Coupeville Sports

  Gavin Knoblich, well-dressed man about town. (Photos courtesy Mariah Knoblich)

“Hey, mom! Mom! MOM! Mom mommy mom mom mom!”

Aaron Wright no longer anchors the line for the Coupeville High School football squad, but his impact lingers long after he hung up the uniform.

As Gavin Knoblich prepares for his freshman year at CHS, one which will kick off with him taking his own place on the gridiron, Wright’s words and actions spur him on.

“Aaron, he set an example for me to push myself to be like,” Knoblich said. “He taught me how to do more than go through the motions.”

A strong player at the middle school level, Knoblich intends to be a three-sport athlete for the Wolves, playing football, basketball and baseball.

While he enjoys all three, spring will herald the return of his favorite pastime.

“Baseball (is my favorite), because it’s the first sport I took seriously,” Knoblich said. “And I found I had some athletic ability.”

He wants to make an impact right out of the gate (“I want to have a chance to be starting JV in any of my sports”), but knows there’s always room for growth.

“I enjoy the accomplishment of learning,” he said. “I like the time I spend with my friends working on something fun together.”

Knoblich loves to be in the thick of things, and fire up his teammates.

While that’s a huge plus, he also realizes he needs to know when to go loud and proud, and when to dial it back and keep a calm head.

“I’m always trying to think ahead. I’m always trying to be positive for my teammates,” he said. “My weakness is my composure – my inner voice in the back of my head.”

Helping him find his center is mom Mariah, who has a huge impact on his day-to-day life.

“My mom, she is always there to calm me,” Knoblich said. “She gets me where I need to go, and she always smiles for me.”

Whether it’s camping and hunting with his dad Clint or hanging out at the beach and riding dirt bikes with friends, he has a reliable support group.

Along with his mother, his grandparents step up big to help anchor things.

“My Grammy and Poppy. They make things so easy by always helping my mom,” Knoblich said. “Getting me places when my mom can’t, and they always have awesome dinners for us.”