RUNNING ANGRY: Seymour senior ready to retake field

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Off of the field, Nathan O’Mara isn’t the loudest guy in the locker room.

During games, the Seymour High School running back’s personality shifts.

He describes his style of running the football as “angry,” and after his junior season was cut short by injury, he’s looking for a major comeback in 2018.

In 2016, his sophomore season, O’Mara made his presence known. He rushed for 557 yards, averaging 6.6 per carry, and finished with 557 yards and four rushing touchdowns. He also pulled in 26 catches for 252 yards that year.

Earning the starting position last fall, O’Mara had big plans.

In the season-opener, he rushed for 152 yards and two touchdowns against Evansville Harrison. He then ran for 93 yards in a loss to Jeffersonville before rushing for 108 yards and a TD against Columbus East.

“On the field, I’m an angry player,” O’Mara said. “I don’t know why. I just take all the anger I have outside of football and put it inside football. I think it’s a coping kind of thing.”

On his first carry against Floyd Central, the fourth game of the year, O’Mara’s season took a turn for the worst.

The opening hit broke his collarbone in three places, and he had to get a metal plate put in his shoulder.

He finished his junior year with 361 yards on 63 carries, averaging 5.7 yards per attempt, with three scores.

“I thought everything was going to go downhill from there,” O’Mara said. “I tried my best to get back to where I was. I just wanted to get back in the game and had a desire to come back and be better than I was last year. I want to bring out the best in my ability. I sat out for a couple weeks, and then did some therapy for another two weeks. I got back into lifting after that.”

During the rehabilitation process, O’Mara came to every practice and lifting event he could.

Head coach Mike Kelly said O’Mara showed dedication during that time.

O’Mara, listed at 5-foot-8 and 180 pounds on the team website, hit the weight room hard. In the spring, O’Mara lifted 365 pounds on the bench, 315 for power clean and 500 on the squat.

“Last year, he was off to a great year. After his injury, he still came back,” Kelly said. “A lot of guys would have ran and hid, but he didn’t. He came to every practice and lift he could be at. Once he was released, he was ready to go. A lot of times, you have to crack the whip on kids. With Nathan, you don’t have to. You had to pull the reins a little bit.”

The Owls return all but one of their offensive lineman from last year’s team, and O’Mara looks forward to working with those guys again.

“I have a pretty good friendship with most of those guys,” he said. “They’re good at what they do. I trust them to give me good blocking this year.”

Kelly said O’Mara leads by example.

“Not only is he talented, he also has the intangibles you don’t see in a game,” Kelly said. “He is one of the hardest practice players we have. That’s something as a coach you want to have — your best players as your hardest workers. I think that he speaks volumes as far as work ethic and drive he puts into practice. It’s consistent effort year in and year out.”

O’Mara has high expectations for himself this season.

“I’m going to play harder than last year and not get hurt,” O’Mara said. “I’m going to come back and have my best year.”

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