Whether it’s a pass or a run, El Segundo’s dual-threat quarterback Lars Nootbaar has always enjoyed the challenge of having an option. Yet the biggest decision the senior will have to make will come after he takes the final snap of what has been an illustrious high school career.
The 6-foot-2, 195-pound Nootbaar committed to play baseball at USC, but has his sights set on playing football for a PAC-12 team.
“I’ve been contacted by UC Davis and Fordham in New York, but I’m looking for a FBS school,” Nootbaar said. “When I went to USC, (head football coach) Steve Sarkesian said I could have the chance to play both sports but it would be much tougher at USC. If I could pick one sport right now it would be football.”
El Segundo head football coach Steve Shevlin knows his signal caller is an exceptional athlete.
“Lars is a special blend of player,” said Shevlin, who also is the school’s athletic director. “He’s a guy with great athleticism and a good student of the game. He has that uncanny ability to make great play, which is something you can’t coach. He can go make a play when there’s nothing there.
“A lot of football teams are interested in him, including Nevada-Reno but he wants to go to a PAC-12 school. We asked all the PAC-12 schools if he could play both sports and they said yes. If he really gets into the football world, football will take ownership.”
Nootbaar was named Co-Most Valuable Player in the Pioneer League last season after leading El Segundo to the league championship and the program’s first appearance in a CIF football final where the Eagles lost to Nordhoff 49-21 in the Northwest Division title game.
The All-CIF selection threw for 2,864 yards, 33 touchdowns and 7 interceptions on 169 of 293 passing during the season, including 1,091 yards, 9 touchdowns and 1 interception on 51 of 86 passing in four postseason games. Nootbaar also rushed for 322 yards and 9 touchdowns.
El Segundo will face a new challenge this season, leaving the Pioneer League with Lawndale and joining the Ocean League. The Western Division is also revamped with El Segundo likely facing familiar South Bay foes from the Pioneer and Bay Leagues in the playoffs.
“I love the move to the Ocean League,” Nootbaar said. “We played guys from Torrance and Lawndale and now we have a chance to build new rivalries. Being from a school with about 1,000 students and going up against schools with 4,000 will be a challenge. We’ll be considered underdogs but I like the competition.”
El Segundo has kept some of its rivalry games intact scheduled local teams on its non-league schedule. The Eagles opened their season with a 51-0 win over Leuzinger. Nootbaar was 7 of 13 passing for 148 yards and 3 touchdowns with no interceptions. He also carried the ball four times for 40 yards and one touchdown.
After traveling to Montebello Friday for a game with Cantwell-Sacred Heart, El Segundo will host Bishop Montgomery and Torrance and play at South Torrance before opening Ocean League play against visiting Beverly Hills on Oct. 10.
El Segundo is ranked No. 2 in the latest CIF-SS Western Division poll but Nootbaar said he doesn’t take much stock in the rankings.
“I don’t really pay much attention to the polls,” Nootbaar said. “I’ve enjoyed growing up in small-town El Segundo and we’ve always been considered underdogs. Coach Shevlin brought the rankings to my attention and told me to take it and run with it. So I have embraced the high ranking and consider it another challenge. I look forward to playing with the pressure on our backs and see how we perform. It’s (high ranking) a lot of motivation, but a different kind than being underdogs.”
Shevlin said he looks forward to the challenge of playing in the Ocean League but expects to give Culver City and Santa Monica a run at the title.
“We’ll see bigger schools and bigger talent,” Shevlin said. “But we’re the best we’ve been in a long time. We are senior heavy with 12-14 players having started since their sophomore season.”
“Having 10 of 11 starters – guys like Elijah Hale, Isaac Luna and Jackson Walz – returning on defense is a strength of our team,” Nootbaar said. “Last year our offense was as big part of our game.”
Nootbaar not only credits coach Mike Wagner for building a strong Eagle defense, but for giving him a chance at the quarterback position.
“I’ve been playing football since I was in fifth grade,” Nootbaar said. “My first year, Coach Wagner was my Pop Warner coach. I played tight end and dropped a touchdown pass in the first game. During one of our drills, I threw the ball pretty well and have been a quarterback every since.”
Although he maintains a 3.2 GPA, Nootbaar admits he is more focused outside the classroom
“School isn’t as serious as it should be for me,” Nootbaar said. “But being a leader on and off the field is a big thing. My dad said Communications would be a good major for me and I might also be interested in sociology. But right now, baseball and football is my major.”
Shevlin feels Nootbaar will be a success non matter what his decisions may be.
“Lars is obviously an exception talent,” Shevlin said. “He can throw 60-70 yards and run like the wind. We’re talented on paper, but he’s the reason we get over the hump.
“What makes him really special for us is that he’s the most unassuming player. Kids just gravitate to him. He’s a team leader but can also be the goofiest kid around. He has to be a part of everything and one of the guys. He owns his mistakes on the offense and has been a lot of fun to coach. When all is said and one, he’s going to have a real tough choice between football and baseball.”
Nootbaar is putting decision on hold.
“Right now, winning a CIF championship if foremost on my mind,” Nootbaar said. “At the end of the day, you can have put up great numbers and have all the awards, but without a ring on your finger, nothing really matters.”
