Southeast Missouri State football signee: Drew Forbes

Drew Forbes

The Basics

Name: Drew Forbes

High School: North County High School (Bonne Terre, Mo.)

Position: Offensive lineman

Measurables: 6-foot-6, 311 pounds

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Profile

Six-foot-6, 311-pound lineman Drew Forbes has nowhere to go but up, according to North County football coach Dave Dallas.

The senior from Bonne Terre, Missouri, who signed with Southeast today, improved before Dallas' eyes during the coach's first season at the helm of the Raiders, and he only expects him to get better in college.

"He developed a tremendous work ethic, he's extremely strong, but also he's kind of a gentle giant sometimes," Dallas said. "He's a big kid that has a body of a bear and a heart of a lion. But I think his better football's ahead of him at SEMO, and I'm excited to watch him progress because I think they're going to get a guy that's a diamond in the rough that's really going to see a lot of growth in the next four years for him."

Forbes, a quiet leader for the Raiders, is what Dallas considers "an extremely good athlete" for a player of his size, noting that he's also averaging around 15 points a game for the North County basketball team.

"I just think his expectation for himself went up," Dallas said. "He wasn't pushed a whole lot prior to me getting here, and I think we pushed him to make himself a better football player and work harder at the little things that make him a better football player. Just his work ethic stepped up, his tenacity stepped up. He had that athleticism, it's just bringing that streak out in him to play hard every down and with a purpose every down. I think he really gained that throughout the season."

The Redhawks coaching staff first got in contact with Forbes late in the spring, but it was their continued commitment to stay in touch with he and his coach that helped him reach his decision.

"There were some other schools -- Southern Illinois and Missouri State and Western Illinois -- that were on Drew, and I think they [Southeast coaches] made a great job making that contact and selling themselves as people, not only as football coaches, and caring about Drew not only as a football player, but as a person," Dallas said. "I think that's probably the biggest thing that struck home with Drew, and Drew's a very loyal kid. I think once he made that connection, he evaluated the process and went through the process, but kept coming back to SEMO and how they handled him and the respect they gave him through the process."