There
are many plans in a man’s heart, Nevertheless the Lord’s counsel - that will
stand.
- PROVERBS 19:21
Be
anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with
thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God,
which surpasses all understanding, will guard your heart and minds through
Christ Jesus.
- PHILIPPIANS 4:6-7
The 10th
grade at Cloverleaf High School was different from most other schools. Due to our small school, 10th
through 12th grade was in a separate building from the Junior High,
which was composed of the 7th through 9th graders. The reason I mention this is because as I
entered the 10th grade, it was like starting at a different school
all over again with new students and teachers.
The summer of 1991 was a large step toward achieving the goal of earning
a full scholarship in football. Ever
since I saw my childhood hero, Chris Williams, sign that letter of intent on
television to play football at NC State University, I knew my dream was getting
closer every day.
There was a great
deal of anticipation and excitement leading up to my sophomore football
year. Thinking of being able to play
under those Friday night football lights amid stands packed with thousands of
screaming fans was just the motivation I needed to prepare for the upcoming
football season. Through a consistent
off-season training program that consisted of lifting weights four times a
week, running three times a week and eating everything in sight, I tipped the
scales at about 160 lbs when I reported for two-a-day football practices. Although practices initially started out
well, a tackling drill that I participated in resulted in breaking my ring
finger on my left hand. This was an
injury that I received a lot of slack for from the players. Many of them felt that if you break a finger
you should just tape it up and get back in the game. I guess you can say I was dealing with a tough
crowd. Due to the severity of the break,
the only way for it to heal properly was for me to get a cast put on my left
hand that pulled the ring finger down.
This resulted in missing more than half of the 1991 football
season. Once the break had healed, I was
given the green light to play football again.
Although I had
been a linebacker my whole life (except for a short-lived career as running
back in the seventh grade) my head coach, Bob Lake, saw something special in me
as a player. He decided to start me at
nose tackle for the remaining four games of the year on the varsity squad. I can still remember the first high school
tackle I made against the North Royalton Golden Bears and hearing my name
called out by the announcer. It still
echoes in my memory as he said, “That was number 40, Miguel Viera, on the
tackle.” My name was not pronounced
correctly on that night, but one thing was for sure, and that was that he said
my name. Hearing my name being called
over those speakers on Friday nights was something that I got accustomed to hearing
as my high school football career progressed.
Even though I was
undersized for the defensive line, I learned to utilize my speed to outsmart my
opponents. On many occasions, not soon
after the ball was snapped, I would squeeze between the offensive linemen and wreak
havoc in the backfield. I quickly
learned that the bigger the linemen were, the harder they would fall. One of my favorite positions to be in was
when we were defending our goal and the defensive linemen would assume the
position called “root hog.” Plain and
simple, this was getting as low to the ground as possible so when the ball
snapped, you would just lunge at the ankles of the offensive lineman in front
of you. This strategy cleared out the
first layer of the offense and allowed the linebackers and secondary to play clean
up with whoever was carrying the football.
My first varsity
game resulted in another fond memory. It
was second down and goal, and the opposing team’s offense was intent on pushing
our defense against our goal and threatening to score. Something had to be done quickly by our
eleven defensive players. Someone had to
step up and make a play. At the snap of
the ball, I made myself skinny, which was not difficult to do at 160 lbs. I proceeded to torpedo towards the running
back almost before he was even given the football. After a loud smashing blow to the ball
carrier, something felt very strange. As
I hit the running back, there was an awkward sensation in my left arm. As a matter of fact, I could not feel my left
arm at all. It appeared that somehow my
funny bone was triggered, which resulted in playing the remainder of the drive
with what felt like a limp spaghetti noodle hanging from my shoulder. That hit in my eyes was viewed as my
initiation into high school football.
The fact that I stayed out there and continued to play proved that I was
not only born to play this great game but capable of doing great things on the
football field.
I was only able
to play in four varsity games in my sophomore football season of 1991 but the
stage was being set for greater things to come.
That year I not only lettered in football as a sophomore but also was
named one of two most outstanding sophomore football players. Small steps would soon lead to bigger
accomplishments in the near future.
