Hall of Fame Countdown: Wagner
What: San Gabriel Valley Hall of Fame Game
Where: Bassett High School
When: Friday, 7:30 p.m.
Who: East vs. West
Above: Bishop Amat's Marcus Wagner
By Steve Ramirez, staff writer
LA PUENTE - Marcus Wagner approaches the annual Hall of Fame All-Star football game with sort of a chip on his shoulder.
It's not that the Bishop Amat High School graduate feels slighted, but he does feel like he has something to prove when the East San Gabriel Valley all-stars square off against their West counterparts in the annual summer classic, scheduled for 7:30 Friday night at Bassett High School.
"I'm pretty excited about the game," said Wagner prior to a practice session at La Puente High School. "To come from not having a great season (in the fall), and being injured in the third game, and getting picked to play in the Hall of Fame game, is a real blessing for me.
"I feel like I have a whole lot to prove. I didn't have the type of year I wanted, and dealing with the injuries were tough. I just want to try and play my best (Friday)."
Wagner is the younger brother of Michael Wagner, who was an All-Valley running back in the late 1990s before playing for Iowa State. Marcus Wagner showed a glimpse of his ability last fall, rushing for nearly 600 yards and four touchdowns despite playing in just half the team's five games.
"I think the big thing with me is my vision," Wagner said. "I see the whole field really well.
"My speed is there, my power is there, but I rely on my vision more than anything else."
But former Bishop Amat coach Mark Verti, who coached him last season, said Wagner's best attribute is not limited to what he can do on the field. It's the other intangibles that add to Wagner's greatness.
"He's just a great football player," Verti said. "He's smart, intelligent and knows the game really well. "But he's such a team leader; even when he was hurt and couldn't play, he was really pushing our guys to play their best."
Part of that comes from older brother Michael Wagner, who was one of the top running backs in the CIF-Southern Section in the late '90s.
The elder Wagner rushed for nearly 4,000 yards in three seasons with the Lancers. The influence on Marcus Wagner came from witnessing what his brother had to do away from the field to put up big numbers. Marcus Wagner transferred that knowledge to his own situation last fall.
"He had a big effect on me," he said of his older brother. "He was my biggest role model.
"It was a great experience for me. It's nice to have an older brother like that, someone to look up to. I've always tried to just fill his shoes."
Marcus Wagner filled them nicely in his opening game last season, rushing for 200 yards in a 41-38 loss to Los Osos. But an injury in a Week 3 loss to Hart limited his ability for most of the rest of the season.
"He was just a big part of our football team," said Verti, whose team finished just 3-7 last season. "He had that big game in the opener and was having a solid game before he got hurt against Hart. "We missed him a lot."
Wagner's college plans include playing for Mt. San Antonio College, which advanced to the CCCAA state championship game last fall.
But before he can help the Mounties make another push for a state title, he has some unfinished business to take care of on Friday.
"(The West) has some great athletes," Wagner said. "It's an honor to play against them; I'm looking forward to it. The neat thing about this game is to play with all the great players from the East you hear and read about all season. I used to hang out with these guys, after school, after football. I know them really well, so we have really good chemistry. I think it's going to be a pretty good game."
Comments
Fred,
How are the QB's looking for the east side?
Posted by: Rocco1 | June 26, 2008 7:46 AM
General answer. You were curious... Consider the curiousity satisfied.
Posted by: Joe Amat | June 25, 2008 9:14 PM
Good luck Wagner, make up for all that lost time when you play the HOF game.
Posted by: Dan | June 25, 2008 8:53 PM
Hey Joe get your panties out of ur ass, it was a general question buddy!! I was just curious!
Posted by: DRanchhhh | June 25, 2008 9:46 AM
Wagner is a great kid and unfortunately another senior victim of the Verti era. Only Austin was able to remain at Amat and escape unscathed. As for the Amat education, name a Amat football player going to a 4 year college based on academics. Hopefully wagner will rebound out of Mt. Sac
Posted by: Amat is Still Lacking | June 24, 2008 11:41 AM
Jolly Rancher,
Read the post - it was written by Steve Ramirez... a Northview grad.
Freddy has no allegiance - or Alma Mater that's still in existence... he's an Edgewood grad.. hence the favoritism to West Covina and other Edgewood grads like Maggiore and Bogan (FJR - just kidding!:?)
Posted by: Joe Amat | June 24, 2008 9:24 AM
Fred did you graduate from Amat or something??
Posted by: DRanchhhh | June 24, 2008 9:16 AM
the color envious green does not look good on you
Posted by: reality czech | June 24, 2008 8:42 AM
Here we go again all about Amat's super star. Guess we don't need to go to the game sounds like this kid will beable to get all done by himself.
Posted by: Sports Fan | June 24, 2008 8:36 AM
Wagner was a great comtribution to Amat football. I saw him play most of his games last year and I can tell you this. He did indeed prove himself a leader to that team. Not only for the skill he showed us as an excellent athlete, but because of the courage it took for him to play hurt.
If you recall the St Paul game, it was Wagner that brought up the ball for the potential winning touchdown at the end of the game. But he came up limping on his last possession and could'nt finish em off. You could just see in his eyes the drive he had in him to carry his team, even while hurt.
He was a fantastic player, and I am certian, he is a wonderfull young man.
Posted by: jcaz | June 24, 2008 8:14 AM