If you spend a game warming the bench, it can be frustrating. If you spend a season warming the bench, you have become better at precisely one thing: increasing the wood temperature. Every player, including Aaron Rodgers and Michael Jordan, has sat watching their teammates play at some point in their career. No one expects you to enjoy the situation, but how you handle it can stand you in good stead with your current coach and, more importantly, keep you involved in the sport for longer.

How much is enough playing time?

The answer is different at different levels of development. For young players learning the game, the answer is simple: you need to play. If you are only getting a few minutes here and there, you should consider moving to a different team or even sport, where you can get game time and have fun. Good coaches and teams recognize the need for everyone to play and be involved, which may mean running additional teams. At an early age, it should not be about winning championships but encouragement and participation.

In middle school, when children start to make more of their own decisions about sport, the two questions I would ask are:

1. Am I having fun?
2. Am I getting better?

If the answer to both of these is, ‘yes, then you are in a good place. You are enjoying the sport and improving. This is a perfect place to be, even if you aren’t the starter. However, people can get into your mind: teachers, parents, and other adults can all add their opinions, whether helpful or informed or not.

“You should be getting more game time,” and ”I don’t know why the coach is playing X. You clearly should be starting.” Those may seem positive but can give you a sense of either entitlement or resentment. Neither are positive character traits.

Coaches sometimes make mistakes on selection. They are human beings, after all. They may be focused on winning the match this weekend rather than looking after your future career.

If you are not improving and think lack of game time is the reason, you may have to switch clubs. However, at this level, that is more difficult.

Look In The Mirror

The hardest thing to do is look in the mirror and say, ‘What can I do to get better?’ Some things are out of your control: height, muscle fiber type, your parents, and being drafted by an NFL team with a 3-time league MVP starting at quarterback ahead of you (Brett Favre). But many things are within your control, and it is best to focus on those things rather than what you can not control. Here are three of them:

• Do I work harder than any other player? (Effort is entirely within your control).
• Do I know what I need to do to improve? (I might need to ask the coach this).
• Am I a good teammate? (Being nice and supportive will encourage other players to involve you and help you get better. It will definitely be noticed that you are a good ‘locker room’ person).

I was rarely penciled in as a starter when I was competing, and I spent many fruitless hours fretting about being selected. Remember that, unless your Mom or Dad is the coach, you are not in control of team selection: the coach is. You can choose to improve and get better and give the coach no choice but to select you, or you can gripe and whine and look for someone else to blame.

Sometimes, you do have to change teams to get more playing time, but that should be a second or third resort. The first is to look to work harder and get better. The second is to be patient and bide your time. You are only one tackle or one ‘flu bug away from being called on to replace the player ahead of you.

Make sure you are ready for it. And enjoy the time with your teammates while you can.

Read More:

• 20 Tips to Help Your Athlete Get Off the Bench
• How Kids Can Tell If Their Coach Cares
• How to Develop a Successful Mindset for a Youth Athlete

Michigan pitcher Willie Weiss (20) throws against Vanderbilt in the seventh inning of Game 2 of the NCAA College World Series baseball finals in Omaha, Neb., Tuesday, June 25, 2019. (AP Photo/John Peterson)

Weiss’s Beginning

Willie Weiss is a 6-foot 3-inch right-hander. Perfect and an ideal physical body shape for a pitcher. You would think recruiters would be stalking him. However, it was not all sugar plums and rainbows. Because of his adaptive attitude, he turned doubt into perspective and transformed it into something greater.

It all started in Scappoose, Oregan. Weiss’s hometown is small with a population of about 7,200 people. However, his dream was to play a sport in college. His mom and dad knew that they would need to move and adapt to a bigger city in order for this dream to become a reality. So, they moved to Portland before Willie entered high school to get an early start.

New Start

Weiss did not start playing baseball. He learned his love of baseball through football in a weird and strange way. At Westview High School, he was the quarterback for the football team where tragedy had struck. Willie suffered a non-contact elbow injury in his first game. When he threw a pass in the second half of the game, he injured his elbow. But before he screamed in agony, he threw a touchdown pass the very next play. It was from this injury Willie adapted and changed to play baseball.

