Something about the short, skinny freshman stuck with Oswego football coach Brian Cooney.

Mariano Velasco showed up for high school all of about 5-foot-5, 120 pounds. Not much muscle.

But he competed.

“We thought, ‘Geez. If this kid can hit a growth spurt, he can be something,’ ” Cooney said. “He was all over the field. He plays basketball the same way. All gas, all the time.”

The growth spurt came. When Velasco showed up one of the first days of summer camp before his junior year, Cooney did a double take. He could not believe how much Velasco had grown.

Velasco’s contributions to Oswego are giant now, doing double duty.

Doubling as a defensive back and receiver, Velasco has helped key Oswego’s 2-0 start. He caught a touchdown pass from Drew Kleinhans in Week 1, and his pick-six o

See Full Page