When Mark Glowinski was growing up in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, there was one common theme to any activity he took up, whether that was football, bowling or even carpentry.
"I like doing anything where you can compete," the Seahawks' rookie guard said.
Well, Mark, you are in the right place for that, having been drafted in the fourth round by Seattle, a team coached by Mr. "Always Compete" himself, Pete Carroll.
A week into his first NFL training camp, the 6-foot-4, 310-pound guard out of West Virginia is competing to make his mark at both guard positions. Originally a tackle, Glowinski has the athleticism that is ideal for a Seahawks guard, and after playing almost entirely on the left side of the line in college, he is flipping between right and left guard in camp.
"It's not that big of a deal, but honestly I hadn't taken a left-handed snap at guard since high school, so it was slightly new, but it's just a mirror effect, pretty much," he said.
With the 134th pick the Seahawks choose Mark Glowinski from West Virginia.
While Glowinski would seem unlikely to win a starting job out of camp—he has worked almost exclusively with the second- and third-team lines thus far—that versatility could help him find a role on the team. If Alvin Bailey ends up winning the starting job at left guard, that means the Seahawks need a new backup who is capable of playing multiple positions—something of a utility lineman—which was Bailey's role last year.
Glowinski is just one of several rookie linemen competing for a role in this camp. The Seahawks drafted Terry Poole and Glowinski in the fourth round, then took Kristjan Sokoli in the sixth. They also signed several undrafted first-year linemen: Kona Schwenke, Will Pericak and Jesse Davis. Despite the infusion of young talent, Glowinski says that group, while competitive, is also supportive of each other.
"We ride or die for one another," he said. "It's not like there's grudges against one another. If there was a scuffle, we'd all be there for each other, but we're also here to push each other and make each other better."
As for those past off-field activities, Glowinski is pretty busy with football these days, but he did once bowl a perfect 300 score when he was in ninth grade. Yes, while the Seahawks have a roster full of Pro Bowl players, they also have a rookie who might be able to do a good impression of a pro bowler.