Change in Sport

Willie was inspired to play baseball from being the batboy for the 2011 Westview baseball team. When he was the batboy, Westview won the state championship. However, he would daydream that he too could pitch and win a state championship one day as well. But, his potential did not develop and arrive until his junior and senior year.

As a pitcher for Westview in his sophomore/junior year, he still did not win a state championship like he dreamed. Nor, was he seen or acknowledged by recruiters. Usually, it is at this point where doubt and uncertainty begin to enter a person’s mind and disrupt their confidence. Unsure why there was no interest in him from recruiters, Willie continued to work hard like his grandfather taught him. And he knew if he stayed determined, his moment will come.

Acclaim to Fame

The Midas Touch seem to strike Willie in his junior year. He was invited to play in a tournament called the Area Code Games. Unfortunately, they only asked him to play as a third baseman and not a pitcher. The Area Code Games are summer baseball tournaments that invite hundreds of high school prospective players to play.

He was also invited to play in The Arizona Junior Fall Classic. This event is for junior year students only to showcase their talent. The purpose of this event is to present recruiting opportunities for collegiate baseball. Willie put on a spectacular display in the Fall Classic, demonstrating the art of pitching and how to own home plate. His perfect performance brought in offers from the University of Portland and Michigan.

Senior Year

Willie’s senior year is when he sealed the deal. He improved his fastball from 87MPH to 93MPH. He continued to adapt and develop his body to pitch. And, he now realized he has a future in college baseball. Willie won the Gatorade Player of the Year award, and more importantly, accomplished his dream of winning a state championship for Westview High School.

Ranked among the top MLB Draft prospects in the Big Ten Conference, Michigan's Willie Weiss has averaged nearly 1.5 strikeouts per inning pitched as a Wolverine. Learn more about the #GoBlue righty with the nasty slider: pic.twitter.com/mVZ1YIOjgl

— Michigan Baseball (@umichbaseball) February 14, 2022

When Willie received the offer to pitch for the University of Portland, he decided that he will stay and play. And that his fate was determined. However, before he inked the contract, he received a call from the Michigan Wolverines. Time was of the essence because Portland wanted a quick response. After visiting Michigan’s campus, he realized the Wolverines mound would be his home.

Willie is still continuing to adapt himself today. He is currently learning how to throw a third pitch as well as his stamina to become a starting pitcher.

“You must be shapeless, formless, like water. When you pour water in a cup, it becomes the cup. When you pour water in a bottle, it becomes the bottle. When you pour water in a teapot, it becomes the teapot. Water can drip and it can crash. Become like water my friend.” – Bruce Lee

Life is full of experiences that help us practice the art of adaptation; to help you adjust and change for the best outcome. If you don’t see the blue sky above the clouds, you will never realize your potential.

Right now, at this moment, think about having the opportunity to be back in the exact instance where you were feeling over the edge and wanted to give up. Given the opportunity and the circumstances we are now in, what would you do to have this back?? Would you give up? Or would you fight that self-talk and push yourself a step further because you know you can do it !?

**Sparked Motivation** Mission accomplished. ;)

I brought your mind here because this scenario is important. Before COVID 19, many of us didn’t realize what it would feel like to NOT HAVE A CHOICE to be in a coach/team setting. Sure there were always injuries and other setbacks that took you away from these environments but never like this.

This is new. So, it is no surprise that you feel the way you do right now. We want you to know your feelings are valid and you’re not alone. There is a learning point and huge takeaway from all this that we want you to bring with you as we come out of this.

It’s realizing that the opportunity to be in a high-performing environment surrounded by like-minded teammates and a coach who knows how to bring out the best in you is a privilege. I want you to remember the yearning and desire you feel right now to be with your coach and teammates and never let a moment of pushing personal boundaries through the roof get away from you ever again!! It may not feel like it now, but you will come out of this a stronger person and athlete because you know how it feels to NOT have your team and your coach and you will make the most out of all the future opportunities you will get.

