Aug. 28, 2015
Past Mick McGrane 2014-15 football features
2014
Kaehler: A Thinking Man's Game (Aug. 5)
Whittaker: Long Time Gone, Never Forgotten (Aug. 6)
Life in the Weight Room: Hall's Strong Suit (Aug. 15)
Roberts: A Career Comes Full Circle (Aug. 21)
The Season's in Session, Take Your Seats (Aug. 29)
How Quickly we Forget (Sept. 7)
Looks can be Deceiving (Sept. 19)
O-Line has Aztecs' Running Game in High Gear (Oct. 23)
Falling Short is no Longer an Option for Aztec Football (Nov. 29)
Winds of Change: "Rise To 25" Fuels New Direction for Football (Dec. 23)
Pumphrey in Need of a Playing Partner (Dec. 24)
2015
Football no Longer Needs Sun to Sell Itself (Feb. 4)
Aztec Football is Flush with Experience in 2015 (Feb. 20)
Regardless of the Road, J.J. Whittaker's Future is Flush with Success (July 23)
Gordon no Longer Wrestling with Football Future (July 30)
Kazee has the Corner Covered in Aztec D (Aug. 5)
Hageman has Given Boot to Aztec Kicking Woes (Aug. 14)
Life is a Snap for Aztecs' Overbaugh (Aug. 21)
McGrane: Munson Shines upon Emerging from Shadows
By Mick McGrane, @GoAztecs Senior Writer (@MickOnTheMesa)
Given the inexact science of recruiting, the rare gem who escapes the eyes of coaches paid to recognize such things is deemed to have "slipped through the cracks."
Calvin Munson, it would seem, not only slipped through the cracks, he apparently spent his entire senior year at Francis Howell Central High School masquerading as the The Invisible Man.
How else does one explain the Defensive Player of the Year in the state of Missouri receiving a handful of scholarship offers from schools in such football-rich whistle-stops as Murray, Ky., Martin, Tenn., and Carbondale, Ill.?
How else does one explain the failure to identify the talents of a linebacker who amassed an eye-popping 193 tackles with nine sacks and three interceptions as a senior?
How else does one explain missing on an athlete versatile enough to play quarterback in a Wildcat formation who rushed for 150 yards and four touchdowns and turned in a baseball season that saw him taken by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 31st round of the Major League Draft?
Because somebody somewhere has a whole lot of explaining to do.
Unless you're San Diego State, in which case you're as slaphappy as a kid at a carnival.
Munson, who has seized opportunity by the throat and refused to release it, enters his junior year with the Aztecs as not only one of the top linebackers in the Mountain West, but as a pitcher in possession of a 90-plus mph fastball that has SDSU baseball coach Mark Martinez eyeing him as a closer.
Along with safety Trey Lomax, Munson received the blessing of Coach Rocky Long to take a swing at collegiate baseball in February, the same time football was conducting spring drills. Munson proved an adept juggler, bouncing from the football field to the weight room to class while finding time for his tutor before baseball practice at night.
"It was a real struggle trying to manage my time," he said. "But my academic advisors really helped a lot and the coaches were very understanding of the situation. It's really been a blessing for me being able to play both sports."
But as August gives way to September, the focus turns fully to football and the continued progression of a player who last season went from unsung to starter to star, ultimately being named the team's Defensive Player of the Year.
Pressed into service due to injuries, the 6-1, 240-pound Munson, who also earned Mountain West honorable mention accolades last year, led the Aztecs in tackles for loss (10.5), sacks (four) and interceptions (four) while finishing second in total tackles (83).
Somewhere, somebody has some explaining to do.
"If all you did was watch Calvin in games, you'd probably think, 'Wow, this guy just came out of nowhere,' " said linebackers coach Zach Arnett, who played four seasons for Long at New Mexico. "But if you were to ask anybody who's at practice or in the weight room or anyone who sees him on a regular basis, this guy has worked for every bit of the success he's had.
