Gaither linebacker not living in older brothers' shadows
TAMPA, Fla. - Gaither linebacker Kobe McCloud has much to live up to. Aside from being the anchor of the Cowboy's defense, he isn't the first Bay Area football player with the McCloud name.
"He holds himself to a high standard because he's always going to be compared to his brothers," Gaither head coach Kirk Karsen explained. "Sometimes it's fair, and sometimes it's not."
Kobe McCloud is the younger brother of Ray Ray and Jordan McCloud. Ray Ray McCloud was a standout at Sickles before going to Clemson and then the Pittsburgh Steelers. Jordan McCloud is a former standout at Plant High school and USF before transferring to the University of Arizona.
"We talk about it every day, all day," Kobe McCloud said of the trash-talking that goes on between him and his brothers. "We even bring my little sister into the conversation."
Maybe dealing with that sibling rivalry has toughed Kobe to the point where he doesn't feel pressure to live up to Ray Ray and Jordan McCloud, but it doesn't stop him from trying.
"I've got expectations, but I don't feel like I have pressure on my shoulders. It's just every day for me," Kobe McCloud shared. "My brothers taught me everything. I feel prepared for every situation."
McCloud is prepared for everything from football to the ribbing that comes from his coaches, who use to coach Ray Ray McCloud at Sickles.
"We give him a hard time all the time," Coach Karsen said. "You know 'when I coached your older brother, he never did that!'"
However, it rolls right off McCloud's shoulders, mainly because he doesn't buy it.
"I just laugh about it. In one ear and out the next," Kobe McCloud said. "That's my brother, I know he did more than what I did."
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