A team environment is critical for high performance. There is something about the energy of a group of athletes all pursuing the same goal. It is powerful. The sudden shift to solo exercise is frustrating, lonely, and more mentally and even physically straining. No matter the resilience, teammates, and coaches can take away and distract you from that intense pain during training.

Now you have to be your disciplinarian.

Remind yourself of your WHY.

WHY do you train?

Here is an epic reminder from Mike Matthews (founder of Legion Athletics) of all the things training provides us outside of being competitors. With this, we hope you round up some newfound motivation to keep doing your best with what you have and BE READY to return when the time comes.

“Most people don’t get why we do it.

Why do we pour so much time, energy, and effort into training? Why is it so important to us?

Is it narcissism, they wonder? Have we fallen in love with our reflections?

Or maybe it’s insecurity? Are we feeding a superiority complex?

Is it something darker, like self-loathing? Are we unable to accept ourselves how we are?

They’re all missing the point.

We don’t train to feel vainglorious, paper over shortcomings, or punish ourselves.

We train because it gives us more than a better body. It gives us a better life.

It builds more than muscle. It builds character.

It teaches us how to stop BSing ourselves.

It teaches us how to commit to daunting goals.

It teaches us how to create purpose and meaning.

It teaches us how to take action instead of making excuses and finding reasons to fail.

It teaches us how to stop playing the victim and take responsibility.

It teaches us how to work hard instead of chasing magic bullets and quick fixes.

It teaches us how to push through pain and adversity.

It teaches us how to choose long-term satisfaction over immediate gratification.

At the bottom, it teaches us a powerful lesson:

If you have the power to change your body, you have the power to change your life.

That’s why we train.

We train because fitness is one of those special things in life that you can’t buy, steal, or fake. There aren’t any rewards for complaining or failing, and fitness doesn’t care about your opinions or feelings.

You must give something to get something. You can’t slide by on BS. It’s called “working out” for a good reason. You either do the work and transform your body, or you don’t.

This is a metaphor for something bigger.

No matter what you’re facing in life, you have two choices: you can put in the work or get put in your place.

And so fitness is nothing if not a tribute to the primacy of effort; a reminder that unless we’re willing to work for “secrets” and “shortcuts,” they’ll never work.

If you find this discouraging, consider this: Groping for shortcuts is discouraging. Stumbling around in the dark, anxiously turning over rocks in search of arcana is discouraging. Waiting for lightning to strike your bottle is discouraging.

On the other hand, “donning the yoke” can be incredibly encouraging. Yes, it’s bulky and uncomfortable, and yes, it demands toil and sweat, but it also promises a return on your efforts. You may not always get the prize you want, but you never leave empty-handed.

That’s why we train.

Let’s not forget it.

-Mike

Original article posted on RISE

RISE Athletes are the leaders in youth athlete mentorship, with world-class Professional and Olympic level athletes mentoring the next generation to create strong mindsets and healthy mentalities. Your athlete can find the support they need, at rise-athletes.com. 

“The time is always right to do what is right.”

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”

“I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear.”

“Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?”

“We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope.”

“You can kill the dreamer, but you can’t kill the dream.”

“The time is always right to do what is right.”

“Even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream.”

“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.”

“Faith is taking the first step even when you don’t see the whole staircase.”

“A genuine leader is not a searcher for consensus but a molder of consensus.”

“Intelligence plus character — that is the goal of true education.”

“Find a voice in a whisper.”

“If you can’t fly, run; if you can’t run, walk; if you can’t walk, crawl; but by all means keep moving.”

“No person has the right to rain on your dreams.”

“If I cannot do great things, I can do small things in a great way.”

“There is no gain without struggle.”

“The difference between a dreamer and a visionary is that a dreamer has his eyes closed and a visionary has his eyes open.”

“Be a bush if you can’t be a tree. If you can’t be a highway, just be a trail. If you can’t be a sun, be a star. For it isn’t by size that you win or fail. Be the best of whatever you are.”

Add your favorite in the comments below.

