As a 12-year-old playing midget football, senior Landon Kubicek had dreams of playing for the Huskers. Despite an injury during last season that sidelined him for six weeks, Kubicek’s dream became a reality when he signed a letter of intent to walk on at Nebraska.
The journey was not an easy one. In the first game of the season Kubicek broke his foot, but that didn’t stop him. The 6’4” 290 pound offensive tackle was determined to get back on the field as soon as possible. Head coach Ryan Gottula said there were many things that contributed to Kubicek’s success. “Landon put in a tremendous amount of work last summer to prepare for his senior season. I know he was disappointed to have an injury occur just a few plays into the season, but he worked very hard to rehab the injury. Therefore, he was able to get himself back to a point where he not only played, but he played at a very high level for the last few games of the season,” said Gottula.
One might say he’s a ‘Cinderella Story,’ going to a Division 1 school after playing football for only five years. “My mom didn’t want me to play for the longest time because she thought I would get injured,” said Kubicek. He has compiled several awards and achievements including the Sertoma (Leadership and Volunteering) and Chuck Potter (Best Lineman). He was also on the Lincoln Journal Star Super State team and Omaha World Herald All State team. “My first goal there (at Nebraska) will be to earn a scholarship and I’ll definitely try to get on the field also, “ said Kubicek.
Kubicek has been on the varsity football team for three seasons while starting his last two seasons. “I’m definitely glad I played at Southeast, because of the tradition. It’s an honor playing here at Southeast and all of my friends go here so it’s been really fun,” said Kubicek. “Also it’s been an honor playing for Coach Gottula. You want to work hard for a guy that will work hard for you, and he’s just a great guy overall,” he added.
With every athlete comes a favorite moment. “Winning state as a junior was easily my favorite. (After the game) We listened to “We are the Champions” like 20 times in the locker room. I was just really happy. It was probably the best time I’ve ever had after a football game, “ said Kubicek.
The Knights coaching staff recognized Kubicek’s potential early in his football career. “Landon was a player that we knew had a great upside when he came to Southeast as a freshman. His frame is what you look for in an offensive lineman and his determination and work ethic allowed him to progress very quickly in our system,” said Gottula. He added “Landon went from a starter on the freshman team to a starter on the junior varsity team within one season. By his junior season, he was starting at left tackle on the varsity line. That offensive line was a huge part of our State Championship run in 2011,” he added.
You might expect a younger player to struggle in leading his team, but Kubicek had no problems emerging as a leader during his senior year. “I saw a lot of growth in him (Landon) as a leader. He is not necessarily an ‘in your face’ or vocal type of leader, but he certainly was a leader for the entire team with his work ethic and he was a great teacher for some of the younger players in our program this past season,” said Gottula.
Gottula said there are many strengths Kubicek has that will help him be successful in college. “Landon’s strengths include his understanding of the game and his technique. With his size, Landon can be a dominant run blocker, but he is also a player that works very hard at his pass protection technique. He is definitely one of the top pass protectors that I have had the opportunity to coach. He also understands offensive schemes very well and had very few errors as far as missed assignments. Finally, Landon’s a guy that just loves the game of football and works very hard to make himself the best player he can be,” said Gottula. “He did a nice job of being a leader for the younger players on our offensive line during the weeks in which he was not playing. That is what we expect captains to do in our program and that is exactly what Landon did.”
Gottula finished by saying, “I expect Landon to do well. He will be an easy player to coach. I know he will work hard and listen to his coaches, which are traits that will serve him very well at the next level.”
Kubicek officially signed his letter of intent with the Cornhuskers on Feb. 6 in Prasch Activities Center. He wants to major in sports management or business management.