BODYBUILDING 101
Prior to the start of my junior year at
Cloverleaf High school, I decided to enter a couple of bodybuilding
competitions. I figured that since I was
lifting weights and getting ready for the upcoming football season, this would
be a good chance to put my muscles into action.
My first bodybuilding competition was definitely an interesting
experience. Not really understanding all
the preparation that was involved in bodybuilding, I signed up for a meet
called “The Governor’s Cup.” The
competing age bracket that I fell into was 17 years and under, and now I had
another reason to hit the weights besides just football.
There are few
things in life that show a man’s physical weaknesses like a pair of black
posing trunks. A person might look good
in a gym with a pair of shorts and a tank top but like my wife says, “posing
trunks leave little to the imagination.”
I remember when I stood in front of the mirror in my black posing trunks
and thought, “I’ve got some real work to do.”
The thought of having to stand in front of a large crowd in a small,
confined piece of clothing was all the motivation I needed.
After several
months of intense training and strict dieting, I just had a couple of things to
take care of before I would be ready.
There was the matter of shaving my body, tanning and practicing my
posing routine. That’s right, I said,
“shaving my body.” Now depending on how
much body hair a person has, this could be an all day event with a can of
shaving cream and a Bic razor. Luckily,
for me, the process was not as bad as it could have been due to being a young
teen.
A couple of trips
to the tanning bed and some self-applying “Pro Tan” proved to be all I needed
due to my olive skin. The posing routine
came naturally due to plenty of practice posing as a child; however, there was
still the matter of choosing the posing music.
This decision came instantaneously, due to my admiration for the
bodybuilding legend, Arnold Swartzennegger.
The theme song to the movie “Conan the Barbarian” was exactly what best
suited this rookie bodybuilder.
The day of the
competition finally came, and I was anxious to partake in my first bodybuilding
meet. There were a couple of things that
had to be completed before stepping out on the stage in front of the audience. The first and probably most important was not
to drink too much water that day due to the potential of it hiding the
definition in the muscles. Secondly, it
was crucial to have a solid preparatory routine prior to stepping on the
stage. This is where contestants would
coat themselves with baby oil to better display what bodybuilders call “cuts”
and “striations” as they worked out in the “pump up room.” I know what you are thinking to yourself,
“What in the world is a pump up room?”
Don’t worry; it isn’t as bad as it sounds. The “pump up room” is merely a room full of
weight equipment where the bodybuilder can get a final pump to ensure that
their muscles are peaking to capacity before stepping onstage.
After completing
the backstage preparation, I was chosen to be the first poser to do his routine
for my weight class. I’ll never forget
the feeling of gratification that overcame me as I went through my posing
routine onstage. There is something very
special about another person applauding an individual’s hard work and
dedication. After months of intense
training for this competition, there I was posing to the theme song to “Conan
the Barbarian,” while the spectators in the auditorium applauded my efforts. At that moment, it didn’t matter whether I
won or lost that night. It was more
about the respect and admiration of my peers.
That night I placed second and got a nice trophy, but more importantly,
I started to really understand why it was important to appreciate others around
you. Applauding others’ efforts fuels
their spirits and motivates them to reach higher and farther than they ever
could have possibly imagined.
ALMOST THE PERFECT SEASON
There must have been something special in the
fall air of 1992. That was the year that
put the Cloverleaf High School football team on the map in Ohio. After a disappointing season in 1991 that
resulted in a record below .500, there was something to be proved on that
football field under those Friday night lights.
Doubles started in the humid summer heat of mid-August, and as the team
got closer to approaching the first game of the season, everyone was excited to
see how the season would unfold. The
team was not only loaded with experienced players like our junior quarterback
and myself at middle linebacker, but a highly recruited senior running
back/linebacker and wide receiver/free safety would prove to be the difference
makers in 1992.
The first game of
the year was against the Wadsworth Grizzlies.
This was the first game that I started at the middle linebacker position
for the Cloverleaf High School football team.
Now every football game that has ever been played can be decided by the
team which ends the game with more accumulated momentum on their side. These shifts of momentum, in some cases,
continuously go back and forth throughout the duration of the game. The 1992 season started with such a play.
The Cloverleaf
Colts won the coin toss and decided to kick the ball off to the Wadsworth
Grizzlies. There I was on the kickoff
team, not knowing how the season would unfold, but knowing that I was going to
give nothing less than 100% on every play.
