No Longer Overlooked, Gaines Is Earning Deserved Recognition
September 14, 2017 | Football
By Scott Johnson
Warren Sapp was listed at 6-foot-1. So were John Randle and Casey Hampton. Aaron Donald, Geno Atkins, Jurell Casey and Kyle Williams were all Pro Bowlers last season. They're also 6-1, every single one of them.
So when La Habra (Calif.) High School senior Greg Gaines began to realize that he would never achieve his dream of playing Pacific-12 Conference football because he was too small, the 6-foot-2 defensive tackle took umbrage with the simplified
scouting report.?
"In college, there are a lot of taller defensive tackles," he said recently. "But if you look in the NFL, everyone is 6-2 (or) 6-foot, pretty much my height."
Despite a productive prep career, Gaines went virtually unnoticed by Pac-12 schools and got useless advice from some of the recruiters from big schools all over the country.
"(One Power 5) coach pretty much told me: 'If you were two inches taller, you'd be a top-5 recruit in the country,'" Gaines recalled. "I was like, 'That sucks, I guess.'"
The too-small Gaines hasn't grown an inch since his senior year in high school. But he's getting the last laugh now.
Since committing to play at Boise State in the winter of 2013, Gaines followed coach Chris Petersen and defensive coordinator Pete Kwiatkowski on their westward trek to the University of Washington and has since proven that size doesn't always matter.
Gaines was a full-time starter for the Pac-12 Conference champion Huskies last season while earning honorable mention all-conference honors. Any doubts about whether he could play in the Pac-12 were crushed by the sophomore with the 322-pound frame.
"I just like beating up on these other Pac-12 guys," Gaines said, "and showing these coaches what they missed out on."
Kwiatkowski, one of the few college recruiters who believed Gaines had what it took, is somewhat baffled by the lack of attention that the La Habra, Calif., native drew from college scouts while in high school.
"He was athletic, explosive. I thought he was a tough kid," Kwiatkowski said. "I thought he was going to grind at it. I knew he was very strong. Throw all that together, and he's the perfect d-tackle."
Having proven the doubters wrong, Gaines enters his junior year with bigger aspirations. He now finds himself on the radar of NFL scouts and has become somewhat of a celebrity on the UW campus.
"It's definitely kind of weird," said Gaines, whose 8.0 tackles for loss ranked third on the team in 2016. "I came in as an unknown recruit. All those guys, the fans were following all the starred recruits, and I came out of nowhere. Nobody really knew who I was. It's weird being talked about and stuff."
Gaines also had a noteworthy offseason in that he got married, went to Hawaii for a honeymoon and had to rehab the significant injury of his college career. Gaines missed spring practices due to a shoulder and pectoral injury but was back in time for the start of fall camp.
With all of that behind him, Gaines went into the 2017 season with his eyes on the prize. He spent a good part of the fall talking about getting the Huskies back to the brink of a national championship – and beyond.
"I'm looking forward to making another run at the title and the national championship," he told reporters after the Huskies' first fall practice on July 31.
Taking the next step meant Gaines was going to have to work even harder, and that was a lot to ask out of the gym rat and lm-room mainstay. Gaines picked up good habits while at La Habra High and carried them over to his UW career.
"Greg is one of those guys who's a workhorse," defensive line coach Ikaika Malloe said. "The guy cannot stop working. He's always trying to be the best that he can ever be. His competitiveness is really what makes him really good. You never have to tell that guy to get going. At times, you have to tell him to slow it down."
Part of that drive comes from the chip Gaines carries on his shoulder after being an overlooked high school recruit. But he developed his work ethic even before playing in his first high school game.
"I think it's just how I was raised," Gaines said. "My parents taught me to do the best I can and to always do my best."
Gaines has proven to be a pretty quick study since his redshirt season, and he begins his fourth year at UW with the gridiron acumen of a grad student. One might say that Gaines has already earned his Masters in football.
"He's actually become one of our teachers," said Malloe, who is in his second season at UW. "He knows the playbook better than I do, and he knows technique better than I do."
Added Kwiatkowski: "As you get older, you understand what offenses are doing and their tendencies. You have to be able to anticipate what you're going to see."
Gaines came into the season planning on assuming even more of a leadership role on a defense that had four starters drafted by NFL teams, including three who went in the second round. The Huskies still had plenty of talent coming back, but matching the production of the 2016 defense was going to be a tall order.
Gaines can expect more of a spotlight on him now that he's an upperclassmen and one of the most recognizable players on the UW defense.
His unexpected production as a third-year junior last season has Gaines drawing the attention of NFL scouts as well as opposing offensive coordinators.
Can the kid who was once considered too short to play big-time college football really be thinking about the NFL?
"Not really," he said. "I didn't even know if going to college was even a possibility at first. I just came on the team and ended up being pretty good at it."
Rather than trying to be the next John Randle or Aaron Donald, this 6-foot-1 defensive lineman is just concerned with being the best Husky that he can be.
"I really want to have a good season," he said in August. "I have a lot of agents trying to talk to me, but I'm trying to ignore them and focus on what I have to do. I don't even know why I would need them.
