Posted by bambi2godzilla on 9/15/2007, 11:30 am September 14, 2007 Jim Seimas, prep football: Soquel's Perryman the XL-factor on the line The two-story house was rocking. It seemed like the '89 Loma Prieta earthquake all over again. "I just heard this boom, boom, boom," said Kristi Perryman-Oliveira, who then headed upstairs to see the source of the commotion. Alarmed, she hurried to her son's bedroom and asked, "What are you doing?" "I'm dancing," said Soquel High lineman Chase Perryman, a 17-year-old who is built like a brick wall at 6-foot-6, 315 pounds. As a kid, Perryman trained at No Limits Dance and Performing Arts in Soquel. He was instructed in hip-hop, jazz, tap and even ballet, a required class since he wanted to perform with the studio's competitive team. "I like dancing," he said. "I still do, to this day. I really like hip-hop" When Perryman's size 14 shoes hit the ground, the earth shakes. The Soquel offensive tackle is the heftiest lineman in the Santa Cruz County. Teammates call him "Big City" The accomplished dancer is also using his footwork to open eyes on the football field. "We hadn't seen a kid that size who could move his feet so well," said Knights coach Ron Myers. "So we asked him, and he says, 'I used to dance.' Well, it shows. "The thing that stands out with him is his hitting on the run, when he's pulling. Our linemen get to pull and hit people. What happens when you're a safety and you see that thing coming at you? He just runs well. He has several pancakes already. He's pretty dominant and he's getting better every week" Pancake is the term used when a offensive lineman sends a defensive lineman straight to his back. Every weekend, Perryman gives a lesson in physics: Mass times acceleration equals too much force to handle. "He's a phenomenal athlete," said professional athletic trainer Charlie Parker, who taught Perryman speed-agility conditioning for three months at his Aptos business, Charlie's World. "He reminds me of a former client, Chris Mims, a big defensive lineman who was with the San Diego Chargers. He's very quick for a big guy" With Perryman's towering physical presence, one would think college recruiters would be beating down his door. But Perryman may be one of the county's best kept secrets. The senior is pretty much in his first season of varsity football. Perryman missed the majority of his junior season with a staph infection in his leg. No dancing. No football. Perryman wasn't too happy. "I just wanted to be out there with the team," he said. "I had a commitment to them and I couldn't fill it. And that bothered me, because I'm a dependable person. But there's nothing you can do at that point" His lack of game time last year prevented him from developing into one of the county's top college prospects. Still, he's received letters of interest from Oregon, Oregon State, Nebraska, Washington, Utah, and San Jose State. "He's really raw," Myers said. "He passes the visual. He's on that watch list. But he's an unknown quantity. It could be exciting" Perryman, who has also used his quick feet as a center on the Knights' basketball team, tried to enter this football season better prepared. He wants to make an impact. He worked out with Parker over the summer but their training schedule was cut short when Perryman's younger brother Shane, a sophomore receiver at Soquel, underwent brain surgery to remove a cist. The emergency also forced Chase to be a no-show at USC's Junior Day. Chase was rattled by the thought of losing his brother. Just two years earlier, he lost his father Eddie to a kidney disease. Chase has a tattoo honoring his father on his left forearm. Perryman doesn't use either event as motivation on the field, said older brother Travis, a former standout linebacker at Harbor. He doesn't need too. "He's got attitude," Travis said. "He gets mad. He's intense. And he knows when to turn it off and on" Myers agrees. "Chase has a real competitive heart. He has what the old-school guys call a fire in the belly" He's proving he can be a beast. "I really want to go to the next level to play," Perryman said. So he'll keep learning on the run, using his size and feet to bowl over opponents. And the dancing helped his cause, Perryman said. "You get a workout dancing," he said. "When I was a kid, dancing kept me in shape. If I stuck with it, I'd probably be playing tight end right now" And he'd probably have a pretty good touchdown celebration dance
63.249.102.18
Don't know if this kid is going to be seasoned enough by the end of the season but he might be worth signing as a project:
Santa Cruz Sentinel
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