2020 NFL Draft Prospect Interview: Cole Klubek, K/P, Lincoln (PA) University

• Name: Cole Allen Klubek
• Height: 5’10”
• Weight: 215lbs
• Position: Kicker/Punter
• College: Lincoln University (PA)
• Twitter: @KlubekCole

Tell us about your hometown, and what you love most about it?

• My parents were in the military my entire childhood, so I have more than one hometown. My favorite thing about Biloxi, Mississippi, was our neighborhood. We truly had neighbors who are like family even to this day.

List these three in order of importance and why: Film Study, Strength and Conditioning and Practice?

• Film, strength and conditioning, and then practice. I learned everything about kicking through film and it’s still the highlight of my training.

What do you worry about, and why?

• I have two major worries. Losing touch with my military friends. I’m constantly away from home, whether it’s with school, family or football, and it’s hard to maintain relationships with people halfway around the world. The second is sleep apnea, which I have, so I must be hooked up to a CPAP every night. I really don’t want to forget that on away game trips.

Give me an example of when you failed at something. How did you react and how did you overcome failure?

• I wouldn’t say I’ve failed in something. There have been days where I’ve struggled with things but letting something beat me has not happened.

What do your teammates say is your best quality?

• Most of them joke about how old I am, but if you pressed them it would be about how dedicated I am. I’m never late, I don’t miss meetings, I maintain a high GPA, and I constantly ask how everyone is doing.

Who is the best player you have ever played against in college?

• I’m a kicker so I love watching other kickers who are way better than me. Jefferson Souza from Virginia Union is a special talent!

What would your career be if you couldn’t play football?

• I would likely still be in the Air Force or I would be coaching hockey still.

Room, desk, and car – which do you clean first?

• Room, my truck is almost as old as I am, and it always has a bunch of empty water bottles in it.

If there was a disaster and you could either save three strangers or one family member, which would you choose and why?

• That’s deep, but if the option was all 4 could remain and I go, then I’ve lived an amazing life to this point.

If you could be any television or movie character, who would you be and why?

• Too easy, Gordon Bombay from the Mighty Ducks. That’s the dream, minus his DUI.

Tell me about your biggest adversity in life and how you’ve dealt with or overcome it?

• I deployed to Iraq and I focus on the positives from over there.

What is your most embarrassing moment?

• Anything I did before the age of 20. I needed the Air Force more than it needed me.

What was the most memorable play of your collegiate career?

• My first extra point. My holder, Reggie Mays, snagged a bad snap that I thought was going way over my head and threw it down. The kick was ugly, but it was my first point.

What song best describes your work ethic?

• “Always Been Me” by Josh Thompson

What is the most important trait you can have (Physical or Non-Physical) to help you succeed at the next level?

• Integrity. I’m going to tell you how it is, whether it’s good or bad.
If you could bring one person back from the dead for one day, who would it be and why?

• I had a neighbor growing up, Army Lieutenant Colonel (retired) Jim Damron, I’d love for him to see me now.

If you were to open a dance club, what would you name it? • Get Out, because we close at 9 PM.

Who is the most underrated player in the NFL?

• Dak Prescott. I was working Mississippi State’s hockey program when Dak was in Starkville and to do so much for that university while his mom was fighting breast cancer. Just an unbelievable young man.

Would you rather be liked or respected, and why?

• Respected, because at least you’re honest with yourself and others that way.

What player who had his career derailed by off-field issues do you feel for the most and why?

• I’m going hockey here with Derek Boogaard. His concussions were on the ice, but his recovery was off the ice. I’m a Sabres fan, but he shouldn’t have had to go through that over and over up until his death at a very young 28.

Do you love to win, or hate to lose?

• I really hate to lose. I’ve been a part of losing teams as a player and a coach, it’s never easy. It makes you question everything you’re doing. Then when you win, it doesn’t feel as gratifying as it should.

Who has been the biggest influence on your life and explain why?

• My mother. For the first few years of my life, she was a single mom in the Air Force reserves. She’s always been an amazing role model to me and without her, I wouldn’t be here.