Have you ever thought of not being eligible to play football? Wouldn’t you agree this would be a sad day?  To have all the athletic talent to play at the next level, but not have what is most important…the academic profile to live your dream. By being a great athlete, it gives you more reason to want to excel in the classroom…to live that dream…to allow it to become a reality.  Just because you are a great athlete doesn’t mean you don’t have to pay attention in the classroom.  This is more of a reason.  Stand out for the right reasons.  You are a student-athlete.  You will always be a student first and an athlete second.  Don’t confuse the two.  There are many great athletes that never had the opportunity to play college football because they neglected what is most important…their academics.  Don’t let this be you!

You cannot wait until your junior or senior year to get serious about your grades.  You must be serious the day you enter 9th grade…actually sooner.  Be disciplined and establish good study habits.  It’s too hard to play catch up your junior and senior year.  Your high school “academic clock” starts as soon as you begin 9th grade and ends on your graduation date.  Don’t procrastinate!  You don’t want to be that older person saying, “I wish I would’ve done better in school.”  Give your absolute best effort in the classroom and on the football field…NOW!!!  Please realize this is not a dress rehearsal.

The better your core GPA and SAT/ACT, the greater your opportunity to be recruited.  Remember, you are not only meeting the NCAA/NAIA requirements, you must also meet the academic requirements of the college admissions office.  There are many great athletes that play your position.  If all things are equal (talent, height, weight, speed), the separating factor will be your academics and your attitude.  Make your opportunity because of being disciplined in your academics and in your attitude.  I cannot stress this enough.  A true leader will give great effort inside and outside the classroom.    Be that LEADER!!!  I KNOW you will!!!

By the time you finish reading this first sentence, you played one down on the football field (no kidding).  What?  From Snap to Whistle, each play takes an average of 5 seconds.  It doesn’t sound like much, but when you play 60 downs at full speed, you will feel a lot different after the game.  You must be in peak condition to give your absolute best.  On each down, can you give everything you’ve got for 5 seconds?

When playing 60 downs in a game, your actual playing time is only 5 minutes for one game.  (Example:  60 downs x 5 seconds = 300 seconds.  300 seconds divided 60 seconds = 5 minutes).   In a 12 game season, your actual playing time is 1 hour and in a 4 year career, your actual playing time is 4 hours. Make your hard work and effort pay off.  No regrets!

When your game, season, and career are chiseled into seconds, you soon realize the importance of managing your training and conditioning.  Everything you do to prepare…counts!  It comes down to seconds…as every play adds up to your career.  Your daily habits and choices on the football field and in the classroom have a compound effect.  These habits and choices made you who you are today…and will make you who you are tomorrow.  Be the leader your team needs.  Make every second count…from Snap to Whistle!

Before you visit the campus of colleges that are recruiting you, it’s important to have a plan.  Human nature leads us to make decisions on emotion rather than logic.  Fine-tuning what’s most important to you ahead of time will help you balance the inevitable emotional aspect that comes from being on campus with the logical goals you have for this big decision.

When I was recruited, I found it helpful to make a list of things I was looking for in my college experience.  Some related to the environment and feel of the campus – it’s location, size, climate, academic offerings – while others were specific to the opportunity at each – level of play, opportunity to play, coaching staff, depth at your position, etc.

Some schools will immediately stand out from others – but what will you do when two or more schools feel like an equally good fit?  Here, you’ll need a memory tool to narrow down your selection.   This will also help to match emotion and logic so that you pick a winner!

I found it helpful to lay out my “big rocks” on a grid.   On the left side, I listed separately each item most important in making my decision.   Above this, I listed the college name I visited.  After each visit, I checked off each item that college met from my wish list.  If the college did not meet a need, that box was left blank.  When my visits were completed, I tallied up the check marks each college received.   The college with the most checks will be the one(s) to research and reflect upon to make your decision.  You might have some items that you’ll choose to give more weight to on your grid.  The grid allowed me to prioritize my selections.  You might wish to further your reflections by journaling after each visit, to capture what about each campus “spoke” most to you.  This will come in handy later as you weigh your selections against one another.