"When he came in as a freshman, he was big enough and strong enough to play and right away he was contributing on special teams. Then (current starter) Jake Fely broke his foot, Josh Gavert took that spot and we needed someone to back him up. So Calvin winds up playing on all four special teams as well as the backup to Josh, which got him some really valuable experience. It forced him to learn the defense and learn his role.
"Going into his sophomore year, we're expecting Derek Largent to be healthy and expecting Josh Gavert to play and Cody Galea to make the move (from defensive end to linebacker). No one in fall camp expected Calvin Munson to be a starter. But once again, injuries forced him into a starting role and because of his work ethic he ends up playing very well and holding onto that starting spot (at outside linebacker) all year.
"I don't think it's a surprise to any of the coaches that he's been as good as he's been, because he works extremely hard and he's a very bright guy. He knows where he fits in the defense."
Which might be at cornerback had senior J.J. Whittaker not been granted a sixth year of eligibility. Munson's interception total last season ranked fifth in the league and his 146 interception yards ranked seventh in the nation. In his starting debut in last year's season opener against Northern Arizona, his 64-yard interception return was the longest among FBS teams in Week 1. He was named the MW Player of the Week in a 30-14 win over Air Force when he returned an interception 54 yards for a touchdown, recorded 10 tackles (nine solo) and forced a fumble.
If no one had expected Calvin Munson to be a starter during fall camp, he was now so entrenched you couldn't yank him loose from the lineup with a log chain.
"One of the biggest things for me last year was that I was really blessed by having all of the senior leadership that we had at linebacker," he said. "They talked to me about a lot of things that they'd been doing over the years. They took me under their wing and talked about things that had helped them become better players.
"Obviously, my goal was to just go in there and play as hard as I could. At the beginning of the season I knew we had a lot of depth at linebacker and I thought my role would be just to go in there in certain situations and give us some depth. But then the injuries started to happen and I ended up doing some good things."
It had started two years earlier when SDSU defensive line coach Osia Lewis, a teammate of Munson's father, Kurt, at Oregon State in the early '80s, enhanced Calvin Munson's collegiate prospects after viewing video of his performances as a prep at Francis Howell Central.
While Munson had drawn a modicum of interest from Missouri, as well as Arizona State, Cal, Illinois and Iowa, his only scholarship offers had come from Missouri State, Murray State, Tennessee-Martin and Southern Illinois.
"I wasn't getting any real big offers, so we got in touch with Coach Lewis and I sent (SDSU) some film," he said. "Within a week, they asked me to come for a visit and things just seemed to fall into place right away.
"I never thought I'd end up (in San Diego). My parents are always trying to find excuses to come out here. My mom (Kristen) is always calling to ask if everything is all right and if I need her to come out. I always tell her she's welcome to come if she wants, but that everything is OK. I'm really OK, Mom."
Truth be told, he's considerably more than OK where the Aztecs are concerned. At a position sorely thinned by the losses of Galea, Gavert and Largent to graduation, Munson and sixth-year senior Fely are the lone linebackers with starting experience. At present, Randy Ricks, a 6-foot-5, 230-pound junior transfer from Arizona Western Community College, is listed No. 1 on the depth chart at middle linebacker with Munson and Fely on the flanks.
On the whole, SDSU returns eight starters from a group that ranked No. 1 in the MW and No. 16 in the nation last season in total defense.
It also returns its Defensive Player of the Year, who despite once flying under the radar, may be poised to soar to unprecedented heights.
"Calvin has one of those freak genes," Arnett said. "I mean, there are two completely different demeanors involved in football and baseball. Baseball may not take that physical toll where you're banging against somebody all the time, but it's still a physical grind, especially with all of the travel. I was surprised he came back and was running so well. It was only a week or two before he was right back where he'd left off. That was impressive. I would have really expected there to be sort of a hangover period trying to go from one sport to the next.
"But he's just naturally good at most things; it's certainly not coached. He's just a talented guy. Maybe he can't flip his hips and be as smooth as other guys when he's running, but he's smart enough that he gets himself into position where he's there to make the play. That goes a long way in this game."
And a long way toward finally providing an explanation.