Look closely at the St. Joe’s Marauders’ roster and you’ll notice that there is a tight end with immense gifts.
His name is Michael O’Grady, and he’s one of the region’s best at his position.
“He has developed very well in the last four years,” St. Joe’s coach Mike Corona said. “As an athlete, he's one of the most skilled guys we have on the field. He’s 6’2” and 225 pounds but he moves like a wide receiver, and he's got the frame and strength of a lineman.
“He's gotten a little bit better every week. He's still learning details of the position but from an athletic standpoint he's a matchup problem because if he’s covered by a linebacker he can outrun you, and if there’s a defensive back on him he can pummel you into the ground.”
One might be surprised to learn that this is his first year playing tight end. According to Corona, O’Grady is just playing wherever the team needs him to play.
“He was a running back through his youth football days and the previous head coach that recruited him said ‘Hey, I want to play varsity. You're going to be starting as a freshman defensive end.’ Then I came in and told him, ‘You're going to play football with the other freshmen. So you have a year to figure out how to pass your classes and be a good person and all that stuff.’
“He was really bummed out about it and didn't want to stay. Then the following year, he was on varsity because we didn't have a JV team. And I said, ‘Hey, I know you want to be a running back but I need you to be a tackle because we don't have any linemen yet.’ He played tackle for two years on offense and defense and this year we moved him to tight end, and he’s played very well there.”
The youngest of three boys – all adopted – O’Grady comes from a different background than most kids. Additionally, his father and older brother are both graduates of St. Joe’s, and that type of environment has helped ground him and shape him into the young man he now is.
O’Grady also has great leadership skills, according to Corona. But when it came time to vote for team captains, O’Grady declined the offer.
“Michael said he didn’t want to be one because he didn't want to take attention away from others. But he leads as if he's a captain anyway,” Corona said. “He focuses on being a good teammate, but he also holds his friends accountable – which is probably the hardest part of leadership at that age.
“He’s also learning how to lead by example as well. His teammates all like him and respect him too – when he speaks, people listen.”
O’Grady isn’t quite sure what he wants to do after high school. But Corona knows that he can certainly play at the collegiate level if he puts his mind to it.
“I coached in college, and when I talk to our kids about what college football is like it's not the things that they see on Instagram or Twitter, where an offer comes in and you’re posing for pictures with a chain around your neck,” Corona said. “College football is a full-time unpaid job. I try and tell our kids that if you don't love practice, you won’t like getting up at 6 am to lift and it's gonna be a miserable experience.
“So as our kids get older and they progress through the program, the ones who want to play college football I kind of talk frankly about what the experience will be like, but I want to make sure it's something that they understand what they’re getting into before they decided to do it. As of now Michael’s kind of figuring out whether he wants to have that so-called full-time job, but if he wants to do it I know he can.”
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