Martin LeCesne, Corbin Heiken Bear Torch of Eureka’s Offensive Line Tradition

By Blake Baxter

EUREKA, Ill. – Despite their size, offensive linemen tend to get overlooked by casual football observers.

This is nothing new and it's fairly obvious why. While skill position players break tackles and score thrilling touchdowns on highlight reels, it's the guys doing the unglamorous work on the O-line that make it possible.

They typically don't get the attention they deserve, but they're just as vital to a play's success as the person who ends up with the ball in their hands. There's a popular saying for this idea that you can find on T-shirts, in locker rooms and in the comments on social media: "Always in the trenches, never in the spotlight."

"It's true, to some extent," Eureka College senior center Corbin Heiken said. "It's really a selfless job.

"I like it because I'm always there for my teammates. It really takes the right mentality to do it. If you're a me-me-me type of person, I don't think it's going to pay off for the team."

"I consider the O-line the unsung heroes," Eureka College senior left tackle Martin LeCesne added, "because we control the tempo of the game.

"Keeping time of possession, making sure our running backs get as many yards as they can and then for our quarterback to get plenty of time in the pocket – that's what fans really don't see."

The Eureka College football team is well aware of the importance of having a strong, agile and intelligent offensive line. Quality and consistent play up front has become a staple of the program as it has cultivated a winning tradition over the past decade.

For the past four years, LeCesne and Heiken have been mainstays in the "unsung hero" role. While offensive stars like Le'Anthony Reasnover, Drew Barth, Jimmy Douglas III and Joe Hughes have garnered individual honors and shaken up the program record book, LeCesne and Heiken have quietly evolved from precocious young contributors to award-winning team leaders in their own right.

"They're getting up there with some of what I would call the elite guys in program history," EC coach Kurt Barth said. "Just in terms of the guys I've been around in my 13 years, they're putting themselves right up in that top list of quality players, quality student-athletes and outstanding young men that we've had."

Now, as the pair heads into the final year in maroon and gold, they're looking to cement their legacy as two of the most dependable and successful offensive linemen that have passed through the program.

Heiken, a fourth-year senior, is on pace to play in at least 34 games – far more than most players who have ever put on a Red Devil uniform. LeCesne, a fifth-year senior, is on pace to appear in at least 41 games in his career – putting him one behind program leader Ryan Barth.

The oddity of the COVID year played a role in this trajectory, but most of it is a credit to the combination of consistency, durability and drive that has been the through line of their respective careers.

. . .

Martin LeCesne likes to say that football is in his blood.

His cousin, Terrance Pennington, was an offensive lineman in the NFL in the mid-to-late 2000s. He looked up to him from a young age, always imagining himself being on the field, just like him.

 "I started loving the game just by naming the players that I could see on the TV at the age of 5," he said. "And then just watching games and games and games. And then I just kept begging my parents to let me play JFL football until they finally allowed it."

A naturally big kid, LeCesne was an obvious fit for the offensive line. He learned how to play all five spots on the line in high school while playing at Joliet West, a fact that would later impress Kurt Barth when he got to Eureka.

LeCesne originally committed to play at Elmhurst College, but he ultimately wasn't able to due to tuition prices. Unsure of where to go at that point, he and his father kept looking for a better fit until Eureka came on their radar. LeCesne first heard about Eureka from a teammate who had already committed there. He decided to visit and committed after talking to Barth just two weeks before preseason camp began in 2017.

As a freshman newcomer, LeCesne knew the Red Devils were coming off an 8-2 season and had a chance to win a conference title. The offensive line was led by and filled with veterans like Ryan Barth, Jordan Lamb, Michael Slingsby, Jake Price and Tyler Willdrick. He quickly realized he had a lot to learn from them.

"I knew it was going to be tough to compete with him (Ryan Barth) for the job, so instead of trying to go after it, I said 'Let me take this as a learning experience,'" LeCesne said. "So that freshman year, I just worked on footwork, technique, losing weight, conditioning and then the games happened and we just kept on winning, so I kept getting some snaps under the belt."

From Barth's perspective, LeCesne couldn't have handled the situation better.

"The number one thing that he did well that year was that he learned what the expectations were," Barth said. "He learned our scheme and he provided valuable depth and did his job when asked."

The Red Devils went on to win eight games for the second year in a row, captured the team's first conference title since 1995 and clinched its first national postseason appearance since going to the NAIA playoffs in 1994. LeCesne played in every single game, whetting his appetite for what was to come.

