Sep 09, 2010
Where are they now? Jake Ebner
July 9, 2010
FRIENDSWOOD — When Friendswood's Jake Ebner became the starting center for the Friendswood Mustangs his sophomore season in 2001, little did he know that he would move on to achieve his dream of playing football at the collegiate level. In fact - he would accomplish so much more than he ever imagined.
He did have the proper genes as his dad, Tommy Ebner, was a defensive standout for the Houston Cougars in the 70's. The elder Ebner married Elaine, who also graduated from UH, and three boys were soon to follow as a part of the Ebner Cougar den.
Jake Ebner's initial high school season saw him anchor an offensive line on a team that reeled off 12 straight wins before falling to the Nederland Bulldogs 25-7 in the Class 4A state quarterfinals.
As a result of his outstanding season, Ebner was named District 23-4A "Newcomer of the Year." Ebner went on to become a three-time All-District 23-4A standout before signing a letter-of-intent to continue his education and football career for the Houston Cougars.
Ebner's senior year at FHS was highlighted by being named as a scholar-athlete finalist by the Touchdown Club of Houston in 2004 which provided area football fans with the realization that Ebner was not only brawn, but brains and he wasn't the stereo-typed dumb lineman.
Always known as a hardworker athletically, Ebner worked his way into the starting lineup for the Cougars his freshman year and became a full-time starter for the next three seasons - spending time on both sides of the ball.
The Cougar coaching staff utilized the versatile Ebner where he played fullback, H-back and defensive tackle as well as on special teams and the offensive line.
However, Ebner was also a standout scholastically and received some of the highest accolades possible as a college student-athlete.
In 2008, he was among 12 student-athletes in Conference USA to be honored with the C-USA Spirit of Service Award. He was named to the C-USA Football All-Academic Team.
Ebner received the Robert L. Grainger Outstanding Leadership Award. He was twice named to the ESPN the Magazine Academic Alll-District VI first team. He was a finalist for the Draddy Award. He was among 18 athletes honored with the 2008-09 Conference USA Scholar-Athlete Award in their respective sports.
Ebner was also named Conference USA Academic All American several times as well as being chosen as an Ambassador for the Bauer School of Business at University of Houston.
To compliment his outstanding educational prowess, Ebner also played in the Texas Bowl, Liberty Bowl, Armed Forces Bowl twice, and was a part of the Conference USA Champions.
Ebner graduated Summa Cum Laude in 2008 with a major in Business Administration with two degrees: Finance and Marketing.
He is single and lives in Houston. He is in Select Asset Management in Houston which is a money management company that assists clients with investment strategies, investment goals and investment plans. He also is part of their marketing team.
Ebner followed in the steps of his parents to become a part of the University of Houston Cougar family and he certainly represents UH well for others to follow.
The Ebner family have two other sons who are younger, Clay, who was an All-District performer for the Friendswood Mustangs in football and the younger of the three, Will, who is currently the starting linebacker for the Missouri Tigers.