We would like to welcome our next diamond in the rough to Gridiron Football, Jake Milton, a Class of 2027 QB from Albany, Louisiana. Milton is a 5’6, 135-pound player who started playing at seven years old. He is a gunslinger with elite arm talent and accuracy. He made an appearance at the Gridiron Football elite camps at Live Oak Breaux Bridge, where he performed really well. He ran times of 4.8 and 4.87 in the 40, a 4.65 and 4.53 shuttle, and an 8’3 and 9-foot broad jump. He also played basketball in high school and was really good at it, but he found a love for football, so he stuck with it, and it has worked out really well for him.
Milton is White 58 in this video
Here is my interview with Jake Milton:
What has your football journey been like for you? At what age did you start playing, and what originally inspired you to play football?
It started when I was around seven to eight years old. My dad inspired me to play ever since I was a kid, because he always talked about it, and it always seemed so fun, listening to how he played and what it was like for him. I always had a bit of arm talent and could just throw the ball. So my dad said, “Why don’t you just go try out for quarterback?” And I was like, yeah, that’d be fun. So I always wanted to play quarterback, and I tried in middle school. In all the leagues I played in, I never got to play quarterback because none of the coaches liked me because of my height. So that has driven me more and more to work hard every single day, not just football, other things like school, because everybody doubts me because of my height and my size. That has pushed me to become a better player and work harder. Last year was my first year as the starting quarterback. I didn’t play any other years prior to that. I’m glad I was able to do it, work for it, and finally prove myself.
Knowing you have a size disadvantage, what kind of things did you do to perfect your craft and take advantage of your size?
I know I’m short, so I worked on my speed a lot. I want to prove that just because I’m short, I can’t do many things. I have worked on being able to visualize areas throughout the line and get a better feel for the pocket, and I don’t have to be really tall to see over; I can use what I have, what God’s giving me, and work with it. So I just use everything I can with my height, and I just perfect it.
Walk me through what your preparation looks like on game day.
My preparation starts Monday of that week. I’m always watching film, paying attention to what the defense is doing on every down, depending on the yardage, and how far back they are. Then on game day, I make sure I’m locked in, focused all day in school, and that everything I do is just to make sure I’m completely locked in. Transition to the game later that night; keep praying throughout my day; keep God in mind because he’s got me everything I’ve been able to have. I just watched some more film for a while, and then when the game rolls around, it’s go time.
How would you describe the football culture at your school, your community in Louisiana in general?
Our community is great, it’s on another level. I’d say lately, we’ve really grown. The community we’ve been going out and helping a lot. Everybody’s here, they’re very welcoming, and they would do anything for each other and the football teams. We’ve all bonded together to make it even better. And we’ve succeeded on that a lot lately, so I’m really happy about that. And it’s great to have all of Albany coming to each Friday night game, having a home to support you.
How excited are you that Albany will be one of the camp destinations coming up soon?
Oh, I’m so excited. I went to the first two, and they went pretty well for me. I just can’t wait to do it on my home field, hopefully get some of my home players out there, let them get some more reps, and see how they do.
Describe the overall experience of playing with guys you have not seen before at the camps?
It’s actually a really good challenge. I really liked going up there and seeing different characters in a different way at the quarterback position. I’ve seen different ways people use their technique, and how each person does things differently, and it’s very interesting. I can note what I see, learn from what they’re doing, and just having the coaches help me learn is great. I was able to get out a lot of reps and was really happy about that.
What were some of your other takeaways from the camps? What do you want to use from those camps that you want to take into future ones?
Some other takeaways were the drills and activities we did, and learning proper form for all of them. In football, to improve my game, run faster and play faster. And be able to jump farther, get those drills down faster, and make them look almost perfect, the best I can.
How has the recruitment process been for you? Any offers yet?
No, I haven’t had any offers yet or anything. But let it take dud, like god taken where he takes me. But I would love to, and I would love to prove my doubters wrong, because I have a lot of doubters out there, and my goal is to prove them wrong.
Do you have a specific college or colleges in mind, or do you just want to play for anyone?
Really anywhere in the Mississippi, Texas, and Louisiana area, but not too far. I would love to go anywhere, farther than that. I’ll go to a college if it’s a really good college.
What are some of the other tougher challenges you’ve had to face over your years of playing?
It’s not just height; it’s just like arm competition. I am smaller, and I’m not gonna make that as an excuse or anything, but I’ve worked on my arm talent, because people really beat me on distance. I’m really good at accuracy, but distance is my weakness. I’ve been improving on that a lot lately. I really have worked on timing so that the distance doesn’t really matter if you turn your routes up. If you are right on top of the go balls and other deep routes, so that everything will fall into place.
When people look back at your high school career, what do you hope others say about you?
I would love for other people to be like, “he was put down and thrown around, and people hated and everything, but he still drove first, kept a level head, stayed positive, and kept proving everyone wrong.” I would love others to take what I would do and make them want to drive to be better. My main goal is to show greatness, but it’s also to help others take what I’ve learned.
Why do you believe you will be an effective playmaker, wherever you end up playing college football?
I don’t give up no matter what. I’ve faced challenges all my life, in football and in life in general. I don’t give up on any aspect of anything. If I’m in the weight room and the weight is heavy or there are a lot of reps, I need to keep going; I still don’t give up. No matter what, I continue to push myself, and each and every time, no matter the challenge.
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