The West team may have lost to the East in the Robeson Classic, but Mount Olive’s Lincoln Youtz and Sussex Tech’s Brian Gruber made lasting impressions.

Both distinguished themselves in the East’s 13-3 victory.

Youtz came into practice and immediately set himself apart.

And then he went out and dominated.

“We saw him at the first practice,” Lakeland coach Ryan McCarney said with a laugh. “We said, ‘Wow, this is a grown man.’ He was a real no-nonsense guy.”

Youtz went out and won defensive MVP for the West squad. He made 10 tackles, though none were made behind the line, which became his trademark as a Marauder. He amassed almost 250 tackles in his junior and senior years, including 29 for loss, and 8 tackles.

He was unable to get into the East backfield much because Robeson rules prohibit blitzing. 

“Not being able to blitz hurt,” the University of New England (Vermont)-bound Youtz said. “At Mount Olive, we blitzed on every play. I guess it’s something I’ve got to get used to.”

Receiving MVP in a prestigious game was a nice way to get into college mode for Youtz. 

“I thought getting it was awesome,” he said. “There was a lot of talent on the field. I rose to the top and to be named MVP was really something special.”

The award was well-earned if for no other reason than the fact that Youtz spends an enormous amount of time on football preparation.

“He wants to be great at it and does the little things to make himself great like the weight room, film, linebacker drills, staying late, things like that to make him better,” Mount Olive coach Brian O’Connor said.

Youtz is an outdoorsman who loves hunting and fishing. One day, he wants to be a game warden.

Until then, Youtz looks to have that same impact on the UNE football field that he had as a Marauder.

“I’ve started doing the workouts (the UNE) coaches sent and I’m already liking it based on the workouts,” Youtz said. “In high school, there was more strength training and getting your numbers up. College workouts are more about flexibility over strength. Based off the workouts, there is more to flexibility with weighted stretches. Those are the warmups, but as the workout goes on it gets more intense. I’m ready for it.”

“He will do well up there and he’ll play right away,” O’Connor said. “He’ll wind up starting three years for them. He has all the things you cannot measure.”

The Kean-bound Gruber, meanwhile, excelled in his role as a blocking back for the West. He booted a 37-yard field goal for his team’s lone points and placed a punt inside the red zone as well.

“He’s a diverse football player,” McCarney said. “He played special teams for us and showed that he has plenty of leg. He set the edge for some of our runs. He is 6-1, 190 and he is a big kid.”

Amazingly enough, Gruber has been Sussex Tech’s quarterback the last two years, amassing 2,310 yards and 30 touchdowns.

Gruber is a Wantagh resident (High Point sending district) but chose to attend Sussex Tech because of its Electrical course. His father, brother and sister are all Sussex Tech graduates. His dad has also been the school’s offensive coordinator for eight years.

When Gruber was a youngster back in 2018, the program had a strong season and finished 7-3. He attended many of those games and wanted to become a part of the program.

He wound up being one of the best players in school history as the quarterback in a Wildcat offense. He will be going to Kean as a running back.

“I’m not much of a thrower,” he said.

He will major in either Phys Ed or Business.

The Robeson game served as a nice bridge between Sussex Tech and Kean.

“The game was a good experience playing with people that are superstars in their schools,” he said. “It was a good experience playing with good coaches against a good team. I had a good time. I learned a little bit. I got into more detail about what the defense is doing as a running back. Things like how to read the D-End and linebackers and what they are doing pre-snap. I knew a little about it from high school, but they explained it more.”

Next stop for Gruber: Kean University for camp in August.

“I think I’ll punt and kick as well as play running back,” he said. “It’s a great stadium. It’s beautiful there. The facilities are crazy. Playing in the (Robeson) game, I was focused on the game, but now I’m focused on Kean.”