Matt Stankiewitch could have quit.
He could have basked in the glory of playing in four NFL preseason games and nearly making the New England Patriots roster and given up his dream of playing professional football.
Instead, the Orwigsburg native and Blue Mountain High School graduate worked even harder.
The former Penn State standout put himself through rigorous workouts, sculpting his 6-foot-3, 303-pound frame into even better shape, while improving his footwork and speed.
Starting Monday, he hopes to make the most of a second opportunity to play in the NFL.
Stankiewitch embarks today for Jacksonville, Florida, to begin preseason training camp with the Jaguars.
Signed to a Futures/Reserve contract in December, Stankiewitch
will attempt to earn one of the 53 roster spots on a Jacksonville club that finished 4-12 last year.
"(Last year), of course it was disappointing," said Stankiewitch, who made the final round of cuts with the Patriots before being released. "In the NFL, you're going to hear that at one point in your life. Mine was at the beginning.
"You have to take it. It's either going to help you, or it's going to deteriorate you.
"I used it as motivation. I'm thankful for the opportunity I have now, and I'm going to try my best when I get down there."
Stankiewitch, 24, worked as a substitute teacher and a fitness trainer at Schuylkill Racquet Club in North Manheim Township last fall before getting signed by the Jaguars.
He spent most of April, May and June in Florida, training with the Jaguars, going through workouts, participating in OTAs (organized team activities) and attending a minicamp.
"It went well," Stankiewitch said of his time in Florida. "All ball clubs are different. It's definitely a culture difference from New England to Jacksonville.
"It went well, but when you go back, everyone is on the same turf. You have to prove it in camp, too.
"In OTAs, you're only going helmets. In camp, you're going full gear and live against everyone. It's more of a finesse game in OTAs. You have to play football when you go back to camp."
Jacksonville lost its first eight games last season under rookie coach Gus Bradley, then went 4-4 in the second half of the season.
The Jaguars took Central Florida quarterback Blake Bortles with the No. 3 pick in the NFL Draft, overhauled their roster and are revamping their offensive line.
Jacksonville's starting center, Brad Meester, retired after 14 years in the NFL. There are currently 14 offensive linemen on the Jaguars' roster, with Stankiewitch among three players listed as centers.
Patrick Lewis, a 6-1, 311-pounder, is in his second year out of Texas A&M, while the Jaguars drafted Luke Bowanko, a 6-6, 300-pounder from Virginia, in the sixth round. Guard Michael Brewster (6-4, 305), an Ohio State product, is listed as the starting center on the Jaguars' depth chart on ESPN.com.
The team figures on keeping eight or nine offensive linemen.
Fellow Penn State graduates Paul Posluszny, Nate Stupar and Allen Robinson are also on the Jacksonville roster.
There are several things that increase Stankiewitch's chances of making the Jaguars' roster as compared to last summer's attempt with the Patriots.
For starters, Stankiewitch is in better physical shape, after trained with Derek Flail at The Jungle in Schuylkill Haven in addition to his workouts at the Schuylkill Racquet Club.
"I'm very thankful I've been able to stay in great shape. Derek has been a vital part of that," said Stankiewitch, who assisted Flail at his Jungle Football Academy "Jungle on the Mountain" camp Thursday night in Ashland.
"Our strength coach in Jacksonville gave us workouts schedules, and we combined that with what Derek has and some stuff from Penn State to create a new kind of workout for me.
"It's been fantastic. I've been working out with Derek basically every day."
Second is that Stankiewitch has been through this before.
While his chances to make the Patriots' roster were slim from the beginning, Stankiewitch still played more than a half in each of New England's four preseason games, including starting the final one.
That experience, and the lessons learned throughout that process, should help Stankiewitch this time around.
"With time passing, you get more mature. With that usually comes intelligence," said Stankiewitch, who will wear No. 62 with the Jaguars. "That 'rookie unknown' is gone. I'm no longer a rookie when it comes to training camp.
"You still have to play with that chip on your shoulder and that concern that you have to fight for your job every day ... in the meeting room, in the weight room, and of course out on the field. "
The biggest lesson Stankiewitch learned from his time with the Patriots was that other NFL teams are always watching.
Jacksonville became interested in Stankiewitch after seeing him play with the Patriots, and New England used its final offensive line spots on players that weren't in its training camp.
While his goal is to make the Jaguars' roster, Stankiewitch knows a strong training camp could earn him a job somewhere else.
"The biggest thing is that all eyes, even those of other teams, are on you," Stankiewitch said. "I didn't realize Jacksonville's eyes were on me while I was in New England, and I didn't realize New England had eyes on someone else during camp.
"You're not competing not just for your own team, but you're competing for all of the teams. To either get picked up by them in the future, or to get replaced by someone in the future.
"You have to always tries your best, because the camera in the sky never lies."
Jacksonville officially opens its training camp Friday, July 25. The Jaguars open the preseason Aug. 8 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and have other preseason games Aug. 14 in Chicago (televised on ESPN), Aug. 22 at Detroit and Aug. 28 against Atlanta.
Stankiewitch's goal is to still be with the Jaguars when they open the regular season Sunday, Sept. 7, in Philadelphia against the Eagles.
"Everything is a competition in the NFL," Stankiewitch said. "It's definitely a sport that you have to prove it every single day, no matter what you're doing.
"You can't count your chickens before they hatch and you can't take any day for granted. You have to think every day is your last day and play every play like that. I have to keep getting better and play my best every single day."