Horgan at Ease With Contradiction

Michael Horgan is a guitar-playing, classic-rock-loving senior who’s so smart he could probably earn an academic scholarship to an Ivy League school.

He’s also a 6-foot-5, 235-pound tight end and defensive end for Los Angeles Loyola High with 11 sacks, which means he’s going to accept a football scholarship to Stanford.

He only started playing football as a sophomore after giving up ice hockey, a sport in which he got into at least 10 fights, which is a bit surprising because he’s so quiet his coaches almost jump in astonishment whenever he talks.

“I prefer to listen rather than speak,” he said.

Horgan is known as the quiet guy who turns into The Incredible Hulk.

He has a 4.2 grade-point average, scored 1,480 on the SAT and possesses such a sophisticated outlook that he could teach a college class on philosophy.

“You learn a lot about yourself from throwing yourself into an uncomfortable situation, getting up in front of an audience and being honest and not trying to hide,” he said. “I’ve learned to care less what other people think of me and care more what I think of myself.”

He’s an introvert but doesn’t feel distanced. He’s a contradiction, someone who enjoys lurking anonymously in the background but doesn’t mind performing in front of thousands of football spectators. He’s even considering playing his guitar in front of an audience.

“I might have to come out of my shell a little bit,” he said, mockingly.

Only a couple weeks ago, Loyola was hovering near the bottom of the Serra League, seemingly going nowhere.

“The buzzards were flying over us,” Coach Steve Grady said.

Rising from the dead is what the Cubs accomplished this season. A 31-7 loss to Los Alamitos Saturday night in a Division I semifinal game at Edison Field doesn’t detract from a season that revealed plenty about the team’s character.

The Cubs upset Anaheim Servite in their regular-season finale to finish fourth in the Serra League, gained an at-large playoff berth, defeated Lakewood, then beat Serra champion Bellflower St. John Bosco.

Horgan has been the best football player during Loyola’s roller-coaster season.

“He’s in the trenches on offense and defense,” Grady said. “He’s got a lot of bumps and bruises but never says anything.”

While music allows him to be creative and spontaneous, football offers Horgan a thrill he finds hard to duplicate.

“It’s something that happens in the middle of a play,” he said. “You’re tired and don’t feel you want to keep going, but you force yourself and are successful. That feeling is indescribable and priceless.”

Horgan one day could be writing musical scores for movies or catching touchdown passes as a tight end in the NFL. He could be playing his guitar at a coffee shop or teaching music at a university.

You never know what the future has in store for an 18-year-old whose mind is as alive as his heart.

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Eric Sondheimer can be reached at eric.sondheimer@latimes.com