Larabee Fits In Farmington Defense

John Larabee, a Farmington junior free safety, is the team’s leading tackler this season and also has three interceptions. Larabee tried out for the quarterback job in the preseason but is pleased with his decision to focus on defense.
John Larabee, a Farmington junior free safety, is the team’s leading tackler this season and also has three interceptions. Larabee tried out for the quarterback job in the preseason but is pleased with his decision to focus on defense.

— Funny how things sometimes work out for the better.

John Larabee was a candidate to take over as the starting quarterback at Farmington during preseason drills. But when the junior lost out on the competition to sophomore Keaton Austin, another opportunity presented itself.

Larabee turned his attention to defense, and as the team’s starting free safety, he has never looked back.

“I love the defense and I love playing safety,” Larabee said. “That’s probably my favorite position and I love making plays out there.”

While he is pleased with how things turned out, the Cardinals as a whole might be the one benefiting the most. Despite playing mostly junior varsity as a sophomore, Larabee worked hard and added significant weight in the off season and has developed into one of Farmington’s top tacklers and overall defenders this fall.

Cardinals coach Mike Adams believes Larabee’s ability to think on the field also gives him an edge.

“His position on offense was quarterback and he’s like the quarterback of the defense out there for us,” Adams said. “He’s always around the ball making playsand he is in the right place at the right time for us.”

Larabee is Farmington’s leading tackler and also has three interceptions on the year. But whether he’s moving up to defend the run or dropping back in pass protection, stopping the opponent is always the goal.

“I just don’t want to let the guy get past me,” Larabee said. “That’s the main thing.”

Farmington (7-3, 4-3 4A-1) visits Newport in the first round of the Class 4A playoffs on Friday and Adams believes the play of Larabee and the Cardinals’ defense will play a big part in his team’s chances.

“We’ve got to keep them off the field,” Adams said. “They have a very good freshman running back and a 6-foot-4 receiver who is tough to stop.

“So we have to do a sound job of tackling and we have to find a way to possess the ball on off ense.”

Sports, Pages 8 on 11/08/2012

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