As we kicked the ball off, I sprinted as fast as my legs would take me
and was focused on the location of the receiver catching and returning the
ball. As I dodged blockers on the way to
the path of the return specialist, I continued to pick up speed and before I
knew it, I was crashing into the ball carrier.
The jarring hit propelled the ball out of the receiver’s hands and it
was a Cloverleaf recovery within the 20-yard line on the opponent’s side of the
field. That play alone stands out in my
mind, because it was not only the first play of the season, but also the play
that started the momentum for the 1992 season.
Eight games later
the Colts were 8-0 and feeling better than ever. The last undefeated team at Cloverleaf was in
1972 when the team went 10-0. The town
was buzzing and the television media was talking about the football team that
played amongst the cornfields and cows.
You could not ask for a better season, and I even got to do my first
television interview with the local news station. Best of all, due to our undefeated record and
some excellent senior talent, recruiting coaches from college football programs
like Penn State, Indiana, Purdue, Ohio State and Michigan were coming to watch
our games.
One of the big
games during that season was against the Brunswick Blue Devils. It was a game that was televised in the
Cleveland viewing area and there were supposedly recruiters from some big-time
college football programs who were going to be in the stands. If I ever had a chance to make a statement as
a player during my junior year, this was it.
I can still remember Coach Lake coming up to me before the game and
letting me know that this was the big one.
Athletes
sometimes enter a state of euphoria called the zone when playing their
particular sport. You have probably seen
this with players like Michael Jordan hitting every shot he takes or Tom Brady
completing every pass to his receivers.
I can only remember two times I have played football when I was truly in
the zone - a place where your focus is razor sharp and your tackling is at its
finest. The first time was against the
Brunswick Blue Devils, and the second time I will talk about later in the book.
That night in our
victory over the Brunswick Blue Devils, I registered 18 tackles. It seemed like I knew where every play was
going before the ball was even snapped.
Whether it was a run or pass play, I was on it like white on rice. Later that week it was announced to the team
that I was named Cleveland Plain Dealer Defensive Player of the Week. This was another giant step to achieving my
goal of earning a full scholarship to a college football program.
There is a reason
why sailboats can come with an outboard engine.
The reason is that the wind does not always blow and fill the sail and
eventually you have to use something besides nature to propel your vessel. The wind finally died down in our ninth game
against the Berea Braves. They had only
one loss in the season and were competing with us for first place in the
Pioneer Conference. This was a team that
our school had never beaten, which added to the drama. Just like the Florida State Seminoles, their
fans did the tomahawk chop in the stands, which annoys me to this day. This was by far the biggest game of the year,
and the winner would not only win the Pioneer Conference, but also have an
excellent chance of making it to the state playoffs. Our Coach even had players from the 1972
undefeated team come and talk to us before the game to let us know that this
was a special moment in our lives and that regardless of what happened, it
would never be forgotten.
It was not that
the Cloverleaf Colts played bad that night; it was just that we did not play
better than the other team. The scores
battled back and forth, and the game came down to the last drive for the
Colts. I helplessly watched from the
sidelines as our perfect season suddenly became a distant memory. The pass thrown by our quarterback was
intercepted by one of the opponent’s cornerbacks. I remember the feeling of defeat that night
as I played my heart out and left everything on the field only to lose 14-22. A magical season came crashing down with a
single defeat. We went on to win our
final game against our neighboring rivals, the Medina Bees, but the bitter
taste of defeat was still in our mouths.
We placed second in the Pioneer Conference that year because Berea’s
loss was against a non-conference team and on top of that a 9-1 record was not
enough to get us into the playoffs. Only
four teams in our district made it to the playoffs that year and we had
accumulated enough points to be the fifth team out. By the way, the 10-0 team in 1972 did not
make the playoffs either.
