Sportsbeat Top 10: Glendale defensive end Landon McGarvey

For the second-straight season, Glendale put a defensive linemen on the 1A all-state team when junior Landon McGarvey broke out last fall with 16 sacks.

The rising senior saying preparation was key.

“I just know who I’m going against, and know what to use, and what not to use, and how to get there as quick as possible,” he said.

While McGarvey proved to be an elite pass rusher, defining him as a defensive end would be shortsighted, because few have defined being a “Swiss Army knife” more.

“I started as a wide receiver, tight end, moved back to the backfield as fullback, then went to tackle, then to guard, then the center and then back to guard,” he said with a smile.

This year, Landon will play linebacker and defensive end, with a sprinkle of fullback. It’s about how he’ll factor in at the next level. After his breakout junior campaign, his head coach expects big things this fall.

“To see him evolve over the past few years, he just seems to keep getting better and better and he hasn’t even reached full potential and his potential is limitless,” said head coach Dave “Spanx” Trexler. “And with his work ethic, I’m just really excited for what’s ahead for him.”

McGarvey is a rising name in college recruiting circles and talks highly of the process and camps he’s attended. He said the one thing the process has show him, it’s that he has work to do to compete with the best.

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“You can never be too fast or be too strong,” McGarvey said. “So as this entire process goes along, and in a camp sort of thing, I see strength always has to improve, speed always has to improve, and just making sure my body stays right.”

“The thing about him is, he’s he definitely has the talent and he has all the skill set, but he has the intangibles,” said Trexler. “Just the person that he is, his work ethic. And he’s just so reliable and he’s so mature for his age in the sense of, you know, you can just rely on him and the way he handles things. And he really sells himself whenever whenever you meet in year round him.”

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