First, I felt there were two ways I could react to this situation: One being that I get discouraged, disappointed, frustrated, and sad. After all, my plans have just been altered, drastically. My second option was to look at it positively. I’m excited that I get to train another year. I can’t wait to continue doing what I love. It’s motivating to me to try to find ways to continue to improve through a difficult situation. Is it sad and scary that this is happening? ABSOLUTELY! But, because my “WHY” is so strong, it made it easy for me to choose the second option of staying positive and taking this one day at a time.

What is my “WHY”?

It’s hard to put it into one word or sentence. And honestly, knowing my “WHY” has always come easy to me…

My “WHY” is the fact that I love the daily process of seeing how much I can improve.

I love the hard workouts. I love the highs and lows and learning how to grow and improve through both. I love learning about myself and the sport. I simply love everything about swimming (cheesy – I know).

It’s an easy choice for me to get up and go to practice every day. My goals are what drive me daily to give my best efforts.

What is your “WHY”?

There is no better time to understand what your “WHY” is than right now. Most of us are ready to get back to work, whether that be in the pool or the gym. But, why?  What do you miss?

Yes, of course, you miss your friends and simply being around people. And having great friends on your team is so important, I’m not trying to push that to the side. But, let’s get deeper than that. What do you truly miss about your sport?

Your “WHY” is what drives you to practice on the days you’d rather hang out with your friends or take a nap. Your “WHY” is what gets you through the most challenging workouts.  Your “WHY” is what picks you back up after having a bad day/week/race/competition.

Your “WHY” is what makes it all worth it.

Here are some questions you can ask yourself to help guide you in finding your “WHY” –

What gets you excited?

What makes you feel accomplished?

Why did you start?

What do you miss now that it’s gone?

***ASSIGNMENT***

Write down your “WHY” and keep it close by. Somewhere you can see it every day! 

For added accountability, tell me you’re “WHY”!

by RISE Mentor Leah Gingrich

Original article posted on RISE

RISE Athletes are the leaders in youth athlete mentorship, with world-class Professional and Olympic level athletes mentoring the next generation to create strong mindsets and healthy mentalities. Your athlete can find the support they need, at rise-athletes.com. 

Elliott is a sprinter for the University of Washington Men’s Track team in his senior year. While his best race is the 400m hurdles, he also runs the open 400m, 800m, distance medley relay, and the 4x400m relay.

His track career is studded with records and success. He demolished the competition at the 3A Washington State meet his junior and senior year in high school, setting the record for the 300m hurdles at 37.11. He represented the USA in the 2019 Pan American Games in Costa Rica. His college career is also studded with appearances at Indoor and Outdoor National meets. And most recently, he was down in TrackTown, USA to run in the Olympics Trials.

How has he achieved such success on the track for someone who wanted to be a pro football player? In August, before he headed back to campus, I had the chance to sit down with him and ask.

STACK: So, how did you get into track?

Cass Elliott: My freshman year of high school, I wanted to play football in college. So I was planning on lifting in the spring to get stronger. But my parents said I needed to participate in an organized activity, so I chose track as a backup.

Then I had a coach say, ‘Hey do you want to try out hurdles?’ So I tried them out and progressed through the season. I ran one of the fastest first races my coach had seen, and by the end of my freshman year I was 9th in state. So I thought, ‘shoot I should probably pursue this a little more.’

STACK: How’d you make the transition from high school to college?

CE: Oh my god thats a long story, that’s seven years worth, so I’ll go a little bit into hyper-speed mode. Alright, my second year, I improved a lot through training and working hard, and my junior year I got first in state and broke the state record. This allowed me to get attention from colleges and go on visits and from there I decided on UW.

STACK: How are the hurdles more or less challenging than other races?

CE: Physically, they are way more challenging because you have to clear ten barriers. You’re running the same all-out sprint of a 400m, but then you have to jump, lose a lot of your momentum and then completely reaccelerate ten times through the whole race.

Then there’s the technical aspect, because your body mechanics are different than straight running. You have to learn a motion that is not very natural, and then learn to do that motion on both sides, so you become ambidextrous in a way.

