Jack Roberts says he has enjoyed playing football and basketball at Seymour the past four years, and this spring he will rejoin the baseball team.
“I love competing, and doing it with a team,” he said of his athletic career at SHS.
This winter, Roberts worked a starter for the Owls on the hardwood.
Roberts was a post player, and said he enjoyed playing on the block, and either shooting 8-10 foot jumpers or driving to the rim.
“Our first game (a win at Corydon) was definitely one of the highlights,” Roberts said. “Against Greensburg, we played well. I had a lot of fun against Silver Creek for senior night. These lasts two games, I played really loose and I wish I would have done that the entire season and I could have had some more points.”
He finished the season strong with 14-point games against Silver Creek and Jeffersonville. His high-point games were 15 against Greensburg and Charlestown.
Roberts said he battled hard for rebounds and enjoyed playing defense.
“I definitely got a lot of rebounds,” he said. “You just need to get in the right position and be able to tip it up or go up and get it.
“We played man-to-man for the first half of the season and then we started going to zone. In our man-to-man we kind of packed it in so it was almost like a zone, so I guess we were probably more zone. I loved getting a steal and going down and finishing.”
Roberts took pride in being a leader on the team.
“I enjoyed the camaraderie with my teammates,” Roberts said. “I’m a senior and a lot of them are juniors, so it was kind of nice to grow a relationship with them. It was definitely a great experience (playing at home). Not a lot of people get to do that. I wish we could have filled it up some more but it is what it is.”
In football, Roberts started at tight end throughout his last two seasons. Last fall, he topped the Owls in receiving with 20 catches for 261 yards and two touchdowns.
He said his favorite pass patterns were stair drags.
“It’s where you go across the field, and you go straight up, and then turn toward the sideline,” Roberts said.
The last half of the season he started at defensive end-outside linebacker and made 7 tackles and 19 assists. He was All-HHC honorable mention last fall.
He said his biggest win was beating Brownstown Central last fall. He said winning the season-opener at South Dearborn was also big.
Like basketball, Roberts enjoyed playing at home for football.
“The team atmosphere was definitely one of the best things, just being with your best friends,” Roberts said. “I loved the band. Whenever we had kickoff with the band drum line was going it gave me chills, honestly.”
Jack’s brother, Jake started at center for the Owls last fall.
“It was nice to kind of show him what it was to be a leader because he’s going to be a senior next year and he’s going to be in that position,” Jack said. “We talked all the time about football. I was really glad he got a starting position and was able to play out there on the line.”
Roberts played baseball in the youth leagues in Seymour, and played on the freshman team in 2016. He took time off from baseball the past two springs to lift weights, and looks forward to helping the Owls any way he can this spring.
“It doesn’t really matter to me, I just want to be a part of it,” he said of his role on the baseball team. “I might pitch some or play outfield. I called up Coach (Jeremy) Richey and told him I wanted to come out, and he said he would take me. If I pitch (being left-handed) will definitely help.”
Over the years, Roberts has gained strength and size in the weight room.
“The weight room helps a ton and coach (Mike) Kelly helped me to become an athlete, really,” Roberts said. “Before that I really wasn’t and getting in the weight room and getting better every day definitely helped me accomplish a lot of things.”
Roberts said his favorite lift is the power clean and he maxed out at 275 recently.
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Name: Jack Roberts
High school: Seymour
Parents: J.D. Roberts, Jacque Roberts
Siblings: Jake, Joe, Jude
Sports: basketball 4 years, football 4 years, baseball 2 years
Athletic highlights: football HHC honorable mention
Favorite food: pizza
Favorite TV show: Brooklyn 99
Favorite musician: J. Cole
Favorite movie: Hoosiers
Favorite athlete: Juwan Morgan
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