CBS4 Nat Moore Trophy Profile: Miami Central High defensive end Rueben Bain
MIAMI - This week's CBS4 Nat Moore Trophy nominee is Rueben Bain, a defensive end at Miami Central High School.
He's big, he's strong and he likes to go fast, especially when Alabama head coach Nick Saban was riding shotgun in a golf cart with him when the two recently got together.
"I just drove Nick Saban on the golf cart, that's mind blowing," he said.
"Was Saban actually scared or nervous with you driving him around?" asked Mike Cugno.
"Actually he said I was a real good driver because everybody else that he let drive either went off the trail and crashed into something. I made sure I had two hands on the wheel at all times and made sure I was focused though," said Bain.
"You can't flip Nick Saban out of a golf cart," said Cugno with a laugh.
When Bain isn't taking Saban for a spin, he's chasing down quarterbacks at an alarming rate, 29 and a half sacks to be exact last season. The most in the country in 2021. There's a reason his nickname is "The Hurricane."
"I just to try to key in on technique and especially the get off. If you have a great get off that can lead to 50 or 70 percent of your sacks. I feel like if you have a great get off, everything comes easy because now you got the O-linemen in a hurry, you playing mind games at that point," said Bain.
Bain is a nightmare for opponents, but exactly the teammate you need if you're chasing a fourth straight state title like the Central Rockets will be doing in 2022.
"Four rings. What would that mean for you?" asked Cugno.
"Everything. Because it just shows my hard work and I feel like that's a real strength to my resume," said Bain.
None of that is possible without the hard work they're putting in right now. The saying "no free rings," coined by new head coach Jube Joseph has been their rallying cry. This is where they pay for those rings. In the summer heat, they're pumping iron and flipping tires, but as we learned from Bain, it doesn't hurt to smile through some of that pain.
"You know, it's a grind, you know it's hard work, everybody trying to make the workouts go by easier and really just enjoy the day," he said.
That's how they get through these workouts. Rueben may be flexing his muscles in the gym and on the practice field, but he also showed us a softer more artistic side.
"What do you want to do off the field one day? Maybe when you're older?" asked Cugno.
"Honestly, something like photography, videography. I do it now. I've been doing this since the seventh grade, I just want to be in the Arts, just showing my talents, show how I can portray a definition or meaning of something behind the camera."
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