STARKVILLE — Adversity doesn’t faze leaders.
Instead of panicking and losing focus when bad things or mistakes are happening around them, leaders maintain a calm and a poise that makes their peers feel they can do anything if they stick to the plan.
The 2011 football season is only seven games old, but Starkville High School’s Gabe Myles has shown he has the leadership ability of someone with far more experience.
Myles’ confidence came through Friday night as he helped Starkville score the final 21 points and orchestrated a 26-23 come-from-behind victory at Ridgeland in a Class 5A, Region 2 game.
The victory gave the Yellow Jackets (5-2, 3-0 region) the all-important tiebreaker and in the race for the top spot in the region.
Myles, a junior who played wide receiver last season, rebounded from two interceptions early in the game to hit Stanley Higgins with a touchdown pass. He also directed drives that led to a 24-yard touchdown run by Devin Mitchell and a 2-yard run by Higgins.
For his accomplishments, Myles is The Dispatch Prep Player of the Week.
“He stays pretty level-headed,” Starkville coach Jamie Mitchell said. “He is very resilient and does a great job of going to the next play — good, bad, or ugly.”
Mitchell said it wasn’t Myles’ fault that Ridgeland was able to intercept a pass and return it for a touchdown. He said Myles’ second interception was his fault because he made an incorrect read. Despite the miscues, Mitchell said Myles regrouped and you never would have known he threw two interceptions. Myles finished with more than 150 rushing yards (with sack yardage figured in) and more than 100 passing yards.
“He certainly put us on his back Friday night,” Mitchell said.
Mitchell said Myles is a “work in progress” because he started the 2010 season as a wide receiver and then missed three quarters of the season with an injury. He said Myles is a “very, very smart” player who has adjusted well to a different offense that has changed from one designed to capitalize on Jaquez Johnson’s downhill running style to Myles’ slashing style.
Myles knew in the spring he would be expected to shoulder a significant role this season. He said he has learned each week and has remained poise through the ups and downs and the expectations that are placed on a quarterback.
“I try to forget about mistakes because the past is the past and you can’t change it,” Myles said. “If I dwell on that I won’t be able to make a play because you’re too worried about making mistakes. You just put it behind you but learn from it and keep moving.”
Myles feels he did “all right” at that Friday night. He said he got down following a fumble later in the game, but credited his teammates for lifting his spirits. He felt the work he did with the rest of the offense did the same for the rest of the team and was a key in helping the Yellow Jackets rally.
Myles said that kind of leadership is nothing different than what he does as a first sergeant in the ROTC who is responsible for what others do. He has been involved in the ROTC since his freshman year.
“It feels good just to be a leader because people are expecting good things out of you and it feels good not to let them down,” Myles said.
The difference Friday night was Myles was more vocal in trying to provide a spark. Even though he considers himself a “quiet” leader, Myles said he spoke up at halftime and took the responsibility for the turnovers that put Starkville in the hole. He said he needed to get loud and to show his teammates the importance of the situation by speaking up and encouraging everyone to play better.
“I am more comfortable and less jittery,” Myles said. “I am starting to settle in and not worry about this happening or that happening. I think I have always been (level-headed).”
Mitchell feels Myles has immeasurable potential as a quarterback. He feels some major Division I schools will see Myles as a cornerback at the next level, while mid-major Division I schools might give Myles, who is 6-foot-1, 175 pounds, a chance to play quarterback.
Regardless where he plays, Mitchell knows Myles will be a leader, and he is excited to see how much more Myles can mature and grow into a playmaker and a leader.
“He is a guy our guys look to,” Mitchell said of Myles, who is one of two juniors on the team’s leadership committee. “He knows the game. He makes just about straight As in the classroom, and that transfers over here. He is a very deep thinker, and that’s a good thing. He is searching for a grasp of what everybody is doing. … As he continues to get better and better, that knowledge base is going to continue to build. If we can keep him healthy, he is going to be all right.”
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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