Indiana University Athletics
Redshirt Freshmen Are Ready For Action
3/25/2006 12:00:00 AM | Football
March 25, 2006
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Ask college football coaches why they choose to redshirt a freshman football player, and you will get a variety of answers. There may be an abundance of depth at that particular position, and the coach may want to preserve a student-athlete's year of eligibility. Some student-athletes are redshirted in order to spend time in the weight room to add size, speed and strength. Thirdly, some coaches choose to redshirt student-athletes so that they can more effectively adjust to academic, athletic and social life in their first year of college.
Indiana head coach Terry Hoeppner redshirted 19 scholarship freshmen last fall, and Hoeppner is counting on many of these young players to play a major role for the Hoosiers in 2006. And while these young players appreciate their smooth transition to IU, they are also ready for action.
The redshirt freshmen spent a majority of their first season in the weight room with Director of Athlete Performance Mark Wateska and on the scout team practice field. The coaches may have helped prepare them for the physical adjustments to college football, redshirt freshman wide receiver Andrew Means, also an outfielder on the IU baseball team, said that physical preparation is only part of the equation.
"Both sports require you have to be mentally strong," Means said. "You have to know everything that you are doing, because if you are not mentally strong, the coaches will not hesitate to take you out right away."
Thus, the younger players quickly learn to lean on older teammates.
"All the freshmen know each other and play off each other. It's like playing with family," redshirt freshman defensive tackle Emile Bass said. "The older guys are like big brothers. They realize that we're still getting experience at the college level."
Redshirt freshman running back Bryan Payton had an advantage over his classmates. The Fort Wayne native spent a year at Fork Union (Va.) Military Academy before enrolling at IU last fall. His time at Fork Union helped in his transition both on the football field and away from home.
"I tell the guys that nothing comes easy and nothing will be given to you," Payton said. "We had 30 guys from Fork Union go on to play Division I-A football. It was just like a game every day in practice."
Payton also reminds his classmates that preparation goes beyond the practice field.
"You have more free time in the spring than you do during the season," Payton said. "That means academics and the off the field activities - watching film, the detail stuff that helps players be great instead of good. We need to take advantage of it and do it ourselves."
Hoeppner cites Payton as one of the many sources of excitement for Indiana football.
"Bryan has great potential. The things that he showed us in drills and on scout team are translating well this spring," Hoeppner said. "Of course, we haven't really played yet, haven't tackled. But we took a big step towards that today (March 25, IU's first workout in pads this spring.) Bryan gives us quality depth, at least, at running back. We're really, really happy with Bryan Payton and where he is. Hopefully, we can say that at the end of the spring."