It was still a
season to remember, and although it was not perfect, two of our senior players
benefited from the excellent season. Our
running back/linebacker accepted a full scholarship to Penn State and our
receiver/free safety accepted a full scholarship to Kent State that school
year. What would the 1993 season hold
for the Cloverleaf Colts? With many
returning players, including our quarterback and myself at middle linebacker,
the small country town of Lodi was expecting big things.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL CAMP BLUES
Now that my junior football season was behind
me, I found myself walking with a spring in my step and very focused for the
upcoming football season. After
receiving most valuable defensive player at the football awards banquet and
being named Second Team All-Pioneer Conference, I knew that I was really going
to have to take it to the next level in order to achieve my lofty goal of
receiving a full scholarship to a Division I College Football Program. Since my weight lifting habits were year
round, I was back in the gym lifting weights and adding bulk to my 185-lb
frame.
Prior to the
start of my senior year at CHS, my good friend, Dan Rupert, and I decided to
take a trip up to the University of Michigan for a training camp that lasted a
week. If there ever was a good word of
advice for college football prospects, this is it, so listen up! I remember one of the college coaches from
Michigan coming to our school for a visit.
He said they were having a special camp for college recruits which he
highly recommended attending. The cost
for the week would be around $300, but if they were interested enough in my
football talent, it was possible that I could be offered a full scholarship at
the camp. The recruiter made the training
camp sound like a special “invite” event, where I would be working exclusively
with the linebacker coach. However, when
we got to the University, there were over 300 college recruits in attendance. It was a deceiving way to get as many college
recruits to the University of Michigan for the training camp and to make as
much money as possible.
There was one
player who stood out at the camp, and by his size and speed you could tell that
he was going to be something special.
His name was Curtis Enis, and he probably weighed about 225 lbs at the
time. He was getting clocked in the
40-yard dash in the low 4.4’s and you could tell the Michigan coaches were
drooling about him possibly playing for the Wolverines. Unfortunately for Michigan, Curtis had another
team in mind. He ended up signing his
letter of intent to play for the Penn State Nittany Lions. After a successful college career as a
running back, he was drafted in the first round of the NFL draft by the Chicago
Bears.
I am not going to
say college-training camps for college recruits are not beneficial, because
they are good places to go to learn skills to take with you into your college
career. What I would not recommend is
running the 40-yard dash at any of these camps unless you plan on getting a
stellar time that you can brag about to your friends. I made the mistake of running the 40-yard
dash and was clocked at an unusually slow time of 5.02 seconds, when I had run
high 4.8 to 4.9’s in the past. Little
did I know that this information would be shared with college coaches around
the country. Guess what the first thing
a lot of coaches asked me? That’s right;
they would say, “I heard you ran a 5.02 at the University of Michigan Training
Camp”.
A SENIOR SEASON OF UPS AND DOWNS
The emphasis of my training for the senior
football season was primarily focused on gaining as much weight as possible,
getting stronger and running faster, simple strategies to take it up a level on
the football field. I saw myself inflate
from 185 lbs to about 220 lbs in a single year.
The credit for this weight gain can be attributed to hard work in the
weight room but especially to all those home cooked meals by mom, high grocery
bills and a strong growth spurt during the summer of ‘93.
Entering into the
’93 season, I was selected as preseason All-Pioneer Conference at the middle
linebacker position and was listed in multiple college football recruiting
magazines as an upcoming player to scout.
I was already receiving recruiting letters in the mail and started to
make plans to visit colleges I was interested in before the season had even
begun. It was an exciting time of seeing
everything unfold around me as years of hard work were paying off.
The start of
doubles during the mid-summer heat of August proved to display an unexpected
twist to the beginning of my senior season.
During one of the drills during doubles, I pulled my groin and was
limited during double sessions. Even
though I was legitimately injured, it is hard for other players to be toiling
under the hot summer heat and not feel a little resentment towards the player
who does not have to go full speed. This
resulted in losing some credibility with the players, and when it was time to
select team captains, the most heavily recruited college player on the team was
left out.
Respect is
something on the football field that will never be given to you. It is something that must be earned through
sacrificing it all and giving 100% on every play. When it is all on the line and someone either
has to score or defend the end zone, the person willing to go above and beyond
will earn not only the respect of his teammates but also his opponents. Although I was disappointed about not being
selected as a captain, I vowed to spend the entire season earning the respect
of my teammates by my unselfish play on the field.
The 1993
Cloverleaf football team had high expectations due to the success experienced
in the prior season. A considerable
amount of starters returned on both sides, and even a highly touted running
back transferred from one of our rival schools.
