NU football players explain differences between high school, college

By Jason Leonard
Norwich Guidon Staff Writer

How is College football different from high school? This is just one of the questions players on the Norwich football teams were asked.

"When I was younger I used to play in the back yards with other kids that were going to play, so I said what the hell and went out for it," said Joe Terpstra, a senior mechanical engineering major from Connecticut.

"Ever since I was little I watched football with my dad. I can't remember exactly when, but my whole life I have wanted to play football," said Rosa Mom, a senior nursing major from Revere Mass.

"College football takes up a lot more time than high school ball ever did," said Carlos Espinol, a junior from Peabody, Mass. "The college football mentality is, you beat the guy in front of you, or you're going to be thrown on the bench. It's kind of like a job."

"You have to follow the program exactly. There's no cutting corners, and everyone is going just as fast, or faster, than you, and that's a big difference from high school," said Paul May, a senior communications major from Waltham, Mass.

"The biggest difference is that high school is the purest time that you'll ever play football in your life," Espinol said. "In high school I was The Man! Everyone in the community knew who the hell I was, and now I feel like just another spoke on the wheel, which isn't bad, but, man, high school was awesome," said CJ Daley, a junior communications major from California.

"In college, athletic ability can only get you so far," Mom said. "You have to prepare a lot more by watching film, and you have to know your opponent. Every single time you run a play you have to execute it perfectly, or else you won't play at the college level," said Josh Creighton, a junior communications major from Scituate, Mass.

"Physically, college is more demanding," May said.

"Obviously the biggest difference about college is the size of everyone. I was a big player in high school, but in college everyone is my size and bigger," Creighton said.

"In college, the game is a lot quicker; players are bigger, stronger and faster," Daley said.

"When I go back and watch my old high school films, the game seems like it's in slow motion," Terpstra said.

Daley, a wide receiver, was surprised by the size of the college players. "I wasn't prepared for how strong everyone was." Daley said. "I was 150 lbs soaking wet when I came here, and I was going up against defensive backs that were 200 lbs."

"I had to work out in the gym really hard my freshman year, and I gained 20 lbs going into my sophomore year, which allowed me to play," Mom said.

The Norwich football team has a lifting program which every player has to follow. "In college, the workout regimen is very strenuous. In high school, there really wasn't a regimen at all," Espinol said.

"I remember coming in my freshman year I hadn't really lifted a lot, and that's something which I wish I had done. In the last two years, I have been pretty dedicated to a lifting regimen, which every football player in college has to do, really," Creighton said.

"The coaching is a lot different. In high school, they didn't really pay much attention to some positions, but in college they really get on your butt. You have to do your jog; if you're not doing it right, you'll get demoted, and you won't play at all," Espinol said.

Football is often considered a good reason for kids to go to college. "I decided I wanted [to] play college football about the same time I decided I was going to college. I knew that if I was going to college, I needed something to keep me focused, or I knew that I would be off in a drunken slumber, somewhere," Terpstra said.

Daley said football was an important factor that made him go to college.

"One of my main reasons for playing college football was it got me into college, basically. If it wasn't for football, I know I wouldn't have been a student in college," Daley said.

Creighton agreed. "I feel so fortunate, because there are so many kids who don't have the opportunities that me and all my teammates have had," Creighton said. "College football is just such a great experience, and it's just awesome."

Back to Guidon index