His teammates chuckle when they hear Michael DiGenova talk to opponents.
It is not trash talk. It is more like clever conversation.
DiGenova, a linebacker from Camas who has been destroying teams all season, kills them with kindness.
“I don’t like it when people are nasty,” DiGenova said. “It’s a game. It’s supposed to be fun.”
Still, his teammates say he gets under an opponent’s skin because he is so nice. It is almost as if the opponent cannot believe this 6-1, 205-pound muscle mass with speed is so courteous.
Camas defensive back Jorden Payne recalled a night when an opponent kept trying to block DiGenova, away from the play, long after the whistle had blown. Instead of getting mad, DiGenova went low-key.
“He said, ‘Hey, you cool? We cool? Because you’re not being cool right now.'” Payne said.
The other player chilled, and the Papermakers laughed about it in the huddle.
DiGenova does get angry at times. This is football, after all. It is an emotional game.
“I get caught up,” he said. “You just say things as they come to you. Sometimes it’s good stuff. Sometimes you’re embarrassed by it later. All part of the game.”
For the most part, though, DiGenova does not need to talk big. His game is big enough.
The Papermakers, 11-0 and ranked No. 1 in the state of Washington, take on Eastlake of Sammamish on Saturday in the Class 4A quarterfinals. While the offense has received most of the attention, the Camas defense has been taking care of its business most of the season. DiGenova is the leader of that unit, voted by the coaches as the 4A Greater St. Helens League’s defensive player of the year.
“I was kind of surprised, actually. I’ve been fortunate enough to have had a great season so far, but by no means did I expect that kind of recognition or honor from the coaches,” he said.
In one game, he scored three defensive touchdowns on fumble returns. On one of the plays, he got the trifecta: the tackle, the forced fumble, and the recovery.
But it is not just those defensive touchdowns that got the attention of opposing coaches.
It is his overall linebacker play.
“It is the best position on the field, in my eyes,” said DiGenova, who also is a quality tight end on offense for the Papermakers. “You get a little bit of everything at linebacker. It’s not just rushing the passer or stopping the run. You also get to play the pass.”
It takes strength and smarts to excel there.
It took dedication to get there.
“Character-wise, he’s a top-notch kid,” Camas coach Jon Eagle said. “A hard-working kid. A great person. Everything you want in a person. As a player, he’s super dynamic.”
Eagle said in a program of more than 100 athletes, there are always going to be some who do not do everything they can to make themselves better.
DiGenova, though, is one who never needed a phone call, a push, to get in the weight room. Eagle said DiGenova would go down the checklist every day of whatever he needed to do, and he would get it done.
“He’s going to make a great college football player if he finds the right place,” Eagle said.
DiGenova appreciates the praise, but he also is quick to give credit to others.
“It’s just what I’ve learned from parents, coaches, and role models,” he said. “You see people work hard and see their successes, and you want to emulate that.”
No need to talk about it. Just go do it.
That’s Michael DiGenova’s way.
