6’4”…230 pounds…4.7 speed in the 40
If you think the obvious numbers of the first Division I signee in the history of Leonard High School jump out at you, his coach says you should have seen him play middle linebacker.
And there is a lot more to it than that.
“The University of North Texas didn’t just get an outstanding football player when they signed Kail Krider,” Leonard head football coach Shane Fletcher will tell you. “They also got an outstanding young man.”
There are a lot of components that comprise the type of athlete it takes to play D1 in the 21st century. Krider has the package. Being blessed with size and speed will get you to the door; then those intangibles, the qualities you can’t measure or weigh, will allow a select few to step on through. His coaches believe that is what will make Kail successful in the game of football and in the game of life.
“He is very intelligent,” Coach Fletcher says of his middle linebacker/tight end, but he is also very instinctive.”
Those two attributes don’t always go hand-in-hand. Some instinctive athletes aren’t intelligent enough to realize they must train their body and mind every day to take it to the next level. Some very intelligent players over think and under react. Krider made a habit of meeting running backs in the hole, head up and wide-eyed. As a matter of fact, that is the exact advice he would like to pass along to the young athletes that hope to one day be sitting at the table, surrounded by family, coaches and friends, as they sign their name on the dotted line.
“Keep your head up,” Kail says, “and work hard. Try to be the very best you can be. Coach Fletcher was a big help, too. He told me two years ago when he first coached at Leonard that I could go play at the next level.”
This was a memorable day for Leonard High School. This was a memorable day for Coach Fletcher as the first-year head coach watched his first Division 1 signee put pen to paper. And, hopefully, this will be just the beginning of some very memorable Saturdays for Kail Krider.
It may be the beginning of some memorable days for opposing offensive linemen, although not in the most pleasant context. The UNT coaches want Krider to play defensive end and you can expect the Leonard High School product to practice what he preaches. He is going to work hard every day preparing himself to be the very best he can be. He will keep his head up and let his hat do his talking.
Whether you are talking 2A ball, 5A ball, D1 or the level after that, only a select few have the size, the speed and the intelligence to truly stand out.
This guy is gonna be hard to handle.
