AKRON -ÊTippecanoe Valley football coach Scott Bibler calls defensive lineman Rustin Birge "a throwback."

Art Donovan. Dick Butkus. Larry Cszonka. These are players modern-day players are "thrown back" to: gritty, gutty gamers who liked to kick your butt.

"You combine his experience, desire, heart and nastiness," Bibler said. "He wasn't dirty, but he had a meanness. Coaches like to see that. You just don't see that in high school football players anymore. He's a throwback to the old days, the type of player who is tough mentally and physically."

Birge did not fit the typical defensive tackle mode.

He was 5-11 and 245, and while those measurements don't indicate someone who would be light on his feet, Birge was. Birge was so quick - Bibler says "explosive" - he played outside linebacker for his freshman and sophomore years before Bibler decided to move him to defensive tackle.

In most systems, the job of the defensive tackles is to plug up the middle and let the linebackers make tackles all over the field. Birge did not want to give up his linebacker position, but he did. What he did not give up were the number of tackles he made.

Birge, named to the Class 3A All-State first team by the coaches, finished with 100 tackles this season, 49 solo and 51 assisted. Thirteen tackles by this team captain occurred behind the line of scrimmage. He delivered four sacks, caused seven fumbles and 11 hurries and blocked one kick. He tied for first in school history for most tackle points in one season.

"He had many games where he led the team in tackles," Bibler said. "Defensive tackles should not be leading your team in tackles. Usually linebackers do."

"He is a very good football player, and what makes him good is his desire on the field, his pursuit. He'll make tackles five or 10 yards across the field."

"He's up there at the top of the defensive tackles I've coached in my tenure."

The play that describes Birge's meanness, his nastiness, occurred Sept. 24, 1999, in Valley's 26-6 win over Oak Hill.

In that game Birge ended up in a pile with the Oak Hill quarterback, who said something to Birge and kicked him off the pile. After the pile cleared, Birge stopped, turned around and glared at the quarterback. His coaches were urging him to get back to the defense's side of the ball, but Birge was too busy staring down the quarterback.

Birge returned to Valley's side of the football. He didn't know it then, but Bibler later said every Viking coach singled out Birge and stared at him. Bibler knew Birge's regular stance, and this wasn't it. Birge took the stance of a sprinter.

Oak Hill tried to double-team him, to no avail. He split the double-team and drove the quarterback into the ground.

"We knew he was mad," Bibler said. "You know that quarterback was thinking, 'I wished I'd never said anything to him.'"

As intense as Birge could be on the field, he was the team clown off the field. Birge's humor specialized in impersonations, usually teachers and coaches.

Coach Bibler was fair game.

Bibler, in his coaches' office, received a phone call from a college coach supposedly interested in some Valley players. Bibler began talking about his players to the coach when Birge let him off the hook.

"He had gotten on the phone in the athletic office," Bibler said. "It got me, because typically students don't use the phone." [[In-content Ad]]