The season started out with three impressive non-conference
victories. The defense allowed only one
touchdown in the three wins. We were
picking up momentum, and everyone immediately started saying that this was the
year we would go to the state playoffs.
Just as quickly
as the season started out red hot, our luck suddenly flew south for three weeks
as we lost three games in a row. The
first two losses were by a total of two points and the third loss was an
old-fashioned beating by the Midpark Meteors as they ran over and through us to
win 35-14. It was gut check time and
even though we had lost three games in a row, we were still 3-3. It was time for the seniors to take charge
and that is just what we did as we demolished the Brecksville Bees the
following week by a score of 27-3.
I wish I could
say that that we won the last three games of the season and the Cloverleaf
Colts went to the state playoffs for the first time in school history, but it
was not meant to be. We did win two of
the last three games and finished a respectable 6-4 for a football program that
was consistently below .500 before the ’92 season. The funny thing was that if we went 7-3,
there was a good chance we would have had enough points to make school
history. We were one game short just
like the prior year, but on a bright note, the Berea Braves who crushed our
playoff dreams the year before with the tomahawk chop were defeated for the
first time in our school’s history by a score of 27-20.
The season came
to an end but the memories of high school football still live on and are
replayed in my mind. That year I ended
the season with over 150 tackles and averaged over 15 per game. My stats were good enough to earn me First
Team All-Pioneer Conference and First Team All-District. College scouts from schools like Purdue,
Syracuse, Kentucky and many more came to our games to see a high school player
living out his dream on 120 yards of marked and painted grass. I left it all on the field that season and
when it was all said and done, I earned back the respect of my teammates. That was more important to me than winning
games or going to the playoffs, because wins and losses are forgotten but
relationships with good friends can last a lifetime.
There are two
things about my senior year that I will always cherish. The first was my last home game at Cloverleaf
stadium. As we walked down the hill to
the end zone for the last time, I remember standing under the goal post and
looking up at the American Flag as the national anthem was being played. I could smell the popcorn in the stands and
the faint smell of cigar smoke in the air.
It was a beautiful night under those Friday night football lights, and
there was a gentle, cool breeze.
Everything felt right in the world, and I realized at that moment how
lucky I was to live in the United States of America and to be able to play the
best sport in the world. A tear ran down
my cheek at that moment, and it was as if I knew that football would never be
this much fun again. We were just a
bunch of kids playing football on a Friday night among all our family and
friends. There were no hidden agendas
and no politics - just some good old-fashioned football.
The second memory
that I hold close to my heart is the last game of the season against the Medina
Bees. It was getting close to the end of
the game, and my head coach decided to put my younger brother in the game to
play linebacker beside me. The Viera
brothers were out on the field together, in the midst of battle. There was something special and unforgettable
about sharing the last moments of my high school football career with my
brother. He had always been a great
supporter, and now we have this memory of playing together that will last us a
lifetime.
RECRUITING CALLS, LETTERS AND VISITS
Before student athletes can play at the college
level, they are required to register with the NCAA Initial-Eligibility
Clearinghouse. This organization
partners with the NCAA to determine whether a student athlete is eligible for
collegiate athletic participation during their first year. Eligibility is determined by review of high
school transcripts, ACT or SAT scores, and any applicable information regarding
amateurism participation. This is a
crucial step during the recruiting process because if your eligibility is not
cleared, you will not be permitted to play college sports your first year. This inevitably makes it more difficult to be
recruited because you would be labeled “ineligible.”
I highly encourage student athletes to visit
the NCAA online for additional information regarding preparation for “The
College-Bound Student-Athlete,” “Transfer Guide,” and “A Career in Professional
Athletics.” Being informed and educated
about your upcoming decisions will allow for a smooth transition. These different guides list questions that
should be asked regarding choosing the right college, financial aid, and
prospective agents, if you are blessed enough to play at the professional
level.
The college
recruiting process is something that I made the most of and fully enjoyed my
senior year. I have heard stories of
parents pressuring their children to do all they can to get a full scholarship,
and in the process, they lost the thrill of the chase. I remember when I received my first
college-recruiting letter in the mail during the end of my junior year and got
a little excited.
There are many
different facets of the recruiting process.
