RUBIO HOPING TO OPEN SOME EYES DURING STEELERS' TRAINING CAMP

Angel Rubio realizes that his performance during the Pittsburgh Steelers training camp could determine the course of his life for the next several years.

But the former Southeast Missouri State University All-American isn't about to take himself too seriously as he attempts to carve out a career in the National Football League.

"It's serious, but I am enjoying myself," said Rubio. "Of course you have days where you doubt things sometimes, but the key is to just try to bounce back and let go of a bad day."

Rubio, a 6-foot-3, 290-pound noseguard, touched on a variety of subjects during a telephone interview from the Steelers' training camp in Latrobe, Pa.

It was a rare period of down time for the personable Rubio, who pretty much has his schedule filled to the brim from morning until night.

"It's pretty hectic," he said with a laugh. "You're pretty much going all day and when the day is over, you're ready to collapse in bed."

Rubio, who earned Division I-AA All-American honors at Southeast last season and was then selected by the Steelers in the seventh round of the NFL draft, said so far so good as he completes his third week of training camp.

"I think everything is going pretty well," he said. "I think I'm holding my own."

Rubio, the 1997 Ohio Valley Conference Defensive Player of the Year, said his early experiences in the Steelers' camp were something to behold. But it didn't take him long to realize that football is football.

"It was eye-opening, just to be up at this level with these type of players, the guys you read about and see on TV," he said. "But other than that, football is football. The players might be faster and stronger, but it's the same game."

Rubio spent more than a month living and training in Pittsburgh during the early part of the summer in an effort to prepare himself for camp. He believes it was a good move.

"The main reason I made the decision to stay in Pittsburgh after our second mini-camp was to get used to the system, to get used to the city," he said. "I really worked out hard and got myself in good shape because I wanted to do everything possible to give me the best chance."

Rubio said one of the big difference between college football and an NFL training camp is the fact players don't have long to make an impression.

"In college, you have four years where the coaches can try to develop you," he said. "Here, they know you're a rookie, but they don't really have the time to spend on you. Coach (Bill) Cowher always says the first impressive is the lasting impression."

Speaking of Cowher, the Steelers' highly respected head coach, Rubio had nothing but positive things to say about him.

"He's a very impressive guy," Rubio said. "He lets you know where you stand. I believe he's a great coach and a great man. He has a tremendous presence in the organization."

During a typical day, according to Rubio, the players pretty much are kept busy until early in the morning until late at night.

Said Rubio: "A typical day is breakfast at 7 a.m., then back in the locker room and out on the field at 8:45 for our first practice. After practice, it's lunch, then we have an hour or two off, then we get ready for the afternoon practice at 2:45. Then we have dinner, about an hour off, and then meetings from about 7:30 until 10. Curfew is at 11."

But Rubio said the players do get Sundays off and there are other light days mixed in to keep everybody as fresh as possible.

The Steelers have had two exhibition games so far, losing to Tampa Bay and beating Buffalo, with a third scheduled for tonight at Philadelphia. Rubio said he played about half the game against Tampa Bay and didn't play quite as much against Buffalo.

All NFL teams must begin trimming their rosters on Aug. 25, the first mandatory day for cuts. Eventually, all teams must be down to 53 players when the regular season opens.

Rubio knows that, as a late-round draft pick, he's facing some steep odds in trying to survive the cuts and make the Steelers' roster. But he's also not going to drive himself crazy worrying about it. And anyway, he has plenty of confidence in himself.

"It's in my mind. You can't help but think about it once in a while," said Rubio of the first mandatory day for cuts. "But I really don't have any control over that. I'm just going to play the best I possibly can and try to improve every day. And if I do that, I have no doubt that I'll make the team."