The Next Step… From High School To College (08/18/15)

(Editor’s note: Many of our viewers have met valued Clarion Sports Zone team member Matt Buchanan. Matt spent last football season spotting for the varsity football articles and doing some interviews, etc and will be working with us again. Matt has a strong desire to move into full-time sports journalism. A former student athlete at Keystone, Matt interviewed another former Keystone athlete Bobby Telesz, who went on to play college football, about off season preparation, practice tips, the recruiting process and some of what it is like to play college football. Matt shares the interview, which has valuable insights, that will be of help to anyone who is going or will be going through the recruiting process.

Editor’s note #2: Can anyone who was at the Clarion – Keystone game in the snow at Knox, in 2001, forget the great show put on with Kyle Cathcart running for mega-yardage behind his superb line against the Panthers and Keystone’s Quarterback Adam Black teaming with Telesz some of the nicest hook-ups you’ll want to see? Great game of contrasting offenses. Tons of yardage, tons of scoring by both teams.)

Enjoy!!!!

(Matt Buchanan)

As the calendar rolls into August, many people get caught up in going back to school. However, for some this means “two-a-days”, running, lifting and yes, even more running. Although for a handful of young men they know that in the spring, college and even college ball is in their future. So for you youngsters, I sat down with a former high school athlete who got the chance to play at the next level, hopefully it will help you in your decisions. This is what he had to say:

MB: You’re heading into your senior year, you know that camp and two-a -days are coming, what did you do to prepare yourself. Did you run, or lift, maybe even lay around and take it easy?

BT: A lot of the time a school will have a workout or a schedule to follow, so you definitely want to follow those, and even what your coaches want you to do. On top of that, its important to look at conditioning and plyometrics, jogging and sprinting. Go to the internet to stack.com, they have a lot of programs to follow. However, the more effort you put in, the more confident you’re going to be on the field. When you’re more confident on the field, it shows up in the stat box, so it’s important to put in the work so you know your gonna excel when you’re out on the field.

MB: Sounds like a lot of running is what I just heard.

BT: A lot of running and plyo, especially jumping, a lot of quick feet exercises (speed ladders), if you get your conditioning in already, you can focus on the more important things rather than getting into shape, the first two or three weeks of the season. Also a good diet is important with balanced meals. When your working that hard, your body is burning fat and calories already, so you don’t have to completely cut out pizza and wings.

MB: When you get into camp and the season starts, since you were a receiver, did you try to focus on speed, or were you worried about your hands because speed is hard to replace?

BT: Speed is very important and there are exercises to become faster, ultimately being able to catch the ball is important. Looking at the ball and keeping your eye on the ball. You see people all the time in college and pros not doing that, causing a lot of drops since they were worried about turning up the field. So I worked on hands, catching techniques, and skills, so I felt confident that I would be able to catch anything that was thrown my way. As soon as it touched my hands, I knew it was mine.

The most important thing I thought for a receiver, was running good routes, being where the QB thought I needed to be. You don’t have to be the fastest guy out there, you need to run good routes and catch the ball. To make it more simplified, you need to make the DB think your going somewhere your not. So set them up by coming out of your breaks quick, going into things at different speeds. Trying to sell them at hit sticking and going the opposite way.

The objective is to make them think your going somewhere you’re not. You want to get the DB to open up their hips and go the wrong way. High School is a lot of fun, you make a lot of memories with team mates and coaches… so have fun. Just don’t get discouraged if you don’t have the elite speed, because of your fundamentals (remember to keep working and it will come).

MB: When it comes to recruiting, everyone sees the signing day coverage, however, not all the kids get the same level of attention. So with that said, how do you control the hype that comes from your choices. Whether you are looking at Clarion University, Lycoming, or even Penn State?

BT: For me it was a little different, since I was mainly recruited by D-3 schools and a few D-2, but you need to keep a level head and remember that the process is just a process.

Football is a lot of fun and it’s very important, its also a great learning experience. Ultimately, you are going to college, so when you’re getting recruited, you have to look at everything. Talk to the coaches, but take a look at the school itself;  “Am I going to benefit from this? Will the education stack up after football and even out of school.” It’s not just all football, you have to take it all in, for me I knew I wasn’t going pro. Therefore I needed a career after college, so I focused a lot on academics, not just the pigskin.:

MB: When your recruiting started, who do you let into your circle for advice? Parents, coaches, or even friends?