There are informal letters and formal letters delivered in the mail from
college universities and college football recruiters. The ones to get a little excited about are
the letters that are hand written by the coaches themselves. There are visits by the recruiting coaches to
the school where the coach is not permitted to talk to you before a certain
time in the recruiting season, due to the NCAA recruiting rules and
regulations. That is when you simply
have a coach excuse you from class so you can walk down the hall in front of
the college coach and they can see if you are a good size for the position they
are interested in having you play.
I can remember
when one of the coaches from the University of Kentucky came to the school but
was not allowed to talk to me. I might
have gotten an inside tip from my head coach of the visit, so I decided to wear
my rattlesnake cowboy boots to school.
This not only gave the perception that I was taller than I actually was,
but if the recruiter enjoyed country music, he probably thought I had a little
style. Believe it or not, the recruiter
measured me with my boots on to see how tall I was, compared to the
measurements he was given. With an extra
two inches of elevation I was pushing an impressive 6’3.
After the season
was complete, there were around 28 Division I and Division I AA College
football programs recruiting me. Senior
linebackers in high school that were 6’1 and 220 lbs were a valuable commodity
to college football programs. I was
fortunate enough to have received letters from multiple schools that were
displaying interest in my abilities and even got calls from coaches on a weekly
basis right up to the national signing day of February 2, 1994.
As the year was
coming to a close, the recruiting process really started to heat up. You can get all the letters in the world from
college coaches and your phone can be ringing off the hook, but unless you get
invited to a recruiting trip by the college you are considering, it does not
mean anything. At the time, NCAA rules
allowed a recruit to visit up to three schools on recruiting trips where the
college paid for the recruit’s expenses.
Currently, a recruit can take up to five official visits.
Prior to the
start of taking my college football recruiting trips, I had the fortunate
decision of narrowing down my choices to three schools. I always knew that I wanted to explore all my
options, and I took full advantage of the situation. Out of the 28 schools, the three that I chose
to visit were Villanova University, Ohio University and the University of
Kentucky.
The three schools
that I decided to visit all offered excellent college educations and were in
three separate football conferences.
Villanova University was a Division I AA school located just outside
Philadelphia, PA. It was formerly in the
Yankee Conference, now known as the Atlantic 10 Conference. The schools Villanova played were
predominantly in the northeast. This was
my first official recruiting visit.
I remember the
excitement of getting to visit Villanova University and seeing the college
campus, as well as the athletic facilities, including the football
stadium. As my parents and I made the
eight-hour drive from Cleveland to VU, we discussed how far I had come and the
opportunities that a full scholarship would offer. The idea of going to a college on a full
scholarship potentially worth over $100,000 dollars to play a sport that I
loved seemed almost too good to be true.
Even though being
invited on an official recruiting visit to a University is a nice gesture, it
unfortunately does not mean a thing unless the head coach offers you a verbal
full scholarship prior to the official signing date on February 2nd. This is important to know for young college
recruits because it factors into the schools that you choose to visit. You have to ask yourself, “Has this college
been serious in the recruiting process with me, and is there a good chance they
are going to offer me a full scholarship?”
If the answer is “no,” consider the other schools on the table. The last thing you want to do is waste a
recruiting trip just to tour a college that you like.
As I went on my
first visit, I was paired with one of the starting offensive lineman for the
Villanova Wildcats, who also happened to be Spanish. He was assigned to take me around the campus
and show me a good time. Something
important to note is that as you go on your visits, it is comparable to having
your first date with a very attractive woman that you really like. If the woman feels the same way about you,
both sides are going to try their best to be polite and considerate. Neither person is going to show any of their
flaws, and cautious, carefully selected words are used so as not to offend or
scare away the person each one is trying to impress. In other words, you try to paint the
prettiest picture imaginable for the other person to take in and enjoy. A college recruiting trip has all these
qualities and characteristics. The
difference is that instead of being paired with an attractive female, there is
a college football player telling you why this is the college for you. They want you to enjoy the experience as much
as possible so when they say those magic words, “We want you to play for us,
and we are offering you a full scholarship”, you will jump at the
opportunity.
