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If Jake Pearce played high school football for Bishop Gorman or Palo Verde in Las Vegas, he would be a certain Division I prospect.
Those letters of interest that flood his family’s mailbox from USC, Kentucky, New Mexico, Utah and UNLV would surely be scholarship offers like the ones other top high school juniors have received at this stage of the recruiting process.
But Pearce plays for Overton’s Moapa Valley High, a school 65 miles northeast of Las Vegas that rarely receives recruiting visits.
The 6-foot, 200-pound Pearce set a Moapa Valley record with 139 tackles in 2008 from his middle linebacker position to help the Pirates win their second consecutive 3A state championship. Opposing coaches voted him as the league’s Defensive Player of the Year.
“He has a knack for finding the football,” Moapa Valley coach Brent Lewis said. “I don’t know how to describe it but when he hits someone, he hits them. They feel it.”
The tackling record is impressive when you consider Moapa Valley has been playing football since the 1940s.
Top programs in Las Vegas like Palo Verde — the Panthers have been participated in the last seven large-school state semifinals — are regular stops on the recruiting trail. Moapa Valley, despite being a 3A classification power, is lucky to have its top players find a spot on a junior college roster.
So, when a talent like Pearce comes along, proving he can play at an elite level is only half the battle. Getting noticed is the other half.
He is scheduled to compete in recruiting combines in Las Vegas next month where he will be timed in the 40-yard dash and other events to demonstrate he is a legit football player.
“I get way excited when those letters come,” Pearce said. “It is the greatest feeling to see the envelope with a university’s logo on it.”
Pearce, like most high school football players in America, would love to play for USC. His coach would settle for any Division I program.
“It’s been frustrating over the years because we have kids who deserved to play at the Division I level,” Lewis said.
Even UNLV, the school Pearce has grown up cheering for, hasn’t knocked down his door with interest.
“I like UNLV a lot, but I haven’t heard much from them,” Pearce said. “I don’t think playing in the 3A should be a factor. It is still the same aged kids and everything.”
Ray Brewer can be reached at ray.brewer@lasvegassun.com or 990-2662.
Pearce is a beast of a football player, I've seen him play in person. He would be one of the top 4A players if he played in Vegas. His one downside to becoming a Division I football player will be his speed. I am interested to see what his 40 time is.
Football999: Pearce will be timed in late April at a scouting combine hosted by the Southern Nevada Coaches Association. He said he runs a 4.7 second 40-yard dash. His size could be a factor, too. He is listed at 6-feet but that is generous. He is closer to 5-11.