Profiles In Terpage – A Countdown To The Football Season: Justin Gilbert
By petevolk
A recurring series where we will profile every player and coach on Maryland’s roster, counting down to kick-off against Miami. Thanks to OBNUG for the idea.
Today we profile Maryland’s starting left tackle.
Justin Gilbert, Junior (RS), Offensive Tackle
Stats:
Height: 6’6″
Weight: 300
Ratings: Two stars by Rivals; two stars, #120 offensive tackle by Scout; three stars, #68 offensive guard by ESPN
40-yard dash time: 5.0
High School Stats (Senior Year): 22 tackles, one quarterback hurry and one forced fumble
High School: Monacan High School (Richmond, Va.)
How’d He Get To College Park?
Justin Gilbert played offensive and defensive tackle for Monacan, finishing up his career as a team captain for the Chiefs. He was named All-Met as a senior on the offensive line, and second-team All-Metro and All-District on both offensive and defensive lines as a junior. Like so many other linemen, he did shotput and discus for four years as well.
Gilbert was offered by Virginia Tech, East Carolina, Army and Marshall, but ultimately chose the Terps and offensive line coach Tom Brattan. Gilbert was also recruited by Clemson and current Maryland running backs coach Andre Powell, but was not offered a scholarship there. He has, uh, matured since high school:
As a sophomore in high school, he was 6’2″ and weighed 215 pounds. A timely growth spurt ended up with him as a 6’6″, 280 pound senior with the quickness of a smaller lineman. Gilbert was Monacan’s first-ever straight to Division I player. 2009 safety Garett Patterson followed suit, going to Duke.
Gilbert redshirted his first year on campus, and played in eleven games as a freshman as a backup left tackle and on special teams. As a sophomore last season, he had a very impressive first three games of the season before suffering a season-ending knee injury in the West Virginia game.
More after the jump.
Nickname:
Justin “Comic Sans” Gilbert
Career Highlight:
Being named the starting left tackle last season.
Career Lowlight:
The season-ending injury three games in.
Arbitrary Top Five List:
Starting Lineup, Cleveland Cavaliers:
1. Just
2. Kidding
3. There’s
4. No
5. Season
Dream Season:
Gilbert gets through the season injury-free, leading a strong Maryland line and earning a spot on an All-ACC team.
Nightmare season:
Gilbert gets hurt again, as Max Garcia starts for most of the year.
2011 Prospectus:
Justin Gilbert will likely not be the starter at left tackle for Maryland’s opener against Miami. That honor goes to Max Garcia, who will probably be playing in Gilbert’s stead while the junior recovers from another nasty injury.
The thing is, we really haven’t seen that much of Gilbert. Even though he’s a junior who is entering his second year as the starter at probably the most important position on the offensive line, he’s only played in 14 games and has only started in three.
Gilbert is undeniably talented, but undeniably injury prone. Not only is this two straight major injuries for him as a Terp, he missed major time as a senior in high school. What we’ve seen from him, however, is great. He can be the leader on this O-Line, as long as he’s able to stay on the field. If not, there’s another extremely talented guy waiting in the wings in Max Garcia.
Up Next:
Our next player is a former walk-on who has crafted an incredible career with the Terps.