After EC's banner season, the team lost three of their veteran offensive lineman due to graduation. LeCesne knew he would have a chance to earn one of the open spots, but he would have to work for it. That offseason, he trained like he never had before.

"After the season, I weighed in at, like, 320 pounds," LeCesne said. "I was consistently in the weight room doing conditioning and cardio. By the time I came into my sophomore year, I was 290 pounds."

When he reported to camp that fall, LeCesne's physical transformation was evident to Kurt Barth and his coaching staff. They could all see how much work he had put into it.

"His offseason of his freshmen year was among the best that I've seen," Barth said. "It was just such a huge transition of his abilities, speed and strength."

At camp's end, LeCesne was named the starter at right tackle.

"I remember looking at the depth chart and I'm like 'Oh my God, I'm finally going to start a college football game," LeCesne said. "I immediately called my dad."

Looking back now, Barth considers that offseason as the turning point of LeCesne's collegiate career.  As a freshman, Barth said, he wasn't as strong or fast as he made himself in that offseason. Every year since then, he's been what his coach calls "a guy we can lean on."

"Just model of consistency," Barth said. "Through practices, through games, we know what we're getting. He's a strong leader of that group. We know we can count on him when we need big plays and opportunities to gain short yardage. We know he's going to do his job, and we know he's going to communicate with the guys across from him."

. . .

While LeCesne was putting together the offseason of training that would change his career, his future teammate was doing everything he could to hit the ground running on Day 1.

Ever since connecting with Barth during his senior year, Corbin Heiken had been hyper motivated to put himself in position to succeed at Eureka.

"When I was touring colleges, coaches kind of feed you what you want to hear, but that wasn't the case," Heiken said. "Coach Barth told me how it was. He said 'You are going to have the opportunity to play, we could win a championship,' so I bought in early."

Unlike LeCesne, Heiken was a little undersized for an offensive lineman, coming in at 5-foot-11, 230 pounds. Heiken, who grew up in nearby El Paso, described himself as a "little runt compared to everybody else" when he started playing JFL in third grade.

But his dad was his coach and he could see he had potential early on, so he pushed him hard, instilling in him a sense of high expectations and strong work ethic. That helped him become a First Team All-Heart of Illinois Conference offensive lineman and an Illinois High School Football Coaches Association Academic All-State honoree in high school. At El Paso-Gridley, Heiken's Titans made four straight IHSA playoff appearances, including a run to the quarterfinals in 2017.

El Paso-Gridley's head coach was Stephen Rigsby, a good friend and former teammate of Barth's at EC. He told him that even though he'd primarily played guard in high school, he thought Heiken had the mobility to play center.

"He had a lot of great things to say about Corbin," Barth said. "We felt that if he had a strong summer of getting ready in the weight room and doing things (right), he could come in and compete for that job."

Heiken didn't wait until summer to start getting ready for college football. Living nearby allowed him to start working out and bonding with his new teammates before he was even out of high school.

"A couple of them actually came to my graduation party," Heiken said. "I thought that was pretty neat. I didn't even go there yet and they were already close. I don't think you'd get that anywhere else."

Heiken spent the whole summer training with the seasoned veterans who just came off winning a conference title and were eager to prove they could do it again in the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference.

They provided a crash course in the program's culture before he had ever experienced an official practice.

"They didn't cut me any slack," Heiken said. "They just told me how it was and they just really pushed me. That's what I honestly credit a lot of my success to.

"They were all there telling me to keep going, like I could do it. Once I felt like I had the backing from them, I felt like I started flourishing."

Whereas LeCesne drew attention that preseason with his physical transformation, Heiken made an impression with his confidence.

"He had confidence that he could do the job, and that he was going to help this team," Barth said. "And to his credit, he attacked it that way during the summer. He got with some of the older guys and lifted with them, and that to me showed that he was going to come in with the right mindset.

"He was one of the more vocal freshmen. He didn't look like your typical guy coming in first year trying to feel things out; he was a first-year guy coming in to be a leader."

Heiken was the Red Devils' starting center from Day 1 of the season, making his first start with LeCesne on Sept. 1, 2018. The Red Devils cruised to a 49-24 victory on the road against Knox in the annual Lincoln Bowl contest. Heiken said that his first 'Welcome to college' moment didn't come until the following week when he had to contend with a 400-pound nose guard from Iowa Wesleyan.