"We haven't even started the season, and I'm focused on me, so what would I need an agent for? I've got to get there first before I talk to those guys."
Warren Sapp was listed at 6-foot-1. So were John Randle and Casey Hampton. Aaron Donald, Geno Atkins, Jurell Casey and Kyle Williams were all Pro Bowlers last season. They're also 6-1, every single one of them.
So when La Habra (Calif.) High School senior Greg Gaines began to realize that he would never achieve his dream of playing Pacific-12 Conference football because he was too small, the 6-foot-2 defensive tackle took umbrage with the simplified
scouting report.?
"In college, there are a lot of taller defensive tackles," he said recently. "But if you look in the NFL, everyone is 6-2 (or) 6-foot, pretty much my height."
Despite a productive prep career, Gaines went virtually unnoticed by Pac-12 schools and got useless advice from some of the recruiters from big schools all over the country.
"(One Power 5) coach pretty much told me: 'If you were two inches taller, you'd be a top-5 recruit in the country,'" Gaines recalled. "I was like, 'That sucks, I guess.'"
The too-small Gaines hasn't grown an inch since his senior year in high school. But he's getting the last laugh now.
Since committing to play at Boise State in the winter of 2013, Gaines followed coach Chris Petersen and defensive coordinator Pete Kwiatkowski on their westward trek to the University of Washington and has since proven that size doesn't always matter.
Gaines was a full-time starter for the Pac-12 Conference champion Huskies last season while earning honorable mention all-conference honors. Any doubts about whether he could play in the Pac-12 were crushed by the sophomore with the 322-pound frame.
"I just like beating up on these other Pac-12 guys," Gaines said, "and showing these coaches what they missed out on."
Kwiatkowski, one of the few college recruiters who believed Gaines had what it took, is somewhat baffled by the lack of attention that the La Habra, Calif., native drew from college scouts while in high school.
"He was athletic, explosive. I thought he was a tough kid," Kwiatkowski said. "I thought he was going to grind at it. I knew he was very strong. Throw all that together, and he's the perfect d-tackle."
Having proven the doubters wrong, Gaines enters his junior year with bigger aspirations. He now finds himself on the radar of NFL scouts and has become somewhat of a celebrity on the UW campus.
"It's definitely kind of weird," said Gaines, whose 8.0 tackles for loss ranked third on the team in 2016. "I came in as an unknown recruit. All those guys, the fans were following all the starred recruits, and I came out of nowhere. Nobody really knew who I was. It's weird being talked about and stuff."
Gaines also had a noteworthy offseason in that he got married, went to Hawaii for a honeymoon and had to rehab the significant injury of his college career. Gaines missed spring practices due to a shoulder and pectoral injury but was back in time for the start of fall camp.
With all of that behind him, Gaines went into the 2017 season with his eyes on the prize. He spent a good part of the fall talking about getting the Huskies back to the brink of a national championship – and beyond.
"I'm looking forward to making another run at the title and the national championship," he told reporters after the Huskies' first fall practice on July 31.
Taking the next step meant Gaines was going to have to work even harder, and that was a lot to ask out of the gym rat and lm-room mainstay. Gaines picked up good habits while at La Habra High and carried them over to his UW career.
"Greg is one of those guys who's a workhorse," defensive line coach Ikaika Malloe said. "The guy cannot stop working. He's always trying to be the best that he can ever be. His competitiveness is really what makes him really good. You never have to tell that guy to get going. At times, you have to tell him to slow it down."
Part of that drive comes from the chip Gaines carries on his shoulder after being an overlooked high school recruit. But he developed his work ethic even before playing in his first high school game.
"I think it's just how I was raised," Gaines said. "My parents taught me to do the best I can and to always do my best."
Gaines has proven to be a pretty quick study since his redshirt season, and he begins his fourth year at UW with the gridiron acumen of a grad student. One might say that Gaines has already earned his Masters in football.
"He's actually become one of our teachers," said Malloe, who is in his second season at UW. "He knows the playbook better than I do, and he knows technique better than I do."
Added Kwiatkowski: "As you get older, you understand what offenses are doing and their tendencies. You have to be able to anticipate what you're going to see."
Gaines came into the season planning on assuming even more of a leadership role on a defense that had four starters drafted by NFL teams, including three who went in the second round. The Huskies still had plenty of talent coming back, but matching the production of the 2016 defense was going to be a tall order.
Gaines can expect more of a spotlight on him now that he's an upperclassmen and one of the most recognizable players on the UW defense.
His unexpected production as a third-year junior last season has Gaines drawing the attention of NFL scouts as well as opposing offensive coordinators.
Can the kid who was once considered too short to play big-time college football really be thinking about the NFL?
"Not really," he said. "I didn't even know if going to college was even a possibility at first. I just came on the team and ended up being pretty good at it."
Rather than trying to be the next John Randle or Aaron Donald, this 6-foot-1 defensive lineman is just concerned with being the best Husky that he can be.
"I really want to have a good season," he said in August. "I have a lot of agents trying to talk to me, but I'm trying to ignore them and focus on what I have to do. I don't even know why I would need them.
"We haven't even started the season, and I'm focused on me, so what would I need an agent for? I've got to get there first before I talk to those guys."
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