Mentally, some people say it’s easier, some say it’s harder. For the harder side, you have to stay focused for a full 400m, because if you lose focus, and your foot comes 1/4 inch not quite as high as it’s supposed to, then you clip a hurdle and could lose a ton of momentum. So you have to be locked in on the eight or nine different things you have to be doing over every hurdle.

On the easier side, it can be nice to have those barriers in the race because they give you something to strive for and give you benchmarks. You can break up the race into a nicely-sectioned game plan.

STACK: You’ve achieved a lot of success, which stands out as the most memorable?

CE: Oh 100% my most memorable was making the US Junior Team. I remember being in Florida, it was the finals and I had not been racing very well. I knew I just had to make the top two to make the team and get to the PanAm games.

I vividly remember coming around the final corner and seeing that I was in second, just knowing I was about to make the team. Going over the 9th and 10th hurdle I had this feeling of euphoria, and was thinking, this is the best moment of my life.

STACK: You’ve raced in a lot of high-stakes meets. How do you deal with the pressure?

CE: Okay, for starters, I always like to tell myself that it’s good to have some nerves, because that helps with adrenaline. I don’t know if that’s really true, but it helps with your mindset going in to think ‘hey, this is a good thing’.

Then I think a lot of where nerves come from is expectations. If I feel I have to be this good, or hit this mark, or proceed past this point, it’s just going to cause more anxiety. But if I tell myself, ‘I know what I can do, I know what I’ve done to prepare for this, now I just have to go out and do my best’ it’s easier to get out there without feeling like you have to vomit all over the place.

One of the best ways to deal with anxiety is to be prepared, which comes from the 9-10 months you spend before your race, getting better and making sure you’re at your best when the time comes.

STACK: What does a day in the life look like for you as a college athlete?

CE: If we have weights, which is 2-3x a week, we’ll be up at 7am, lift weights for an hour or so. Then after that, we go to class from 8:30am to 1:00pm. Then you grab whatever food you can for lunch and head back to the locker room to change for practice. We practice for another two to three hours, before showering, going to the dining hall for dinner. In the evening you have time to hang with friends or do homework, and any sort of personal things you want to do.

Practices always consist of a warmup, usually for 30min, then after that it depends on the day. Usually it’s either a speed, speed endurance or endurance training. So that could be sets of 150’s, 200’s, 300’s, 400’s or a mix. Maybe some stuff over hurdles, maybe a hill run. Whatever crazy workout that our coach cooks up.

STACK: What sacrifices do you have to make as a high school athlete and a college athlete?

CE: In high school, because you only practice for two hours a day, if you want to run in college, you need to be willing to put in more time. It’s just about what level you want to get to.

In college, you’re probably going to have to make a lot more sacrifices if you want to be good. Especially because track is a sport where you’re required to be at 100% maximum potential every time you compete, which means it’s tough to indulge in partying or drinking. You’re also going to have to spend less time with friends, less time doing what you want, because you’ll be on campus maybe 10-12 hours a day.

STACK: What inspires you to give your best?

CE: There are many times when I’m on the track and I don’t feel like doing my best, and I just have to get by. But at the end of the day, what keeps me working hard and running track from the most part is something to do post-college. I have an opportunity to be able to travel and experience awesome things while competing as a professional athlete. I would like to go pro and get paid to travel the world and run fast.

STACK: Looking back, is there anything you would do different?

CE: Either start running track earlier. Or play lacrosse or hockey or a sport that more fits my body type. I’d also invest in Bitcoin. Is this track related? In terms of track, I would focus on it sooner, because I didn’t really know. If I had the training I have now back in high school, I could have gone anywhere in the country.

STACK: What advice would you give to young athletes starting in the sport?

CE: Make sure that you really love and are passionate about the sport, because it is so tough, and a lot of times it’s not super fun. But if you are really passionate about it, and want to make it to the next level, or even just improve, just focus on yourself. Set your own personal goals and don’t worry about anything else. You can always get better and you will get better. If you keep running, keep sprinting, keep practicing, you are going to see improvement.

As Cass moves into his senior year at UW, a lot of uncertainty lies in the future. Will he be able to make nationals? Will he be able to drop his time and make it pro? Will the dream that he has been chasing for so long finally be attainable?

