SBCC quarterback John Uribe signed a letter-of-intent to play football at Lindenwood University in St. Charles, Mo., on Thursday in a ceremony at the Sports Pavilion.
“Lindenwood just felt like the right place for me,” said Uribe, who was the Offensive Player of the Year in the American Pacific Conference and made the All-California Region VI team. “When I get out there, I’ll have a chance to compete for a starting job and do what I can to make the team better.”
John Uribe completed 62.5 percent of his passes for the Vaqueros last year for 2,554 yards with 23 touchdowns. (Sevilla photos)
Uribe said he’ll leave for Missouri on Jan. 20 and continue his academic career with a major in business administration.
“SBCC definitely prepared me from academics to football,” said Uribe. “I knew what film was but I never watched as much film as we did here. City College is one of the best academic schools in the nation and it got me prepared for the next level.”
Lindenwood had a spectacular 9-2 season, averaging 52 points and scoring 68 or more four times. The Lions, who are moving from the NAIA to NCAA Division 2 in the fall, set several school records in a 90-19 victory over Culver-Stockton (Mo.) on Oct. 16.
The former Santa Barbara High standout completed 62.5 percent of his passes for the Vaqueros last year for 2,554 yards with 23 touchdowns and seven interceptions. He was the top passer in the American Pacific Conference and No. 3 in Southern California.
He ranked second in the state with a 157.5 passer rating.
SBCC went 4-6 last year and finished fourth in the American Pacific Conference with a 3-3 record. Four of the losses were by six points or less.
On Sept. 18, he accounted for five TDs in the second half of a 45-34 loss to Ventura. Uribe threw for four second-half TDs as the Vaqueros nearly overcame a 35-0 third-quarter deficit.
Two weeks later, he racked up a career-high 330 yards against L.A. Southwest. On Oct. 9, the 6-footer threw for 290 yards and tied a school record with five TD passes in a 35-28 win at Santa Monica.
“This is what it’s all about — moving on and getting his degree,” said SBCC coach Craig Moropoulos. “He gets a chance to play in a great system for quarterbacks and I think he’ll do great things. His competitive nature kept us in a lot of games last year.”
Uribe was a two-time APC Player of the Week. In his freshman year in 2009, he threw for 897 yards in six games before suffering a season-ending elbow injury.
In his senior year at Santa Barbara High, Uribe was No. 2 in the state with 4,164 passing yards and 41 touchdowns. He set school records against San Luis Obispo with 574 yards and seven TDs.