Based on NCAA
recruiting rules and regulations at the time I was being recruited, players
were each given $40 to spend on their recruit for the weekend. After touring the college and meeting with
the coaches on the first day, that night we went out to a club to explore the
nightlife. Little did they know that I
did not drink, especially since the legal drinking age is 21 and I was only 17
years old. Now I know that some of you
are thinking, “Why in the world didn’t you drink, especially when they were
paying for it?” For me, the answer is
quite simple. I think one of the biggest
misconceptions about college and life in general is that you can only have a
good time if you are drinking alcohol.
Everyone has the freedom to make decisions for themselves. The reason that I did not drink was because I
could not think how it would make me a better football player. Why would I invest so much time and energy
toward advancing and enhancing my linebacker abilities and then do something
that would hinder my performance and ultimately my potential? It just did not make sense.
Before I knew it,
the trip to VU came to a close, and the next thing I knew I was sitting in the
head coach’s office with the assistant head coach. Just as I had imagined in my dreams, I heard
the head coach say those magic words that so many college football recruits are
waiting to hear before signing day. The
head coach said I had the talent to play linebacker at VU, and they were
willing to offer me a full scholarship, if I would give them a verbal
commitment. This is where you walk a
real fine line of making sure that the recruiting trips you have set up are
going to be offering the same results.
There is a small window of opportunity to play college football on a
full scholarship, and you have to make sure the decisions you make are the
right ones before that window closes on February 2nd.
That day I had to
decline for the moment their scholarship offer until I took my visits to Ohio
University and the University of Kentucky.
It was a big risk to take, especially because they were recruiting other
linebackers, who were also talented and might make early verbal
commitments. I had a good feeling that
the other two schools would also offer scholarships due to my conversations
with the coaches recruiting me, but a feeling is not equal to a guarantee.
The next visit
was to Ohio University, a Division I School that plays in the Mid-American
Football Conference commonly referred to as the MAC. This school also offered an excellent
education and had great facilities, but unlike VU, they played big name schools
like Syracuse, Purdue and Michigan in their non-conference games. This offered the opportunity to be seen on
national television, which is always something nice for family members to watch
on a Saturday afternoon. They were also
only a four-hour drive from Cleveland, while it was an eight-hour drive to VU.
The outcome of
the trip was the same with a scholarship offer from the head coach. However, I had to decline for the moment,
awaiting my final visit to the University of Kentucky. While VU waited patiently to hear from me
after my visit to UK, Ohio University was not as patient, and before my last
visit, called to say another linebacker they were interested in had
committed. They no longer needed to fill
a linebacker position. Just like that,
they were marked off my list of potential places to go. I was left with one last college to visit and
if my gut feeling of being offered another scholarship did not pan out, I would
have VU on the back burner. Of course,
VU was not a guarantee because they could also end up filling their linebacker
need like Ohio University. You can see
how this whole recruiting process can bring stress and drama into your
life. It is like living in a college
recruiting soap opera.
CATCHING WILDCAT FEVER
The last visit finally came, and it was
definitely the most anticipated recruiting trip. I must admit that I never knew that the
University of Kentucky had a football team prior to their recruiting me, but
they seemed to have everything I was looking for in a college. The thing that probably stuck out the most
was the college recruiter by the name of Coach Ray Dorr. From day one of the recruiting process, Coach
Dorr could not have done a better job of getting me to think about the
possibility of playing football at UK.
It seemed like I was getting a letter from UK just about every week in
the mail and once the recruiters had the green light to call players at their
home, I talked to Coach Dorr on several different occasions. He upheld such a courteous and professional
relationship; you would want him to remain your friend even if UK was not a
good fit.
An opportunity to
play at UK was something that I had been hoping would come true ever since the
recruiting process first started. They
are in arguably one of the toughest football conferences in the country. The Southeastern Conference or SEC has all
the big name schools that are broadcast nationally on television. Schools like Tennessee, Auburn, Alabama,
Florida, LSU and Georgia had top rate caliber players destined for the NFL like
Peyton Manning, Stephen Davis, Shaun Alexander, Danny Wuerffel, Jerome Kearse,
Kevin Faulk and Hines Ward. The
opportunity to play against these players was something that I was not going to
pass up if given the opportunity. You
only get one go around to play college football, and I wanted it to be with the
best this country had to offer!