While all these questions remain to be seen, one thing is for certain. Track has been the best backup plan he’s ever had

He’d arrived at Shiloh High School aspiring to be the face of the Generals’ offense.

He’d chosen jersey number four and pictured himself scoring touchdowns at quarterback or running back.

When the team decided to play him at linebacker, he swallowed his pride and got onboard. He even grew to love the position.

But defensive line?

That seemed a bridge too far.

“I think it was my junior year. Our D-coordinator said, ‘You know, I see you as more of a D-lineman.’ I’m still thinking, ‘I’m not a d-lineman; I play linebacker.’ We butted heads on it for a little bit,” Sample recalls with a smile.

You can’t fault him for his hesitance.

At the time, Sample weighed roughly 210 pounds.

He also desperately wanted to play big-time college football. On the surface, suddenly changing positions before his crucial junior season seemed like a surefire recruiting blunder.

But his coaches at Shiloh saw something. They were new staff who came to the program without preconceptions. While Sample wasn’t built like a true hog molly, he wasn’t exactly small, either. He also had a unique blend of speed, power, quickness, and tenacity. Some of that came from his basketball background — growing up, he often played against cousins twice his age.

Sample’s coaches believed moving him closer to the line of scrimmage would help him make a bigger impact. They also showed him the numerous defensive linemen around Georgia’s Gwinnett County — often referred to as “The SEC of High School Football” — who were receiving college offers. They believed Sample could be just as good, if not better, than most of them.

That sold him. Sample began transforming his body and honing the abilities he’d need to thrive in the trenches.

“This new coaching staff really saw the opportunity for a bunch of us to play at the next level. Workouts started ramping up. We started having 5:00 a.m., 5:30 a.m. workouts,” says Sample.

“Our D-line coach, he and his friend owned a gym about 15 minutes from the school. So I’d have morning workouts, go through my whole school day, then ride over and meet him to train for another two hours. It’d be film, weights, position drills — things like that. We kind of stuck with that grind for the rest of my high school career.”

Sample played as a hybrid defensive end/outside linebacker his junior season. He put enough flashes on tape that year against the elite competition to earn him several 1-AA offers.

Despite his hard work, Sample still weighed roughly 230 pounds heading into his senior season — a far cry from the prototypical college defensive lineman.

Shiloh also struggled to notch many wins in a fiercely competitive region.

Yet Sample focused on controlling what he could control and winning his individual battle each play. That mindset led him to rack up 50 tackles, eight tackles for loss, four sacks, and two forced fumbles as a senior.

But the big boys of college football never came knocking.

Many believed Sample was either too light or too short of having a natural position at the next level.

Tulane, however, came through with an offer. Head coach Willie Fritz would later say the program “took a chance” on Cam.

Sample jumped on the opportunity.

Though he’d trained intensely in high school, the first couple weeks of college workouts were still a jolt to his system.

“(I remember) coming in and getting shocked those first weeks of workouts seeing how tough it was going to be. The freshmen started doing some extra conditioning on our own because we didn’t want to be too far behind the older guys,” Sample says.

Sample quickly proved he played bigger than his weight. He appeared in 11 games for the Green Wave and tallied 26 tackles as a true freshman. He was also named to the AAC All-Academic Team.

Before the next season, Fritz gushed about Sample’s potential.

“(Cam’s) what we call a Tulane guy — he checks all the boxes,” Fritz told reporters. “He is only going to get bigger and better. He’s got a chance to be a great one — he really does.”

Sample got off to a scorching start to his sophomore season.

An early game took the team to Columbus to battle the fourth-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes. OSU’s offense boasted talented playmakers like J.K. Dobbins and Dwayne Haskins.

Though the outcome wasn’t in Tulane’s favor, Sample was extremely disruptive, racking up 9 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, and a sack.

“You see (Ohio State’s) one of the top two or three best teams every year growing up,” says Sample.

“I had some excellent production. Mentally, that (game) said for me, ‘I can really do this. I can play football at this level.’ I still had a long way to go, but just being able to go out there and perform like that against a team really did a lot for my confidence.”

