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Gibson chooses cooler North Dakota football over Florida

By Randy Lefko
Posted 7/20/17

MIDDLEBURG - Born and bread in the cradle of north Florida and all its football glory and sunshine, a Middleburg High former football player and coach has taken up an offer to travel to North Dakota …

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Gibson chooses cooler North Dakota football over Florida


Posted

MIDDLEBURG - Born and bread in the cradle of north Florida and all its football glory and sunshine, a Middleburg High former football player and coach has taken up an offer to travel to North Dakota to coach football.

Yes, North Dakota where last year 24 inches of snow fell and the average temperature in January is about two degrees.

“The coach up there sent me a Mayville State jacket,” said former Bronco Erik Gibson, a coach of many shirts and jerseys the past decade. “I told him we don’t have too many jackets in Florida because it’s so hot all the time. He said, ‘Here in North Dakota, you will need more jackets.’”

Gibson was made the offer from Sean Thom, who left North Forsyth (Ga.) High coach friend to become head coach at Mayville State University in cold North Dakota.

“I met him at a coach clinic and hHe gave me a call about three months after I accepted a job as athletic director at

Bradford County High School and asked if I was still interested in coaching in college and that Mayville needed a receivers coach,” said Gibson, a standout wideout and safety at Middleburg with coach John Chapple before playing at Valdosta State University in Georgia. “I did not know where Mayville State was at the time. It’s an NAIA college about an hour north of Fargo.”

Gibson, 40, was well aware of the drastic climate change awaiting him.

“My wife Heather is staying here with our two sons; Brady and Braylon, until we figure if it’s going to be a permanent place,” said Gibson. “She is a pure Southern belle living here all of her life.”

Gibson, an outstanding three-sport athlete; football, track and basketball athlete with a 48 second 400 meter split, took a football scholarship from Valdosta State University in Georgia.

“I played probably one game on junior varsity at Valdosta before the coaches told me I would be moved up,” said Gibson. “It was a great college football atmosphere there.”

After Valdosta, Gibson entertained some NFL Pro Days but did not get much interest mainly because of his size. Gibson wound up with a year in the Canadian Football League.

“The NFL was looking for a different kind of receiver than I was; more like Steve Smith type players; quick and hard-running,” said Gibson, who ran a 4.4 40 yard dash. “The Canada football was suited for me with a wider, long field, 12 players and just three downs. It was a lot of vertical football. Guys I know now say my size now is what they are looking for.”

In 2000, Gibson wound up with seven years of Arena Football with the Jacksonville Tomcats under coach Perry Moss, father to eventual Jacksonville Sharks head coach Les Moss, a team in Tallahassee and one in Memphis.

“A lot of guys go to the Arena League to get more film on their skills,” said Gibson. “Some players that maybe were wideouts in a run-oriented college program use the Arena League to get film. Some guys would rather play first string Arena than third string NFL too.”

Gibson thought his journey through the grind from high school football to pro football gives him a unique perspective for players at all levels.

In 2009, Gibson started coaching at Yulee High, where eventual University of Alabama Heisman Trophy running back Derrick Henry was a freshman.

“I was tasked to coach linebackers to stop Henry in practice,” said Gibson. “I told coach Bobby Johns thanks for giving me the toughest job on the field.”

Gibson spent a year at Yulee then returned to Middleburg for three years.

“I always wanted to come back to Middleburg,” said Gibson. “I made a call in 2013 to coach Alan Powers and he gave my named to coach Karl Smeltzer.”

Gibson stayed on with Middleburg until 2016 where he returned to Arena football with Les Moss, who was named head coach for the Jacksonville Sharks. Moss last until the middle of the 2017 season and was replaced.

Gibson was offered the Bradford job and was going to stay close to home until his phone call came.

“Obviously, it’s pretty far away, but I’m planning on keeping my hands on my Clay County roots and maybe get some kids to come up and play there,” said Gibson. “Mayville already has some Florida kids. You can’t beat Florida athletes.”

Gibson’s final thoughts about coaching goes strictly to what he calls athlete coachability.

“I look for someone who wants to be there; on the field,” said Gibson. “A lot of kids want to just wear the jersey on Friday night. There are a lot more distractions with phones and IPads nowadays and the kid who gets up at 4;30 a.m. to run a couple of miles is hard to find. I had a lot of good coaches that pushed me to be better.”

Mayville, 4-6 in 2016, plays in the North Star Athletic Association.