"In the HOI, there aren't too many guys who are big big," Heiken said. "Not like that."

With the help from LeCesne on his right and fellow first-year starter Dejour Bradford on his left, Heiken held his own until he sprained his ankle after the nose guard landed on it. The injury took him out of the lineup the following week against Finlandia and nagged him the rest of the season.

However, Heiken was back the next week when Eureka took down Aurora for the first time since 1946 in a 31-28 thriller. He has started every game since then.

The Red Devils, meanwhile, rolled to their second straight conference title, going 9-1 in the regular season to secure the NACC's outright league title and an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III playoffs for the second straight year.

. . .

When the 2018 season came to an end and the all-conference honors were released, LeCesne didn't think he would get any awards, but he received All-NACC Honorable Mention.

"The first time I found out I was all-conference, it was shocking," he said. "I remember after the playoff game at Whitewater, I found this out. I was telling someone, 'Hey, you made all-conference; congrats!' and I then I got a tap on my back and it was like 'Hey, you're all-conference honorable mention, too,' and I scrolled down and looked on my phone and I was like, 'Oh, my; I actually did it!"

Heiken didn't receive any honors as a freshman, but Barth believed he was an all-conference caliber player.

In 2019, the Red Devils didn't reach the team highs of the past two seasons, but they had their share of memorable wins. There was another Lincoln Bowl triumph over Knox, an overtime victory at Wisconsin Lutheran, a 50-49 thrilling win over Lakeland, a shutout win over Concordia Wisconsin for senior day and a season-finale road win over Rockford that clinched Eureka's fourth straight winning season.

There were also a few close losses – and a road contest against conference champion Aurora that started out close but got out of hand.

"I thought we could've had a pretty decent run," Heiken said. "I think we just had a few games not go our way. Like with the Aurora game, we were pretty much neck-and-neck and we had a few turnovers that cost us. It just kind of shows, even though how small of a school we are, we can still pack a punch. We know we're right there."

That season, LeCesne moved from right tackle to left tackle and was named a captain of the team's leadership council.

"Knowing the team had trust in me, for not only the amount of starts that I had, but trusting me as a person and being a factor to the team," LeCesne said, "that was huge."

He demonstrated his value on the field by not allowing a single sack on the quarterback all year. After the season, LeCesne received All-NACC Second Team honors and Heiken was given Honorable Mention.

After rehabilitating his ankle in the offseason, Heiken was a faster and stronger player in Year 2. Barth says his lower body strength and speed in his snap progression has helped him compensate for his lack of size. However, he also says that Heiken has shown an ability to learn from experience.

 "Sometimes he's giving up a lot of weight, but Corbin is smart enough to know what he can and what he can't do against guys like that, and he makes it work," he said of Heiken, who has a 4.0 grade point average. "I think that (experience) made him even smarter, in a sense of understanding scheme and what we can do … his ability to come off the field and communicate with Coach (Morgan) Murphy and Coach (Sam) Durley on what's going on and what he's seeing across from him from the defense, I think that's probably the biggest improvement we've seen."

. . .

LeCesne and Heiken have been through – and accomplished – a lot together over the past few years. It's partially due to the duo's long established rapport and mutual understanding of how to work together and bring out the best in each other.

"My freshman year, we were really able to grow that bond," Heiken said. "We played next to each other so we knew how each other played. We were able to get on each other. If I'm doing something wrong, he'll tell me. If he's doing something wrong, I'll get on him. It's because we love each other. It's because we know the potential that each one of us has."

"I consider him my right-hand man on the O-line," LeCesne said. "I thank Corbin for a lot of stuff. He made me a better player. Without him, stuff would probably be different."

After enduring a strange and challenging COVID season, LeCesne and Heiken have their eyes locked on this upcoming fall, their last together on the line and in a Red Devil uniform.

Winning – leading the team "back to the top of the mountain, back to championship form," as LeCesne says – is the obvious motivation, but imparting the knowledge they've accumulated and passing the torch to the next generation of program leaders is just as important to them.

"This year, a lot of it is trying to hand down that culture that we learned," Heiken said. "Making it a statement that that's the culture here, and really getting the younger guys ready for their next upcoming years."

 "It all starts with your offensive line," Barth added. "These are two guys that have a wealth of experience and ability to help lead this next group coming in."