The next week, Sample tallied two sacks and two tackles for loss in a win over Memphis.

Yet his momentum was soon derailed by a torn meniscus. The sample elected to put off surgery and play through the pain only to have a sprained ankle further compound the damage. He persevered but ultimately finished the season with middling production.

The ordeal led Sample to realize every snap was precious. He vowed to do all he could to stay healthy and play to his full potential from that point forward.

“Battling through that knee injury was really difficult for me. I knew I wasn’t 100% healthy out there, but I was fighting for my team. It changed my mindset. (I realized) these chances are minimal, and there’s no guarantee you’re going to have a healthy year,” says Sample.

“My thought process going into that next off-season was to get as healthy as I could so I could take advantage of my opportunity.”

He leaned into his preparation and studied the art of trench warfare and learned how to dissect film under the tutelage of former Tulane defensive line coach Kevin Peoples, who’s now at Indiana.

“Coach Peoples is probably the most technical guy I’ve ever come across. Seeing how he broke down film and how it could give us an edge during the game (made me) want to pick his brain and see what he saw and what he was looking for. Once I saw how much it helped, I was sold on it. I started becoming a film junkie,” says Sample.

The coaches at Tulane were impressed by Sample’s hard work and team-first attitude.

So much so that they accommodated Sample’s request to switch from jersey number 55 to the glitzier number 5.

Numbers carry meaning in every sport. In football, if you weigh over 280 pounds (which by that point, Sample did) but rock a single-digit number, you better make some plays.

The sample proved himself worthy.

He started every game for Tulane in 2019 and finished with 44 tackles. While his numbers weren’t gaudy, he brought a disruptive presence to the defense and helped the Green Wave win consecutive bowl games for the first time in program history.

He was well-respected inside the program, yet he still hadn’t received much national attention. He knew his senior season would need to be special to draw real interest from the NFL.

Then Covid-19 shocked the sports world.

Tulane canceled in-person classes. Students were sent home for several months. Sample refused to use it as an excuse.

The year prior, he’d occasionally found himself gassed during long drives or crunch-time sequences. He knew that improving his conditioning could help him level up on the field.

“(When) we got sent home, I wanted to take advantage of the opportunity. I knew conditioning had to be a thing for me. That was definitely something I wanted to improve going from junior to senior year and taking the next step to the NFL. When I’m out there, I want to be going a hundred miles an hour. I don’t (want) me not being in shape to be the reason my production is falling, or I’m not playing at the level I should be. That was really important for me,” Sample says.

While at home, Sample began jogging around his neighborhood and running sprint intervals on a treadmill in his humid Georgia garage. The regimen helped him improve his body composition and get down to a muscular 275 pounds.

In the summer, Sample and his teammates returned to Tulane to enter an off-season “bubble” that allowed them to work out and practice together.

Yet, the dark possibility of a canceled season loomed over every rep.

Meanwhile, preseason accolades trickled in for Sample.

Phil Steele tabbed him as a 2020 preseason All-AAC selection. He was also added to the 2021 Reese’s Senior Bowl top 250 list, meaning a productive season would likely earn him an invite to the prestigious NFL prospect all-star game.

Tulane’s coaching staff also approached Sample about an expanded role.

While he’d primarily played as a defensive end in a three-person front up to that point, the Green Wave staff thought deploying him as a stand-up edge rusher, as well, could give their opponents headaches.

“(Cam’s) a smart football player,” Fritz told reporters in August.

“He’ll play inside the tackle and outside the tackle. He’s big and strong enough and plays with great technique to play inside the tackle and play big boy football. He’s also quick and got such a good change of direction and speed that he can play outside the tackle. It’s a different ballgame. Not a lot of guys can do that.”

Fellow Tulane defensive lineman Patrick Johnson predicted a breakout season for his close friend.

“A lot of guys don’t realize how explosive (Cam) is. His pass rushing is going to be huge for us this season,” Johnson said.

“There are no limits for him … I can see him being an All-American this year.”

When Tulane met South Alabama for their first game of 2020, the program released a collective sigh of relief. They would have a season after all.

