BY MARIO AGUIRRE | STAFF WRITER
EDINBURG — When Edinburg Vela’s Michael Salinas nominated Michael Arguelles, his junior wideout, for the FBU camp in Arlington this summer, it was done with the intent that the young man would benefit from learning from former NFL players while competing alongside some of the top players in the country.
It inadvertently served as a motivating tool for Arguelles to take the next step.
Arguelles arrived at Vela with plenty of promise. Even before suiting up for the SaberCats, the coaching staff had already heard of the wide receiver, who showed good body control and an innate ability to catch the football. With enough training, the coaching staff felt, he could develop into a special player.
Last season, Arguelles showed glimpses of that potential, hauling in 27 catches for 500 yards and two touchdowns. Naturally, expectations swelled for his junior season, especially after earning an invitation to the “Top Gun” Showcase in Dublin, Ohio.
“I think being able to see that, it opened up his eyes and showed him how hard you have to work,” wide receivers coach Patrick Shelby said. “You just can’t go through the motions and except to get the job done. Seeing talent like that, it really made him realize how hard he has to work here every day.”
Arguelles’ work ethic has never been in question — with Shelby saying “he’s a great young man who comes to work every day — but he took it up a notch this summer when he added bulk to his 6-foot-2 frame, weighing in now at 195 pounds. He also worked on virtually every aspect of his game, from coverages to route-running to blocking.
He enters this year more physical and aggressive, able to stretch the field better with his strides.
“He came back with a little more knowledge of the game, a little bit more experience,” Shelby said. “He got to be around other guys with the same talent as him. I think it helped him focus a little bit more on the smaller things to help himself compete. I think he brought that back with him and it shows.”
“It was fun,” Arguelles said. “A lot of great competition up there. I learned a lot.”
Salinas is asking even more out of Arguelles, a second-team All-Valley pick last year, from running more efficiently to utilizing his strength with his blocking.
“His measures are good. He just has to back it up with his performance,” Salinas said. “I think the confidence that he gained from last year carried over into spring football, and being able to get to a couple of those camps this summer and exposing him to that type of talent made him understand how hard he needs to work to be able to improve.”
“Since he was a freshman, we knew he was going to be a good athlete,” Salinas added. “It all hinged on how hard he wanted to work and the commitment that he’s willing to make. He bought into the program. He bought into the offseason. And we’ve really seen the improvement with him.”