and faith.

During the one-hour assembly she also answered kids' questions, such as her favorite foods during travels to 13 countries; and naturally her favorite teacher at St. Isadore, from which she graduated in 2006. The 23-year-old star brought souvenirs for the students, signed autographs and, before departing, donated $1,000 to the St. Isadore Annual Alumni Fund.

Thus, a treat for children of all ages: "A generous and tremendous kickoff to our 2015-16 campaign," Mike Yerly said.

doberhelman@dailyherald.com

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