BT: The coaches, my parents, and myself. I didn’t have too many friends involved. Coaches are the people on the front line who are fighting for you. They make calls, receive calls, and send videos out for you. They give you a good handle on where you project out, what schools and divisions would make a good fit. So coaches and parents are the big influences.

MB: At what point do you realize that your dream school just might not be the right fit for you?

BT: Probably my sophomore year. You see all these recruiting sites with junior commitments, you need to keep your potential in mind, try to keep it real.

Think.. where do I fit in, not only with football, but the school environment and academics. Is this a place I would benefit from off the field as well. The recruiting process is intense and I was a D-3. Constant phone calls and emails, but when this starts before you call them back, write down a list of questions you have and make sure to go over them when you talk. It’s a really cool process in itself. You will meet a lot of nice people and coaches. Some of them will come to your football and even basketball games until you get to know them personally, it gets very exciting. Being recruited is also a difficult process.

MB: After the dust settles down and you have three schools or so left, how do you pick the one? (This school because?)

BT: I liked Lycoming, because we had camp at their school and I already had a rapport with them. I liked the campus, there was a lot to do down there, on top of it I liked the area and it felt like a good fit at that time.

MB: Now you’re on campus. What’s the first impression when it becomes official?

BT: It’s eye opening for sure, since it’s a brand new experience. You’re not in high school any more so, with a brand new playbook and scheme, even the terminology is much more complex. The amount of time you spend learning at camp is much greater. You have a meeting, followed by a practice, then go to lunch, watch a video on your practice, then, you have another meeting, followed by a practice, then a meeting, eat dinner and finish up with a meeting. It is just so much different than what you’re used to. It’s actually a lot of fun. As a freshman it is easy to get home sick, so staying busy helps with that.

MB: When you get to school, everyone is bigger and faster, playing time is hard to come by. Are special teams really a big deal for players?

BT: Special teams are important for a freshman. Everyone is bigger and faster. Take the hardest hit you had in high school and that’s every hit in college. As a freshman, you’re fighting for all the snaps you can get. You’re trying to impress.

Make sure you study the playbook as much as you can so you learn and understand it faster. While the others are catching up, you already know what you’re doing. This gives you the advantage because you know your assignment and the routes.

Be the first to show up, the last to leave, put the extra effort in. Hustle, do the small things, and if it means special teams then that’s what you got to do. That’s a good way to get a coach’s attention,  which might give you more playing time. You have to start somewhere and its a natural place to showcase your abilities. It’s hard to go into a school and start right out of the gate so take special teams and run with the opportunity.

MB: When you’re a freshman, playing time is down, you get homesick. What can you do to keep your spirits up?

BT: Football is a great tool for being homesick. You’re around a group of guys all the time so you make friends easily, also you’re so busy between all the meetings, workouts, and practices, that you don’t have time to think about it. Take the opportunity, make friends with teammates and enjoy the experience.

MB: Let’s go back to your junior/ senior year. What would you change, so you can avoid injury or even get more playing time?

BT: If I could do things differently… High school came naturally, I worked hard and I excelled, but I could have taken it to the next level. Worked harder, trained harder, put in more time. I was working summer jobs, which is important to help learn a work ethic, but I feel like I could have put in more effort. When you play football, you want to leave it all on the field so you don’t have any regrets. Do the things that are a struggle, that are difficult. Make yourself stand out and be better.

If given the chance, the weight room is where I would work harder (Plyo), to do the things that are not fun. Work on specific training and rehab the areas better to avoid injuries in the future. As a freshman on the college team, they had study halls that were mandatory, the coaches would work with you and get you tutors to keep your grades up. Time management skills are a must. Every school is different, but stick it out, work hard and you’ll see the results.

MB: I hope this article was as much fun for you to read as it was for myself to take on. Good luck to all you graduates I hope this helps you in your future endeavors and thank you.

(Thanks to Matt and Bobby for this informative article.)