A natural

MONAHANS You would think the son of football coach would be naturally blessed with — or at least develop at an early age — the skill of catching a football.

Not the case with defensive end-tight end Trevor Owens, son of Monahans head coach Mickey Owens.
“When he was ball boy, good Lord, it would bounce off his head when the kids would throw to him,” Mickey said.

“But he’s put the hours in and he’s made himself a lot better of a receiver.”

The work ethic? That, it seems, Trevor inherited from his father.

The senior all-state defensive end grew up in a loving, sports-crazy household, just as loving and sports-driven then as it is now, according to the queen of the house, Laure Owens.

Sports during the week. Sports on TV. Sports on vacation.

And they’re always talking football.

“The other night a trivia question came on TV asking, ‘What college did Michael Vick go to?’ ” Laure said. “And I knew it was Virginia Tech. Now, how many moms know that?”

The other important people in Trevor’s life, older brother Tanner and younger sister Landry, are no different.
Tanner was a receiver for the Loboes and played on the same varsity team his senior year with Trevor, then a sophomore, in the 2007 season.

Landry is involved in many sports, which is perhaps a requirement because she was named after legendary Dallas Cowboys coach Tom Landry.

Such was the environment Trevor grew up in.

He had enough of his own interest in sports, but he also was encouraged to participate. Still, his handling involved balance.

“When he was playing baseball, I never volunteered to coach,” Mickey said. “I know that’s probably being a terrible dad, but he was gonna see me from the seventh grade until he graduated and I did not want to coach him in soccer or baseball or anything when he was younger.”

In Trevor’s seventh-grade season, he was pegged as a defensive end and tight end. That meant he would not be coached by his dad, who’s in charge of the linebackers.

It was actually a desirable arrangement, Mickey said. Part of it was giving Trevor a unique football experience, which wouldn’t have happened if he played linebacker or quarterback.

“There’s enough pressure on coaches’ kids anyways,” Mickey said. “He hears it in the locker room, when he was moved up (to varsity) as a sophomore. I’m sure it was, ‘Oh, the only reason he’s starting is ’cause he’s a coach’s kid.’ He hears it enough.”

Trevor earned his keep, though. Playing exclusively at defensive end for so long let him develop in the position like a guitarist would after playing for years.

Last season, he collected 101 tackles and five sacks, making teams think twice about running to his side.

“I’ve been around football my whole life,” Trevor said. “I can see a lot of stuff. Just being around two-a-days since I was 3 or 4 helps me a lot. I know the game very well.”

With Trevor, it’s about having goals. Improving his footwork and speed off the snap should help his pass rush, his main focus this offseason.

“It’s just about getting off the ball and seeing the pass faster,” he said. “Last year I only had five sacks, I want to up that number to 10 because we play enough spread teams where I should have over 10 sacks. I wasn’t very good at that. I was more stop the run if it comes my way.”

He has approached that part of his game the same way his dad goes about breaking down film: diligently, with attention to the smallest details.

What Trevor has learned on his own came during Monahans’ Class 3A Division II regional playoff game last season, when the Loboes let a 28-7 third-quarter lead slip away and lost in overtime, 31-28, to Bridgeport.

As much as his father harps to his team about never letting up, whether against an overmatched team or while the Loboes are winning, Trevor celebrated a bit too early.

“I’m not gonna lie,” Trevor said. “A few of us, in the third quarter when we were up 28-7, a few of us started looking toward Liberty Hill the next week. Our mindset kind of got off there. Then when it all started going downhill, we couldn’t stop it. It all got way from us.”

So this offseason, along with his individual goals, Trevor has set out to not necessarily assure prognosticators of their pick of the Loboes as state contenders, but to help Monahans show itself that it can do it.

“I couldn’t even watch the film — I finally watched it this summer for the first time,” Trevor said of the Bridgeport loss. “Looking back at it, there are little bitty things we could have done different. Just one play, one or two plays away from being in the quarterfinals playing Liberty Hill, two-time defending state champion. We look back on it, but it drives us more this year.

“In the playoffs, if we get up like that, we actually have to finish them off … Anything less than a state championship would be a disappointment.”