No Matter The Circumstance, Irish Commit Rubio Is Focused On Getting Better
Gabriel Rubio is doing as much as he can keep improving as a student-athlete, while also practicing safe “social distancing” amid the coronavirus pandemic.
During a phone interview with BlueandGold.com, the class of 2021 Notre Dame defensive tackle commit from St. Peters (Mo.) Lutheran of St. Charles walked one of his days last week.
Rubio’s school has been closed for a while, so the first thing he did when he woke up was grab his iPad for online learning. It took him a few hours to get his school work for the day done, but once he did he started on his high intensity training — an hour long workout with very little rest, mostly body weight workouts and some tire flips mixed in.
“It was brutal,” Rubio said. “It was only an hour, but it was the worst hour of the day. But it’s also the best hour of the day because you know you’re going to get better.”
Currently, the offseason is out of sorts for Rubio and every high school football player across the country. But the 6-5, 280-pounder knows that he must focus on improving on and off the field to prepare himself for not only his senior season and capturing a state championship, but for when he enrolls at Notre Dame.
“Every offseason is an opportunity to get better,” Rubio noted. “What I’m focusing most on this offseason is preparing myself to graduate early and go learn under Coach Elston. I’m working on getting stronger and faster as well as improving on my technique.”
Rubio is on track to graduate this December and enroll at Notre Dame next January. All six of the Notre Dame commits in the 2021 class are planning to enroll early.
“To have the guys coming up at the same time and have the same opportunity to learn and get better well before the actual season starts will be amazing,” Rubio noted.
Rivals ranks Rubio as the No. 8 defensive tackle and No. 99 overall prospect in the country. He committed to Notre Dame last June and despite other schools continuing to contact him after his stellar junior season, Rubio is locked in with Notre Dame.
Rubio keeps in contact with Notre Dame defensive line coach Mike Elston once or twice a week and their relationship has grown over the past several months.
“He’s always updating me with what’s going on up at Notre Dame and recruits he’d like for me to reach out to and get to know,” Rubio said. “I’ve been doing that.”
Rubio is helping Notre Dame in recruiting some of its top defensive line targets, such as Mansfield (Texas) Legacy’s David Abiara and Blairstown (N.J.) Blair Academy’s Aaron Armitage.
He is also worked on Matthews (N.C.) Weddington running back Will Shipley and regularly plays video games online with Clarskston (Mich.) High offensive lineman Rocco Spindler.
Rubio has a special connection with his father, Angel, a former NFL defensive lineman and DL coach at Lutheran of St. Charles. Check back Friday morning for an exclusive story on their relationship.
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