Red Hawk
August 15th, 2005, 12:40 PM
Figured the fathers and fans might enjoy a freshman's perspective on the jump to college ball. My son had been participating in the summer voluntary workouts so he knew a lot of people and had gotten in really good shape. He's an OL
Day 1. Among other things the OL ran 3 "gassers" for time. If you didn't make your time you got to join the "Breakfast Club", who meet every morning at 6:30 for an hour of running before practice. He makes his time and is greatly relieved. Toward the end of the first day they are told they are going to "the County Fair". He thinks "that doesn't sound bad" until he finds out it's a series of non-stop station drills.
Day 2. The team goes to church together where my son (Catholic) visits a Southern Baptist church for the first time in his life. Yesteday it was an AME church. Coach Billings is trying to expose all of them to the diverse backgrounds they have while becoming a team.
Day 5. Andy is learning center a position he's never played before. He sails 3 shot-gun snaps over the QB's head and gets to do 50 extra snaps after practice. He tells me he's not manhandling people like he did in high school but nor is he being manhandled.
Day 7. Andy snaps 2 over the QB's head during a scrimmage and is feeling low, as he incurs the wrath of the OL coach, although he's still entrenched at 2nd team. After the scrimmage I meet him and another freshman OL and take them out to dinner. They look absolutely catatonic. Andy says dead-pan they decided they're going to try out for the soccer team. He says he's so tired and battered he gets winded during warm-up and he can't sleep his head is so full of new plays and sets. He aches, he hates the food, the dorms and honestly seems absolutely in love with college ball. My wife said she can't remember seeing him so happy.
I did tell him to persevere, it will never be as hard as this year, because he'll only get older, bigger, stronger and more experienced.
Day 1. Among other things the OL ran 3 "gassers" for time. If you didn't make your time you got to join the "Breakfast Club", who meet every morning at 6:30 for an hour of running before practice. He makes his time and is greatly relieved. Toward the end of the first day they are told they are going to "the County Fair". He thinks "that doesn't sound bad" until he finds out it's a series of non-stop station drills.
Day 2. The team goes to church together where my son (Catholic) visits a Southern Baptist church for the first time in his life. Yesteday it was an AME church. Coach Billings is trying to expose all of them to the diverse backgrounds they have while becoming a team.
Day 5. Andy is learning center a position he's never played before. He sails 3 shot-gun snaps over the QB's head and gets to do 50 extra snaps after practice. He tells me he's not manhandling people like he did in high school but nor is he being manhandled.
Day 7. Andy snaps 2 over the QB's head during a scrimmage and is feeling low, as he incurs the wrath of the OL coach, although he's still entrenched at 2nd team. After the scrimmage I meet him and another freshman OL and take them out to dinner. They look absolutely catatonic. Andy says dead-pan they decided they're going to try out for the soccer team. He says he's so tired and battered he gets winded during warm-up and he can't sleep his head is so full of new plays and sets. He aches, he hates the food, the dorms and honestly seems absolutely in love with college ball. My wife said she can't remember seeing him so happy.
I did tell him to persevere, it will never be as hard as this year, because he'll only get older, bigger, stronger and more experienced.