Lance Clevenger knows a thing or two about hard work.

Clevenger was a point guard for the basketball team and ran hurdles and the 4x200 meter relay in track. His time as a high school basketball player only spanned two years, but Clevenger ran track for all four. Neither of these sports took center stage for him though. His favorite thing in the world was, and still is, football.

"My passion for football really started when I was younger," Clevenger said. "I'm talking... third or fourth grade. When I was younger I always spent my Saturdays and Sundays watching football with my dad and grandpa. Eventually, when the time came, I started playing tackle football and from then on, the love just kept evolving."

Clevenger grew up watching and playing the game. He took his talents onto the field for the Pintos as a linebacker and offensive lineman. Now, despite excelling in these positions, they weren't his first choice. In fact, they weren't his choice at all.

"I'm gonna be honest with you, I wanted to be a quarterback," Clevenger laughed. "Those are the guys that get the big recognition. They're the ones you always know. But I found out I can't really throw a football that well and so I got slotted as an offensive lineman because I was one of the bigger kids. I actually played defensive line for the longest time, all the way up until high school when Coach Grubb came in. He said I had the perfect build for linebacker and he moved me. I wasn't very happy. I had been a defensive lineman my whole life and I didn't want to switch it up, but I trusted his judgement and I ended up loving it."

Grubb's decision to move Clevenger paid off. Not only did he enjoy his new role more; he improved as a player. In his senior season, Clevenger recorded 105 solo tackles and four tackles for a loss. He broke up five passes, forced a fumble, recovered a fumble and recorded a sack.

Clevenger spent three of his four years on the varsity roster and racked up numerous accolades. He received Academic All-State twice and 2nd Team All-Region in 2023. In 2024, Clevenger was at his most productive. He made 2nd Team All-Area, 2nd Team All-State, 1st Team Media All-District Linebacker and 1st Team All-Conference. He also represented California in the 2024 Blue-Grey All-American Bowl, played at the Dallas Cowboys' AT&T Stadium. He started for Team East and was the leading tackler.

"I received an invitation in the mail to go to a combine (during) the spring of my junior year. I competed in it and then was told I'd hear back from them after all the combines were done. I eventually heard that I was selected... based off of my combine results and high school stats," Clevenger said. "And that was super cool because I'm from a small town. I got to wear my Pintos helmet during the game. It was (an honor)."

The gutsy Clevenger accomplished a lot in his time with the Pintos while playing one of the toughest positions on the field. So it makes sense that his favorite memory from high school football was a gutsy decision.

"My junior year, we played Oak Grove in our second district game. We were down by seven and there was, maybe, less than a minute left," Clevenger said. "We ended up driving all the way down the field and we punched it in. But instead of going for the tie, we went for two and got the conversion with five or so seconds on the clock. We kicked the ball back off and ran the time out and advanced to the district championship. We had the feeling that coach trusted us with the game on the line to get the two-point conversion. The moment was so exciting."

Clevenger was an outstanding football star for the Pintos, but there is more to him than just athletic skill. Clevenger is beginning his journey as a college student at Missouri S&T and pursuing a career as an engineer.

"To be honest, I didn't really know what I wanted to do... with my life," Clevenger said. "I always knew I wanted to help people, but I found out pretty quickly that I didn't like blood... so that ruled out becoming a doctor. But I've always been a hands-on learner and I feel like engineering is (like that). So if I can't be a doctor and help people (that way), I can become an engineer and design something to help people."