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12/14/2016 11:00 PMJack Six’s diligent approach has always been at the forefront of his career with the Guilford football squad. Consequently, Jack wanted to make sure that he completed his tenure with the Indians by making a major impact this fall.
Jack, who was a senior captain, started playing football in the 6th grade and immediately fell in love with the sport. Upon suiting up for the Indians, Jack played three seasons at the varsity level and finished his career with 264 tackles as a middle linebacker. That total includes the 100 tackles that Jack made this year, when he earned All-SCC Division II/III honors on defense for the Indians. Jack also forced seven fumbles, recorded 5.5 sacks, and grabbed an interception in the recent season.
“Football is a real team sport. You have 11 people on the field and, if one isn’t doing their job, then it all gets messed up,” says Jack, a two-way starter since his sophomore year who also played the offensive line. “One thing that helped me was my work ethic. I went to Rob Mangino’s strength and conditioning gym and he taught me the work ethic to be successful. [Head Coach Mike Eagle] is also always on me to help me be the best that I can be.”
Jack played the “mike” position in Guilford’s linebacking corps. It’s a spot that comes with a lot of responsibility as Jack was constantly speaking up while serving as the signal caller on every snap for the Indians’ defense.
“As a middle linebacker, you are really the leader of the tackle box and you are getting the calls from your coaches on the sidelines,” says Jack. “You are also talking to the other players and telling them where they need to be. It’s like being the defense’s quarterback.”
Jack has seen his skills on the gridiron grow, while also growing as a young adult throughout the past few years. Jack knows that none of this progress would have been possible without adhering to the simple principle of good, old-fashioned hard work.
“You can’t wish for anything or any success to happen. You have to work for it,” he says. “I improved upon my work ethic, I think, because I realized that, without it, you won’t be successful as a player.”
Coach Eagle says that Jack is a confident leader and a fierce competitor who created many anxious moments in the minds of the Indians’ opponents.
“Jack is a leader by example and a workout warrior. Jack had a willingness to go above and beyond not only in practice and on game night, but also in the locker room and mentoring the younger offensive and defensive linemen,” says Eagle. “He was a game-planning nightmare for opposing coaches, and teams would routinely run away from his side of the defensive line. Jack matured in our program over the last two years and he is more than ready for the rigors of football at the next level. I and the coaches would like to wish him the best of luck.”
Jack was often called upon to be the voice of reason when the chips were down and things weren’t going Guilford’s way. While some athletes might view that responsibility as a burden, Jack feels it was a blessing.
“It meant a lot and was special to be a captain. It means all the players look up to you,” says Jack. “When something bad happened, they looked to you to calm things down and move on to the next play.”
Reflecting upon his time with the Guilford football program, Jack feels eternally grateful for all the kinship he experienced while going through those grueling practices and then playing alongside his teammates under the lights on Friday nights.
“Guilford football was a brotherhood to me. We all loved each other and trusted each other. I really saw it as a football family,” says Jack, who thanks his family, Mangino, the entire Guilford coaching staff, and the Indians’ fans. “We all cared about each other so much, which is always a great thing to have in a football program.”