Encino (Calif.) Crespi running back Jeremiah McKibbins had his senior season end sooner than expected, but for McKibbins, it’s a temporary pause on his football career, which he’ll continue next season at West Point.
Offered late last month by Army, just days after this month’s election, McKibbins felt it was time to commit to Army, so he made the decision that would change his life.
“I talked to different people, my dad, coaches of mine, and they told me it’s a great opportunity and not a lot of people are accepted to West Point,” said McKibbins. “They’ve been real straight forward with me and really honest so I’m excited to attend West Point. Coach (Stan) Brock told me how much he wanted me at West Point and they want me to play running back there.”
McKibbins had started to hear from a handful of schools in the weeks leading up to his decision.
“I was talking to UNLV, and some Ivy League schools like Princeton and Harvard. I had heard from Washington, I got a few letters from them. And then schools like Navy, Air Force and San Diego and Georgetown and UC Davis. But Army was where I wanted to be.”
The Southern California native knows the weather will be different when he heads to New York, but he’s ready for it.
“I’ve been out to New York, I was there last winter, visiting different schools. So I understand, the weather is no joke.”
McKibbins is hoping to head back out in January to visit West Point.
In the afterglow of the Presidential election, McKibbins felt a strong pull to Army.
“With Barack Obama being elected, he said we should all be proud to be Americans and that had a lot to do with my decision. I’ll get to represent my country there. My goal was to play college football and get a good education. Academics are important to me and I put that before athletics. Once you walk out of there, you’re setting yourself up for life.”
Academically, McKibbins has a cumulative 3.0 GPA and took the SAT earlier this month.