Indiana University Athletics
C.J. Person ‘Gaining’ on His IU Football Goals
6/27/2019 11:46:00 AM | Football
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By Pete DiPrimio
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Have we reached a time when a defensive lineman weighing 297 pounds is undersized?
At the college level in general, the Big Ten in particular, the answer is simple:
Darn straight.
Case in point – Indiana freshman C.J. Person.
He is, at 6-3 and those 297 pounds, a large man.
Then you compare him to veteran IU linemen such as Caleb Jones (360 pounds) and Juan Harris (350). In all, 15 Hoosiers weigh at least 300 pounds.
Figure by the end of the summer, Person will join them. He says one of his major goals is, "Getting up to weight."
"When I came here I was a little underweight. We're working on it. I'm headed to my weight perfectly."
Size won't equal slow. Not under the program devised by director of athletic performance David Ballou and athletic performance coach Dr. Matt Rhea.
"I'm getting a lot faster all ready," Person says. "You can feel it with the team runs. You feel your body getting more used to the workouts. I'll be OK by the time fall camp comes around."
Person comes to IU out of Montgomery, Ala. He was an all-state defensive lineman for Montgomery Catholic Preparatory School.
As a senior he totaled 100 tackles, a school-record 36 for loss, 11.5 sacks, three forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and an interception.
For his career he had 241 tackles, 15.5 sacks, 75 tackles for loss and nine forced fumbles. ESPN ranked him as the nation's No. 65 defensive tackle and the No. 33 prospect in Alabama.
Those tackles for loss, and the nine forced fumbles, are especially big given IU seeks defensive linemen who can make plays behind the line of scrimmage and generate takeaways.
Ask him what his biggest attributes are and Person says, "It will be my agility. I feel like I'm a lot quicker than a lot of my opponents I'll be going up against, especially with my size. I have quickness and power behind it. I feel that will make a difference this year."
Indiana beat out Purdue and Mississippi State, among others, for Person. In fact, after visiting Bloomington, he cancelled his visit to Purdue.
Why become a Hoosier?
"Indiana was genuine. Among all the other colleges I've been to, visited, talked to, the staff here was love. You could tell it was for real."
Person is well into his college transition, and, yes, loving it.
"It's a quick adjustment. It's something you have to be mentally ready for. It's not easy at all. The speed of everything is different. Everything is fast paced, from class to workouts to meetings. Whatever it is, everything is quick. You have to pick it up fast.
"The transition is big, but it's fun at the same time. You learn a lot about yourself these first couple of weeks. You figure out who you really are."
By Pete DiPrimio
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Have we reached a time when a defensive lineman weighing 297 pounds is undersized?
At the college level in general, the Big Ten in particular, the answer is simple:
Darn straight.
Case in point – Indiana freshman C.J. Person.
He is, at 6-3 and those 297 pounds, a large man.
Then you compare him to veteran IU linemen such as Caleb Jones (360 pounds) and Juan Harris (350). In all, 15 Hoosiers weigh at least 300 pounds.
Figure by the end of the summer, Person will join them. He says one of his major goals is, "Getting up to weight."
"When I came here I was a little underweight. We're working on it. I'm headed to my weight perfectly."
Size won't equal slow. Not under the program devised by director of athletic performance David Ballou and athletic performance coach Dr. Matt Rhea.
"I'm getting a lot faster all ready," Person says. "You can feel it with the team runs. You feel your body getting more used to the workouts. I'll be OK by the time fall camp comes around."
Person comes to IU out of Montgomery, Ala. He was an all-state defensive lineman for Montgomery Catholic Preparatory School.
As a senior he totaled 100 tackles, a school-record 36 for loss, 11.5 sacks, three forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and an interception.
For his career he had 241 tackles, 15.5 sacks, 75 tackles for loss and nine forced fumbles. ESPN ranked him as the nation's No. 65 defensive tackle and the No. 33 prospect in Alabama.
Those tackles for loss, and the nine forced fumbles, are especially big given IU seeks defensive linemen who can make plays behind the line of scrimmage and generate takeaways.
Ask him what his biggest attributes are and Person says, "It will be my agility. I feel like I'm a lot quicker than a lot of my opponents I'll be going up against, especially with my size. I have quickness and power behind it. I feel that will make a difference this year."
Indiana beat out Purdue and Mississippi State, among others, for Person. In fact, after visiting Bloomington, he cancelled his visit to Purdue.
Why become a Hoosier?
"Indiana was genuine. Among all the other colleges I've been to, visited, talked to, the staff here was love. You could tell it was for real."
Person is well into his college transition, and, yes, loving it.
"It's a quick adjustment. It's something you have to be mentally ready for. It's not easy at all. The speed of everything is different. Everything is fast paced, from class to workouts to meetings. Whatever it is, everything is quick. You have to pick it up fast.
"The transition is big, but it's fun at the same time. You learn a lot about yourself these first couple of weeks. You figure out who you really are."
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