There are better football players than California high school senior John Krahn. There are stronger players, more skilled players and by god there are many, many faster players. But there are no bigger players than Krahn, a seven-foot, 440-pound Winnebago of a lineman for Martin Luther King Jr. High School in Riverside, California.
Thanks to MaxPreps for the above video showing what Krahn can do, which essentially consists of two basic skills—being in the way and pushing people over. But give Krahn time; he’s fairly new to the game. As he told the recruiting site, he’s working on his skills and, perhaps more importantly, trying to lose weight. There’s a reason why there’s never been anyone his size in the NFL.
Krahn isn’t the first high school hoss to make national news for being the size of a sedan. Way back in 2000, a New Jersey teen named Reny Nunes clocked in at 517 pounds. Like Krahn, his stated goal at the time was to lose weight so he could make it to the NFL. He hasn’t been heard from since. In 2012 the Times profiled a New Jersey minor league football player who went by the nickname “House.” At 6’11” and 500 pounds, it’s easy to see why. Though “House” had NFL dreams, they were ultimately derailed in part because his size made him more timid on the field.
If Krahn is to realize his NFL dreams he’s going to have to drop some pounds and run the 40 in fewer than 40 seconds. But hell, if Jay Cutler can make it as a starting NFL quarterback, we can’t write off anyone.