2008 Woodie Awards
A Tall Order
In shadow of Germaine Race era,
Curtis Thom
Issue date: 11/15/07 Section: Sports
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Caleb Farabi hobbles toward his seat, working his way forward with a pair of crutches. He's greeted with waves and the occasional fan stopping to talk about the season, his year, and his crutches, before they congratulate and wish him the best of luck.
Farabi settles into his seat flashing his infectious smile to the people passing by, and he exhales.
Simply put, it has been a long, productive year for Farabi. Whether it was the 1,600 yards of total offense he amassed, the 21 touchdowns he scored, the stinging overtime loss to the Northwest Bearcats he endured, or maybe the simple fact that many doubted he would ever be in this situation.
"I've always been small and always heard people talking about it. It was worse when I was in high school when I was 5-2 and weighed probably 120 pounds," said Farabi with a chuckle. "Then I got a little bigger and tried to put on weight but I've never been able to keep it on."
Those doubters always talked about Farabi's size (5 feet, 6 inches, 175 pounds), but the speed and instincts that he had were undeniable.
"It all started when I was a little kid really, people were just always saying that I was too small to do something, and I've always kept that close for motivation," said Farabi. "Ever since then, I've just kept it as a chip on my shoulder ... to give me more inspiration."
It was behind that inspiration that Farabi scampered for 2,529 yards and 41 touchdowns, while gaining 13.3 yards per carry, as a senior at St.Mary-Colgan High School, and gaining him a scholarship to Pitt State.
After solidifying the backup position for his first two years in the Gorilla uniform, Farabi had started to gain notoriety as "the small-back" and gained more than 800 yards of total offense and 10 touchdowns in his two years as the reserve.
It was entering this year that Farabi found his toughest opposition. With the departure of MIAA superstar Germaine Race, who rushed for a Division II record 6,985 yards and college football record of 109 rushing touchdowns, to the San Diego Chargers, Farabi was projected to take over the reins early in training camp, but the pressure was on.
Farabi settles into his seat flashing his infectious smile to the people passing by, and he exhales.
Simply put, it has been a long, productive year for Farabi. Whether it was the 1,600 yards of total offense he amassed, the 21 touchdowns he scored, the stinging overtime loss to the Northwest Bearcats he endured, or maybe the simple fact that many doubted he would ever be in this situation.
"I've always been small and always heard people talking about it. It was worse when I was in high school when I was 5-2 and weighed probably 120 pounds," said Farabi with a chuckle. "Then I got a little bigger and tried to put on weight but I've never been able to keep it on."
Those doubters always talked about Farabi's size (5 feet, 6 inches, 175 pounds), but the speed and instincts that he had were undeniable.
"It all started when I was a little kid really, people were just always saying that I was too small to do something, and I've always kept that close for motivation," said Farabi. "Ever since then, I've just kept it as a chip on my shoulder ... to give me more inspiration."
It was behind that inspiration that Farabi scampered for 2,529 yards and 41 touchdowns, while gaining 13.3 yards per carry, as a senior at St.Mary-Colgan High School, and gaining him a scholarship to Pitt State.
After solidifying the backup position for his first two years in the Gorilla uniform, Farabi had started to gain notoriety as "the small-back" and gained more than 800 yards of total offense and 10 touchdowns in his two years as the reserve.
It was entering this year that Farabi found his toughest opposition. With the departure of MIAA superstar Germaine Race, who rushed for a Division II record 6,985 yards and college football record of 109 rushing touchdowns, to the San Diego Chargers, Farabi was projected to take over the reins early in training camp, but the pressure was on.
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