To sweeten the
pot even more, UK went to the Peach Bowl in 1993 and nearly defeated the
Clemson Tigers in a nail-biter 13-14.
The opportunity to be able to play in bowl games on national television
was a nice incentive. In addition, the
fact that UK’s senior middle linebacker, Marty Moore, was drafted by the New
England Patriots in the 1994 NFL Draft meant that it could possibly offer the
opportunity to play at the next level after college. Even though he was the last pick in the draft
which is called “Mr. Irrelevant” and a parade was thrown for him at Disney
World for this honor, he was still drafted just like all the players before him
and now wears a Super Bowl ring.
As you can
probably tell by now, choosing Kentucky was a slam-dunk decision. During my recruiting trip, it was easy to
tell that their athletic facilities were by far the best in the country. They did not have the biggest stadium, which
was approximately 60,000 capacity at the time (compared to stadiums like
Tennessee and Michigan that are over 100,000 in capacity). Nevertheless, if you combine their stadium
with the indoor facility that is 132,000 square feet and the Nutter Center that
is over 48,000 square feet in size (consisting of a 20,000 square feet weight
room, indoor glass racquetball courts and an incredible locker room with a
sauna, jacuzzi and a powerade dispenser), it was an unbeatable
combination. It was said that the
football team spent over $100,000 in supplements a year for the football
players. This was not difficult to
believe after seeing the supply room that had shelves bulging with protein
powder, creatine, vitamins, protein bars and every imaginable protein shake or
drink on the market. The fact that they
had a players lounge with a pool table and a big screen television made this
facility feel more like a vacation getaway.
The recruiting
trip to UK could not have gone better.
The way to an athlete’s heart is through his stomach and the steak and
crab legs that were served during the recruiting trip made UK hard to forget. It was easy to be impressed with the facilities
but more importantly, their head coach, Bill Curry, was someone who took pride
in having his players make the most of their college education. Coach Curry played center in the NFL with the
Baltimore Colts and Green Bay Packers with quarterback legends, Johnny Unitas
and Bart Star. He saw what could happen
to a player’s career in a single play and knew the true value of a good college
education. This is the type of coach
that you want to play for in college.
The weekend
recruiting trip encompassed all the college recruits for the same weekend
instead of splitting up the weekends.
This meant that if you were offered a scholarship and you felt like this
was the place for you, there was not much time to waste in making a decision,
especially since the trip was in January, and signing day was right around the
corner, on February 2nd. When it was my
turn to talk to Coach Curry after the weekend festivities, it felt as if I answered
his question almost before he could ask it.
He wanted me to play middle linebacker at the University of Kentucky and
was offering me a full scholarship. As I
committed right then and there, it was as if an incredible weight had been
lifted off of my shoulders. My college
was finally chosen after the anticipated recruiting process. It was like hitting the lottery for over
$100,000 dollars, because the next four to five years would not cost a single
cent. Little did I know what it would do
to my body physically.
As I signed my
letter of intent on February 2, 1994, the dream of a young child had been
fulfilled. Now it was time to set my
sights even higher. The prospect of
studying medicine to become a doctor and the possibility of playing in the NFL
danced in my head. The future was slowly
unfolding before my eyes but time would only tell what would transpire. Besides, I still had to make it past my first
semester at UK.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1) Have you ever experienced a
significant injury in the sport you played? How did your teammates react?
2) Do you believe
encouraging your teammates fuels their spirit and motivates them to reach
higher and farther?
3) Have you ever
experienced a crushing defeat in the sport you played? Did you handle the
loss with dignity and class or with a bad attitude?
4) If you attended a
college sports training camp, did you have a positive or negative experience?
Why?
5) Did your team have the
opportunity to beat your opponent in a particular sport for the 1st time in
school history? If so, how did it make you feel?
6) Do you consider
yourself informed and educated about transitioning from high school to
college? Is this upcoming decision causing stress in your life? How
can meditating and applying Philippians 4:6-7 to your life release this stress?
7) If you have ever taken a
college recruiting trip or visit, do you have an experience to share that made
you feel uncomfortable similar to being offered alcohol? How did you
handle the situation?
8) What factors played or will play into choosing the
college you attend? Are you more interested in the college atmosphere or
the quality of education being offered?
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