There’s one important point that should not be ignored as you evaluate each campus.  With any luck, you will never have to know the answer.  Ask yourself – if I were to get hurt…would I like this college enough to see me through graduation?  The check marks on the grid will guide you to help answer this question, but you will need to filter each university against this scenario.  It happened to me.  Fortunately, I loved my choice with or without my athletic aspirations.   Answer these tough questions, and you’ll be well on your way to making the right decision for your future.

One final thing…I believe it is important to have a list of questions to ask coaches, potential teammates, and professors or admissions counselors you meet.  Best of luck on your journey!  If there are other questions I can help you with in this process, feel free to contact me.

1. Gives his BEST in the Classroom to make Excellent Grades
2. Positive Attitude
3. Believes in himself
4. Confidence in his ability
5. Committed
6. Great Character
7. Burning Desire to Succeed
8. Determined
9. Dependable
10. ALWAYS Great Effort
11. Responsible
12. Tough Minded
13. Prepared
14. NEVER Gives Up
15. Fierce Competitor
16. Coachable
17. Does what it takes to succeed
18. Leads by example
19. Leader on and off the field
20. Does what is Right
21. Willing to Learn
22. ALWAYS trying to Improve
23. ALWAYS Challenges himself
24. Expects the BEST from himself and his teammates  (Leads by example)
25. TEAM player

What is your name?

~ Patrick O’Brien

What is your Height/Weight?

~6’4”/ 231lbs

What is your position?

~Quarterback

Where do you play college football?

~Catawba College 

Where are you from?

~Mooresville, North Carolina

Who is your role model, and why?

~My mentor/coach, JD Haglan. He played QB at Clemson but he is my role model because of how he attacks each day. He is a cancer survivor and the most humble person I have ever met.

Who was your favorite teacher?

~My 8th-grade math teacher Mr. Piper. He was also my 8th-grade Basketball coach.

Did you play any other sports growing up?

~Baseball, Basketball, and Golf

Who was the toughest player you ever faced?

~Osband Thompson. Linebacker from Tuskegee 

Who is the most underrated player on your team?

~Kenyatta Greene and Trey Evans. Both are ‘ballers’ who can play in the NFL.

What is the one song that would fire you up before the biggest game of your life?

~Many Men by 50 cent

If you could compare your play to one player in the NFL who would it be and why?

~Tom Brady. I think we share a lot of the same intangibles. Physically, I like to get the ball out quickly to my playmakers to set up the deep ball over top like Tom. Mentally, I play with a competitive edge who holds his teammates accountable while caring for them and their best interests, also like Tom.

What was the biggest obstacle in your life you had to overcome, and how did you overcome it?

~ After transferring back to UNC Pembroke from UNC Charlotte, I won the starting position during the spring of 2014…I later received a phone call right before summer camp explaining that, due to transfer rules, I had to sit for a season. It was the toughest thing I have had to deal with as I had waited so long for my time to shine and on top of that, watching my guys play without me killed me. Although, in the long run, it ended up being a blessing in disguise.

Do you have any pre-game rituals?

~ Not really a ritual but before each game, I say a prayer and talk to my grandparents and Uncle up in heaven. We used to talk about college and pro football all the time when I was younger so before each game, we chat it up…gives me chills every time.

What was the most memorable play of your collegiate career?

~First round of playoffs in 2016, tied up with Valdosta State with a minute or two left, my receiver and I connected on a 40 yarder for 6. It sealed the win and we moved on to face North Alabama in round 2.

What is the coolest thing you ever did off the field for someone else?

~ One day during the summer my freshman year I was driving down the road when I saw this older woman, about 50-60 years old, carrying her groceries down the street in the 90-degree heat. As I drove by her I thought how miserable she must be so I turned around and gave her a ride to her house.

Who was your favorite NFL team growing up?

~ New York Jets

If you could have dinner with three people dead or alive, who would you choose?

