Touching Down with Luke Gayton
PVHS star shares about his passion for football
Luke Gayton runs route against Corona Del Mar at the game on Sept. 2 (Photo by Quinn Kearns)
PV Football star Luke Gayton has been catching touchdowns for as long as he can remember.
Gayton started playing flag football when he was in first grade, and began playing tackle football later in elementary school.
He practices every day as a varsity player in the after school hours during the week and then he watches film on Saturdays to prepare for the week ahead.
Gayton started playing football because of his dad, who played football when he was a kid, and coaches now. He has always loved the sport with the help of his friends.
“It’s a pretty hard sport, so I don’t think it would be nearly as fun if my friends weren’t playing,” Gayton said.
The physical aspect of football is the hardest for Gayton but he feels he fares well with the mental challenges that come with playing the sport.
“If I mess up, I can bounce back from that, but getting hit and running everyday is pretty hard. When I mess up, I want to be the guy that people look to for inspiration. So if I have a rough play, I bounce back from that. So I don’t give up when I mess up once, I want to have a good mentality,” Gayton said.
Gayton is not set on playing professionally, but he definitely wants to play in college.
“I want to use it as a gateway to get into a better college than I could without playing football,” Gayton said.
Gayton’s inspirations as an athlete comes from his dad.
“I would look at old photos, and he was a stud back in the day, so definitely him,” Gayton said.
As Gayton’s playing experience has widened overtime, he’s pulled traits that has made him the player he is today.
“Definitely determination, just wanting to go out there every single day, and if you’re lacking in practice and not playing to your full ability, then you definitely won’t play to your full ability during games, and you won’t get better,” Gayton said.
Gayton’s favorite memory from high school football was the Mira Costa game last year.
“It was Homecoming, and we all wanted to win, and we ended up blowing them out, so that was pretty fun,” Gayton said.
As Gayton’s season and playing career goes on, he’s picked up advice from his coaches and teammates that keep him going.
“Just don’t give up. In life you can’t give up on anything, because you never know where it’s going to take you,” he said.