Leo Partida Ruiz’s high school football career all started with a cheesy, carb-loaded snack.
The Pioneer Valley High School senior plays wide receiver and strong safety for his school’s football team. But three years ago he was a basketball player.
“After one of my games the coaches saw me and said ‘You look good out there, why don’t you play football?’” Ruiz remembers. More specifically, though, he remembers one of the coaches asking him, “If I buy you some nachos, will you play football for me?”
Ruiz took the nachos offer, and kept his football promise too. It didn’t take long for him to really adjust to the sport. It also didn’t take him long to learn what his coaches knew as soon as they saw him playing basketball: that he had skills.
“I think they saw that I was tall, fast, and aggressive,” Ruiz said.
Since then Partida Ruiz has played football, while continuing to play basketball, as well as volleyball.
Partida Ruiz manages to excel at it all. He has especially impressed his football coaches.
Pioneer head coach Johnny Ruiz said coaches have high expectations for Partida Ruiz.
“Last year he was a defensive all-leaguer, and this year we’ve expanded his duties to include offensive. So we’re looking for great things from him,” coach Ruiz said.
Coach Ruiz said that expectation comes from the sheer dedication and work that Partida Ruiz puts into the game.
“What makes him a standout is his work ethic. He’s been in the weight room since last spring, all summer, and he holds down a job too. He’s always been one of the leaders,” coach Ruiz said.
In order to balance all of his activities, Partida Ruiz, 17, keeps a tight schedule, waking up at 4 a.m., hitting the gym at 6 a.m., making practice after school, getting to sleep early, and somehow fitting in schoolwork—and eating.
“I have to eat all the time. I always have a snack with me,” he said.
Partida Ruiz said one of his favorite things about playing football is bonding with his teammates, many of whom he grew up with, he said.
Although juggling so many academic and athletic obligations may seem like a feat in itself, playing sports actually gives Partida Ruiz a way to bring balance to his life.
“There’s so much stress out there in the world, you just get on the court or on the field and let it all go and be yourself,” he said.
This article appears in Sep 22-29, 2016.