~Michael Jordan, Chris Paul, my Uncle Michael.

Hall of Fame inductee Jimbo Covert insists athletes need to do more than excel on the field — they need to be role models.

“It’s up to them to conduct themselves in a professional manner
and in a way that if their own kids were looking at them, their
kids would be proud,” Covert said at the College Football Hall of
Fame’s enshrinement breakfast on Friday.

Covert, a star tackle at Pittsburgh, will be enshrined into the
hall Saturday along with 21 others, including Notre Dame’s Joe
Theismann, Oklahoma State’s Barry Sanders and Darrell Green, who
played at Texas A&I, now known as Texas A&M-Kingsville.

The inductees will take part in a youth football clinic and a
flag football game before attending the enshrinement dinner
Saturday night.

Covert played on some of Pitt’s best teams from 1978-82, helping
to protect Dan Marino as part of an offensive line that included
Russ Grimm and Mark May, who also became outstanding NFL linemen.

Covert, who later played for the Chicago Bears, said he is
disappointed some athletes won’t accept the responsibility that
comes with being a public figure.

“Someone may say they’re not a role model, but a kid sitting
out in Wichita doesn’t see it that way,” he said. “He sees him as
an idol, someone he wants to look up to him and be like. It’s
unfortunate when people don’t take that seriously.”

Covert said he was fortunate to have outstanding role models
throughout his life, starting with his parents. He said one of the
most influential people for him was a neighborhood boy named J.D.
Haglan, who went to Clemson on a football scholarship. Covert said
he saw how hard Haglan worked to become a standout.

“When other guys were going in after practice, he would stay
out and work out just a little bit longer, throw a couple more
footballs, do a couple more drills. He did the little things that
he needed to do to be a better football player,” Covert said.
“That’s why he was much better than anybody else.”

When Covert got to Pittsburgh, defensive end Hugh Green became a
role model because of how hard he worked and because of the
leadership he provided.

“He had No. 99 and I wanted to get No. 98. I wanted to be just
like him,” Covert said. “The problem was, I couldn’t run as fast
as him or hit as hard as him. I just wanted to be like him.”

When Covert got to the Chicago Bears, he found another role
model in Walter Payton.

“The things he did both on and off the football field really
inspired me to try to do some of the same things, from a leadership
standpoint and from conducting yourself as a true professional.
That’s who Walter Payton was,” he said.

One of the most gratifying things for Covert is when people say
he was a role model for them.

“I just thank God that I didn’t do anything to embarrass myself
or make people think I wasn’t a good role model,” he said.

The list of inductees includes 10 living former Bulldogs and two who will be honored posthumously.

Here’s the list of honorees:

JIMBO COVERT

A 1978 graduate, Covert became famous for his exploits as both a football player and wrestler. He won a WPIAL heavyweight wrestling title, but in football, he was an all-star two-way lineman, who, as a senior, helped the Bulldogs to a 7-1-1 record.

Covert moved on to the University of Pittsburgh where he was a two-time All-American tackle. A first-round pick of the Chicago Bears (sixth overall), he was named All-Pro twice during a nine-year NFL career including 1985 when the Bears won the Super Bowl.

RICH EDDER

A 1980 graduate, Edder was an all-star quarterback and punter as a senior. After leading the WPIAL in passing, he was named first-team QB and honorable mention punter on the Midwestern Athletic Conference all-star team.

At Westminster, he was a two-year starter on teams that went 18-4. He earned honorable mention small college All-American honors as a senior and ranks 10th on the Titans’ all-time passing chart with 3,281 yards. In 1991, he was inducted into the Titans Sports Hall of Fame.

JACK FARLS

A 1954 graduate, Farls played football and basketball. As a senior split end/defensive end, he was named the WPIAL’s co-Lineman of the Year. In a win over Beaver that year, he blocked six kicks including two extra points.

