Evergreen first-year lineman a beast in the trenches

A sport that once was foreign to him, Rusnak’s knowledge continues to improve weekly. For a player who spent 10 years as a gymnast, the growth is rapid. So much so that his high school coach, Terry Hyde, believes he’s got the talent to play football in college.

“I see him at that next level,” Hyde said.

Rusnak didn’t know much about the game before joining Evergreen for spring ball. That’s not surprising considering his family heritage.

Rusnak grew up in a European culture and is the son of Ukrainian immigrants. He speaks English, Russian, and Ukrainian fluently. His parents, Anna and Peter, immigrated from their home country in 1997.

He didn’t spend weekends watching the NFL or college football with dad. Instead, starting at age 4, Rusnak thrived in gymnastics, and was coached by his father. Rings were his specialty.

Burned out by 14, he sought after a new challenge. In came football, a sport he once disputed as “stupid” yet didn’t fully understand the game. Now, he can’t get enough of it.

In spring ball, Evergreen players like fellow defensive lineman Conner Ball took extra time to show Rusnak the ropes of being on the line: Everything from push-pull technique to proper stance.

“He was fresh meat when he first started,” Ball said.

Now, Rusnak is a varsity starter, “and making plays,” Ball added.

Yet those years of gymnastics work aids Rusnak in football. He even compares gymnastics’ all-body workouts to tackling.

“It creates a different power,” Rusnak said. “In football when tackle someone, you use your whole body.”

It made for a impressionable first game, too. In last week’s 26-13 victory over Columbia River, he had five blocking plays at fullback, including a key block that aided Zyell Griffin’s 8-yard third-quarter touchdown run.

Hyde, Evergreen’s third-year coach, believes this is just the beginning for Rusnak.

What separates Rusnak outside of his natural athleticism in his 6-foot-2, 250-pound frame is the quickness he’s picked up on football IQ.

Also, there’s no bad habits to correct because there’s no bad habits in the first place. The freshman-type mistakes made in June didn’t exist when practices resumes in mid-August, Hyde said.

“There’s just good habits to create,” he said.

If he’s improved just this much in a short amount of time, just think of what he can do in one full season?

And possibly more after his only high school season.

“I’ve never taken interest in a sport this seriously and never trained so hard for it,” Rusnak said. “I feel like I’m getting better with it, and possibly go even further.”