Baseball star takes athletic skill to gridiron

Baseball star takes athletic skill to gridiron

As Edmonton fullback Jacob Narbonne prepares for life in the CIS, he reflects on previous championship success.

Jacob Narbonne

Positions:
Defensive Line, Fullback

Height/Weight:
6’2, 225 lbs

Teams:
Harry Ainlay Titans (High school)

Commitment:
Alberta

Class:
2013

Until he started high school, Jacob’s main athletic pursuit was baseball. It wasn’t until his coach, Danny Boily, suggested he give football a try that Jacob shifted his focus to the gridiron. He got the chance to start at defensive lineman for the Harry Ainlay Titans in Edmonton, and was moved to fullback the next year, which remained his primary position.

His Grade 11 season was Jacob’s most successful, as the Titans took home their first Tier 1 provincial championship in 24 years.

“It was the highest emotional point I have experienced while playing any sport,” Jacob says of the final game. “Not only because of my excitement, but more because of the excitement of the fans, our coaches and of course my teammates.”

Jacob was both a defensive lineman and a fullback in his senior year. That season, he was named the Titans’ MVP. That year marked several memorable moments, particularly any time the Titans faced off against the Bev Facey Falcons, their rival team from Sherwood Park.

“That program is an extremely talented, well-coached team that always kept our games lively,” says Jacob.  “The outcome for those games was never determined until only the last minute.”

To send off his high school football career, Jacob played on Team North in the 2013 Alberta Senior Bowl, which they lost, despite a valiant effort, to Team South.

Two of Jacobs coaches from Ainlay – head coach Chris Morris and defensive coordinator Danny Boily – played an instrumental role in Jacob’s choice to stay home and suit up for the University of Alberta Golden Bears in the fall. Both are now with the Bears, moves that were part of the program’s recent revitalization, and Jacob is looking forward to playing for his old coaches in university.

Alongside football, Jacob will be studying Agricultural, Life and Environmental Studies with a focus in pre-veterinary medicine. Though football will be his main concern for the next several years, Jacob will continue to engage in volunteer activities, particularly as a coach for his twin sister’s Special Olympics slow-pitch team.

As his high school years draw to a close and he moves on to the next chapter in both his life and his football career, Jacob is thankful to those who helped him get this far, especially his coaches and his father.

“He played football all his young life as well, and he was one of the main reasons I quit baseball and moved on to football,” Jacob explains. He is very much looking forward to contributing his experience to the Golden Bears.