He went on to Penn State where he lettered three times. As a senior in 1957, he was known as the Nittany Lions’ “Iron Man” for playing more minutes than anyone else in an era of two-way football. As a sophomore when Penn State upset Syracuse 21-20, Farls preserved the win by blocking Jim Brown’s extra point. A year later, he blocked an extra point against No. 1 ranked Ohio State to preserve a 7-6 win over the Buckeyes. He finished his college career by playing in the 1957 North-South all-star game.

J.D. HAGLAN

A 1974 graduate, Haglan was a standout quarterback who was named all-conference, All-WPIAL, Prep All-American and one of the Top 100 Backs in the Country by Kickoff Magazine as a senior. In games he started, the Bulldogs went 18-3-1.

Recruited by Notre Dame, Michigan, Louisville, Georgia Tech, South Carolina, Texas, Syracuse, Pitt, Penn State, and Ohio State, Haglan chose Clemson where he was a three-year letterman as a quarterback, wide receiver and defensive back. After graduation, Haglan got into coaching. Among his several stints was a four-year run as head coach at Catawba College (N.C.) from 1991-94.

CARL HOLSINGER

A 1973 graduate, Holsinger played guard and linebacker on Freedom’s 8-1 squad in 1972. An all-conference all-star, he then played briefly at Western Carolina University.

GUS HOLSINGER

Playing for the Bulldogs in the early 1920s, Gus Holsinger is regarded as Freedom’s first star. He was a fullback/linebacker who also kicked and punted. There are reports that he played college football at Geneva and Thiel.

JIM KARWOSKI

A 1962 graduate, Karwoski had a stellar scholastic career, winning nine letters in three sports and was named All-Beaver County twice as a lineman in football and All-WPIAL as a senior. In track and field, he set school records in both javelin and shot put and won both events at the PIAA Championships.

At West Virginia University, Karwoski continued his football and track career. He set school and Southern Conference records in the shot put. Karwoski coached baseball for 24 years at Penn State Beaver and was named to the National Junior College Athletic Association Baseball Hall of Fame in 2004.

SHAWN LEHOCKY

A 2008 graduate, Lehocky was a quarterback who went on to play at Westminster. A two-year starter, he ranks seventh on the Titans’ all-time passing chart with 3,984 career yards and ninth with 32 career touchdown passes. He was two-time honorable mention on the Presidents’ Athletic Conference all-star team, and four times made the PAC academic all-star team.

JACK LINN

A 1985 graduate, Linn died in a motorcycle accident in 2015. He was 48 years old.

After sitting out his junior season at Freedom while battling lung cancer, he returned to the football field as a senior. A two-way lineman who also averaged 38.5 yards per punt, he was named to the all-state team.

After his career as an offensive tackle at West Virginia University, Linn was drafted in the ninth round of the 1990 NFL Draft by the Detroit Lions. After spending the ’90 season on injured reserve, he played in 11 games over the next three years while on the rosters of the Indianapolis Colts, Cincinnati Bengals and Lions.

PAUL ROSE

A 1978 graduate, Rose was a running back/defensive back who won the Beaver County Times’ Traveling Trophy award as a senior in 1977 when he led the county in scoring with 83 points. He helped the Bulldogs finish regular-season play in ’77 with an unbeaten record.

KEITH SAUNDERS

A 1974 graduate, Saunders helped the Bulldogs go undefeated during the ’73 regular season. “Skeeter” was a three-year starter at running back and defensive back, earning all-conference honors at both positions. As a senior, he was named conference Defensive Player of the Year.

After high school, he played at Ohio State.

CHUCK WILLIAMS

A 1983 graduate, Williams was one of the Pennsylvania’s most highly-recruited football players when he was a senior. A tight end end/defensive, he whittled down his list of scholarship offers to four: Notre Dame, Pitt, Penn State and UCLA. Williams, who was 6-foot-6 and 220 pounds in high school, chose Pitt after an All-American high school career.

Knee injuries limited his success as a defensive tackle at Pitt and led him to bypass any attempt at an NFL career.

Williams was also a basketball standout, leading Freedom to its only appearance in the WPIAL championship game.