Klaasen Commits to Prepare for Big-Time : Preps: San Clemente linebacker doing everything in his power to earn a Division I scholarship.

It was a daily summer ritual that Mark McElroy could have set his watch by.

Every morning at 9, Ryan Klaasen would knock at the house of the San Clemente football coach, who, in turn, would hand over the keys to the school’s equipment room. Sometimes, one or two teammates would accompany Klaasen on his hour-long quest to improve his foot speed. Often, he was alone.

“Five days a week, didn’t miss a day all summer,” said McElroy, the second-year coach.

Klaasen isn’t the biggest, the fastest, the most talented or talkative high school player you’ll run across this season. Rather, he is an average guy with above-average expectations who is trying to make his football dreams come true.

“I’ll go anywhere,” said Klaasen, a 6-foot-3, 225-pound senior inside linebacker. “As long as it’s big-time college football.”

Klaasen’s view of the game, and his single-minded approach to it, is an about-face from a year ago, when he rated college football on par with PTA bake sales.

“ Borrr-ing ,” he said.

But a meeting with his parents and McElroy after the 1992 season changed Klaasen’s perspective, and his preparation, for the future.

During the session, McElroy told the Klaasens he believed Ryan had a legitimate shot at a Division I football scholarship--something McElroy said only one Triton has accomplished in the last decade--provided Ryan was willing to go the distance.

“Coach Mac helped me to understand everything it takes to get a Division I scholarship,” said Klaasen, 17. “This year (football) is a lot more serious for me. This is the test, and I either pass or fail it.”

To prepare for the exam, McElroy told Klaasen he’d have to improve in five areas: grades, SAT scores, weight training, speed and footwork. So he hit the books, the gym and joined the track team.

“I found out I really don’t like to run,” Klaasen said, “but it was something I had to do to improve my speed.”

Klaasen has even forsaken high school romance to keep his eye--and his heart--on the goal.

“He didn’t want any distractions,” McElroy said. “There’s such a difference in him now than from a year ago. You have a lot of kids saying they want to make a commitment to be the best they can, but rarely do you see them follow through with it.”

Still, there are no guarantees. If the recruiters’ letters and phone calls don’t pan out, Klaasen would be disappointed but not devastated.

“Right now, I probably think about (four-year college) too much,” he said. “If it doesn’t happen, I’ll go to Saddleback and start the whole process over again.”

Invariably, Klaasen believes he may be putting too much pressure on himself. Rare is the moment, on or off the field, that Klaasen isn’t thinking about how he can tackle better, get more sacks, cause more fumbles, get to the ball more effectively.

“I’m never satisfied,” he said. “My all-around performance should be better. I haven’t had the game I need to have. People compliment me, but I don’t take it well. I try to keep it out of my mind that I have to be great on every play, because when I think about it too much, I screw up.”

Klaasen, the player McElroy considers the quarterback of his defense, leads quietly. He wakes up Friday mornings with butterflies in his stomach. During the day, his mind already has skipped hours ahead to kickoff.

“I hardly hear anything anyone’s saying to me during the day,” he said.

His pregame preparation consists of lying on a locker room bench, closing his eyes and keeping to himself. Not until he’s out on the field does he come out of his shell.

“His actions speak for themselves, which is pretty loud,” McElroy said.

A team-leading 45 tackles make plenty of noise. Klaasen also has two quarterback sacks, an interception, and in his limited role as fullback, rushed 53 yards for a touchdown in his first carry against Santiago two weeks ago--only to have it called back on a penalty.

“He’s too good to leave on one side of the ball,” McElroy said.

Or in one sport. Had he grown up north of the border, Klaasen would likely be playing hockey.

“Hockey is the best, it’s a blast,” said Klaasen, who quit the sport two years ago to concentrate on football. “If I could have reached the highest level, I would have kept playing hockey and quit football.”

Fritz Liebich, former team manager of the South Coast Sabers, Klaasen’s junior hockey team, never knew why the young goalie left the rink.

“For a guy without much experience, he was good,” Liebich said. “I was surprised he quit, because he got so good so quickly.”