Tanner Rust was sitting in the Las Vegas airport waiting to catch a flight to Reno. He was scheduled to attend a quarterback camp at the University of Nevada early the next morning.
Since his junior year at El Capitan High, Rust, the Vaqueros' all-state quarterback and standout baseball catcher, could qualify for frequent-flier miles. He and his parents already had been to Oregon State and the University of Arizona for quarterback camps. Nevada was to be the third and final stop over a five-day stretch.
It's a sampling of what Rust can expect this summer. Excluding a four-day family vacation to New York to watch the Padres play at Yankee Stadium, Rust will be throwing passes or swinging a bat nearly every day this summer.
“I get weary sometimes and lose track of what day it is,” Rust said. “But even if I do get a rare day off, I usually wind up throwing football routes or catching a pitcher someplace.”
The 6-foot-3, 205-pound Rust has drawn national attention in football and baseball. Opinions vary as to which path Rust should follow. The talented athlete has made it clear he is not leaning in either direction this summer.
“In the fall I'll be in football mode,” Rust said. “All my focus will be on that. Then in the spring it'll be all about baseball. I believe I owe it to my teammates to put all my efforts into the sport at hand and not be looking over my shoulder at what's coming up next.”
A typical schedule for Rust the next couple of months will consist of summer league baseball on Mondays and Wednesdays and passing league football (7-on-7) on Tuesdays, Thursdays and most Saturdays.
Since only the elite are invited to the quarterback camps, Rust said it has been flattering.
“Even though I was rusty coming right out of baseball, just the chance to showcase what I could do in these football sessions makes me feel good,” Rust said. “It's excellent experience because the coaches let you know what you need to prepare for if you're going to play college football. It's like an unofficial tryout and I know that I always could do better. There's a lot of difference between throwing a baseball and a football.”
As a junior, Rust completed 188 of 330 passes while leading the San Diego Section in yards (3,159) and touchdowns (30). He rushed for 165 yards despite nagging leg injuries. Given a clean bill of health, Rust could be almost as big a threat running as he is passing.
“Tanner is an excellent athlete, and that includes being a very good baseball player who could play at the next level. But he's a game-changer in football,” El Capitan football coach Ron Burner said.
Burner also coached Ryan Lindley, who is expected to be the starting quarterback at San Diego State in the fall.
“Ryan is the benchmark for El Capitan quarterbacks,” Burner said. “Tanner, at this stage of his career, is far more advanced than Ryan was after his junior year.”
The tug of war between football and baseball won't end soon for Rust.
“He has the best touch of any high school quarterback I have ever seen,” said longtime Vaqueros baseball coach Steve Vickery, who in the late 1960s was a quarterback and catcher for El Capitan. “The only thing I can do is be a sounding board for Tanner.”
An all-section choice as a catcher this spring, Rust has batted .407 (81-for-199) over the past two seasons. Hitting from the leadoff position to take advantage of his speed, Rust has scored 65 runs and stolen 21 bases.
“Tanner is one of those guys who is obsessed with being successful,” Vickery said. “He's willing himself to be great. I know, as his baseball coach, we have to make him go home. He always wants to stay around and do one more thing.”
