Eason receives U.S. Army All-American Bowl jersey at ceremony

LAKE STEVENS – Jacob Eason now finds himself on a prestigious list that includes Andrew Luck, Odell Beckham Jr. and Jamaal Charles.

Those three National Football League stars were chosen to play in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl in their senior year of high school. Eason, the Lake Stevens quarterback who is one of the top recruits in the country, received his All-American Bowl jersey in a special ceremony at Lake Stevens High School Thursday afternoon.

“I just look at it as an opportunity,” Eason said. “One of my goals is to be just like those guys who have gone through this game and been great and I think just taking the same steps as they did can get me that much closer to where I want to be. I think it’s just awesome.”

Lake Stevens QB @skinnyqb10 being selected to be an @ArmyAllAmerican in a special ceremony at LSHS. pic.twitter.com/qXhPxGfvT5

— David Krueger (@Krueger_David) October 15, 2015

The 6-foot-6, 220-pound Eason has committed to the University of Georgia and will head south after finishing school early in December. But before he heads to Georgia he will take part in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl, on Saturday, Jan. 9, 2016 at 10 a.m. PST at the Alamodome in San Antonio.

The game will be televised live on NBC.

“It’s really cool. There aren’t a lot of opportunities that are presented like this,” Eason said. “Just to be able to have all my friends and family here. It was awesome.

“The jersey was cool, too.”

The All-American Bowl recognizes 90 players and 125 marching band members from around the country. Athletes are chosen not just because they excel on the field, but also display “the same values as our Army Soldiers – values like loyalty, respect and integrity,” according to the All-American Bowl’s official website.

“I’ve been coaching football since ‘94 at various schools and been around a lot of successful players and great humans, this is far and away the most special event or the biggest award I can see a high school kid earning,” said Lake Stevens head coach Tom Tri. “This is truly an All-American. That’s about the highest award you can get in high school football. I just hope it leads to bigger and better things for him.”

Tri, as well as Eason’s parents Tony and Christine Eason and Lake Stevens athletic director Jason Pearson, were also honored at the ceremony. The event required a little extra work for Tri, but the coach was more than happy to do it.

“It’s cool, it really is,” Tri said. “I thought about that last night because I’ve been in my office an awful lot this week watching film and putting practice plans and game plans together and I was like, ‘If we didn’t have this ceremony going on tomorrow I wouldn’t have to be here until midnight tonight. I could probably could go home at about 10:30.’ … (But when I got home) I thought about how I would not trade this for the world. This is why I coach: a chance for our kids to be recognized. Watching him, literally, from the time he was an eighth grader on up until here we are towards the end of his senior year and just seeing the amount of growth he’s had, not just as a football player, but as a young human being.

“It recharged my batteries.”

Eason is the third player from Wesco to be selected to the U.S. Army All-American Bowl in recent years, with KeiVarae Russell (Mariner) and Devante Downs (Mountlake Terrace) also being chosen.

Downs did not play in the game due to injury.

“It’s so rare to have this type of talent around,” Tri said. “You want to speed up the process and see where it’s going to go but at the same time you don’t want to forget to enjoy the moment. I might be here 20 more years and I don’t know how many more Jacob Easons we’re going to get.”

Eason was incredibly appreciative of the attention Thursday’s ceremony brought but quickly added that this wouldn’t be a distraction for the senior quarterback as the No. 2 Vikings (4-0 league, 6-0 overall) prepare to face Mariner (4-0, 4-2) in a big Wesco 4A clash Friday night.

“Just coming out here with the fan base, I love Friday night football,” Eason said. “When I was a little kid I used to come up and watch and I always wanted to be a part of it. So I’m going to savor every last minute I have with my team here and my town here and try to do the most damage we can in this league.”