Roster inflation is a wonderful thing, seriously. I’ve seen some doozy heights in my time, to be sure.
Jeff Gibbs was one of the biggest recipients of inflated height that I’ve ever seen. The Otterbein center dominated Division III from the low post with his leaping ability and rebounding. But oddly enough, he had different heights on Otterbein’s football and basketball rosters, magically gaining two inches every fall and losing them every winter. (Perhaps the football team measured him in his cleats.)
You see, I know Gibbs was not his listed 6-3. I stood next to him at the Final Four in Salem and he is 6-1 at best. That’s because I’m 6-0 (though I would be listed at 6-2, no doubt).
But apparently Gibbs has grown since graduation. A local newspaper referred to his performance with the Columbus Cyclones and said he was 6-5. Yeah, 6-5. Then later in the piece, the writer says:
He went to some football team camps with the goal of latching on as a tight end in the NFL. But once again, he was told he was too small.
“I got the same thing I’ve heard my whole life,” said Gibbs, whose scored 15 points against Cuyahoga Falls on June 3 in his first game with the Cyclones. “I was told I was too short.”
Thankfully this guy isn’t an NFL scout, because a true 6-5 isn’t too short for an NFL tight end. But it’s too tall for Jeff Gibbs.
Then again, when it comes to Gibbs’ game, size doesn’t matter.
That’s odd…
I never saw him play, but I could have sworn I heard someone say he was 16 feet tall. 😉
Jeff Gibbs might only be six flat, but his rebounding abilities come mainly from an abnormal growth behind his left retina that allows him to see three seconds into the future and this position himself appropriately.
hah… upstaged as usual… nicely done 🙂
Yeah, except I can’t edit on the blog and I made a typo; that’s really going to grate on me.
Two inches between the Fall and Winter? That’s nothing.
When I was a sophomore in high school I had to grow an inch and a half between the JV game and Varsity game every night!
It’s okay hoopsfan, I’ll only make fun of you about it for the rest of your life. 😛
I was listed as 5’11” on my bb roster. Since I was a F/C, I can understand their desire to boost my height by almost two inches above reality… 5’9″ isn’t that tall for that position, even for a girl. I honestly have no idea what it was on the tennis roster… it would have been fun to see if I also “grew” between seasons. In reality I didn’t grow after 7th grade! 😀
I’m fairly certain Wheaton’s Tony Bollier was roughly my height, but he was always listed as 6’0″. Eh, it’s not like people couldn’t tell he wasn’t obviously shorter than Jon Nieson who was also listed at 6’0″ etc…
It’s a pretty normal practice, though I guess Gibbs is a bit more than normal.
I saw Gibbs play for City Wide in the McDonald’s Worthington summer league last week, he is 6′ at best.
I really did feel like he was an inch and a half taller than I was when I stood next to him in 2002. For him to do what he does at that height is just incredible, and when we get another two years under our belt and have an all-decade team, I fully expect Gibbs to be on it.
I saw Jeff Gibbs the other day. He was 37 feet tall!!! I hate it when the underestimate height on rosters. 😀
I saw Gibbs play in the Worthington Summer league in Ohio last summer and he’s just over 6 foot at best. He is a BEAST however! He went up for a dunk in one game I saw and he shattered the backboard! It was a basic drop step to the baseline, nothing fancy, and he jumped off two feet and brought down the backboard! He is just flat out STRONG as an ox and makes up for his height in that way.
I was listed as 5’11” at one point in my career…those of you who know me, figure that out!