Austin Gumucio hates to miss stuff.
That's obvious when you consider that the Grantsville three-sport star has never missed a day of school. The fact was reinforced when Gumucio, who has led the state in tackles for the majority of the season, had to sit on the sidelines and watch the Cowboys lose to Ogden 28-23 on Wednesday night.
Gumucio, who has dealt with a muscle contusion in his right leg for the past month, suffered a high ankle sprain in practice last week. He tried to play with the painful injuries against Ogden, but pulled himself out because he felt like he was more of a detriment to his team than a contributor.
"I hate watching," Gumucio said. "That's why I wanted to try it and see if could go. I wasn't helping my team at all. It really hurt."
It also hurt the Cowboys' defense because Gumucio misses tackles about as often as he misses school.
Gumucio recorded a staggering 115 tackles in Grantsville's first eight games. His best outing of the season came against Ben Lomond, when he piled up 17 tackles. He also put together stellar 16-tackle efforts against Delta, Union and Bear River.
In short, Gumucio has been a tackling machine.
"He's definitely our catalyst, especially on defense," said Grantsville coach Tony Cloward. "He brings energy, communication and enthusiasm. Not only is he a fiery, athletic player, he's also a great communicator. He's in charge of making sure everyone is where they need to be."
If his teammates are out of position on defense, Gumucio, the team's middle linebacker, takes care of it. He efficiently fills holes — usually in big collisions — and tracks down ball carriers at a hectic pace with his 6-foot-3, 190-pound frame. To average a little more than 14 tackles per game is an amazing statistic, but Gumucio says he's just doing his job.
"I tackle — that's what linebackers are supposed to do," Gumucio said. "It's nothing special, it's just my job. I know my team is counting on me."
Gumucio's speed (4.6 in the 40-yard dash) helps him with his tackling range. Another of his strengths, he says, is simply his passion for playing football.
"My energy — I lose it on the field," he said. "One of my strongest points is that I'm just having fun. And hitting. If the hitting wasn't in it, I probably wouldn't even play it."
The energy Gumucio has in games provided one of the lighter moments of the season for Grantsville. In the Cowboys' homecoming game against Bear River, Grantsville blocked an attempted field goal and the players celebrated their feat. Gumucio was so happy about it he did a cartwheel on the field.
One problem: The Cowboys didn't make sure the play was dead, and Bear River picked up the loose ball and ran it in for a touchdown.
"I just lost it," Gumucio said. "I went psycho. I get tons of crap for it. People say, hey, at least you did a cartwheel while the other team was scoring."
The Cowboys can laugh about it now, and Cloward really wasn't all that upset when it happened. He has lectured his players about showing some emotion when they make big plays. They did that, and learned a valuable lesson about making sure they hear a whistle before celebrating.
And before doing cartwheels.
"That's him, though," Cloward said. "He loves playing, and he understands how to play. He's one of those rare finds you only get every once in a while."
It's true. How often do you find someone who racks up double-digit totals in tackles in the first eight games of his senior season, also starts on offense at fullback (averaging 5 yards per carry), started for the basketball team as a junior, competes in the long jump, 200 meters and 400 meters in track — qualifying for state in the long jump — has a 3.8 grade point average, can sing and play the drums, and has never missed a day of school?
A rare find, indeed.
"He's a terrific kid all the way around," Cloward said.
E-mail: aaragon@desnews.com