And Sample’s new role combined with his continued physical and mental development proved to make for a perfect storm.

In a sign of things to come, he rampaged over the South Alabama offensive line to total
seven tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, two sacks, two QB hits, and a forced fumble. On the back of Sample’s heroic performance, Tulane pulled off a narrow win.

Sample’s improved play was as much about his increased mental aptitude for the game as his physical ability. He’d learned how to quickly identify an opposing lineman’s plan of attack and how to maximize the effectiveness of the many weapons in his pass-rush arsenal.

“There are a variety of things an offensive lineman can do (after the snap) — they can jump set you, deep-set you, kind of short set you. So being able to diagnose that quickly and respond to it is a big thing for me,” Sample says.

“From film study, they kind of show where they shoot their hands or different things they do like that. So me working on my hands and being able to knock those hands down, or show a fake and get underneath them, or fake one way then go inside — (I really started to) play that chess game with the offensive lineman.”

Sample recalls how that sort of intel led to a banner day for himself and the rest of the Green Wave D-line in the team’s victory over Memphis.

‘We did our usual things studying the offensive linemen and the offense. We had a perfect game plan for how the o-linemen would set, how they would protect, and the downs and distances where the quarterback would hold the ball and give us a perfect time to get pressure,” says Sample.

In an authoritative victory, Tulane’s “trench dawgs” feasted on the Tigers’ offense, helping force four turnovers and holding Memphis to a meager 300 yards of total offense.

When the dust settled on Sample’s 2020 season, he’d tallied 51 tackles, 7.5 tackles for loss, and five sacks. Yet, the vast majority of his production didn’t show up in the box score.

According to Pro Football Focus, Sample’s 22.6% win percentage ranked number one in the nation among defensive linemen with at least 250 snaps while his 48 total QB pressures ranked fourth.

Sample earned first-team All-AAC honors for his efforts, and PFF ranked him the 60th-best player in college football.

But perhaps most importantly, Sample secured his invite to the 2021 Senior Bowl.

The Senior Bowl is an all-star game where the best NFL Draft prospects who have completed their college eligibility can showcase their talents. A week of practice followed by the game itself would give Sample ample opportunity to prove himself in front of key NFL personnel.

While he arrived intending to show his caliber as an edge defender, the opportunity quickly presented itself.

“We had a couple of injuries on our side in practice. Our coach said, ‘Look, a bunch of guys is going to have to play both (inside and outside). So get your mind ready for it.’ I bounced from one day playing defensive end to the next day playing inside and three-tech,” says Sample.

“Then, as the game’s approaching, (coach) said, ‘Y’all can get more reps if you want to kick inside. If any volunteers want to get out there and get seen, go for it.’ My mindset was that I’m a football player. Just line me up, and I’ll make something work. I just took on his challenge and started cooking from there.”

One big winner this pre-draft process has been @GreenWaveFB versatile DL Cam Sample. Won consistently during Senior Bowl 1-on-1’s with great cross-face quickness. Most teams had @cameron_sample graded in 4th/5th rounds back in the fall but now feel he won’t make it out of Day 2. pic.twitter.com/IsAv0uCaNW

— Jim Nagy (@JimNagy_SB) April 15, 2021

The sample was dominant during every stage of the event. He utilized his dizzying blend of speed, power, and technique to torment opponents in one-on-one drills, leading the offensive linemen in attendance to name him Defensive Lineman of the Week for the American team.

Sample hunted down seven tackles along with a half-sack during the Senior Bowl to earn Defensive Player of the Game honors.

“He’s so disruptive,” ESPN draft guru Mel Kiper Jr. said of Sample after his impressive performance.

“He plays with an attitude and plays hard every play. He doesn’t have any lack in his ability to show consistency in terms of motivation and hustle. Some guys take plays off. Cameron Sample doesn’t.”

Kiper recently mocked Sample to the reigning Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers with the 95th overall pick.

While Sample can’t predict where he’ll land, he’s straightforward when he sums up what he’ll bring to an NFL franchise.

“They’re getting a guy who wants to come in and work and win. I’ll just put on my boots every day, come in the office, and work,” says Sample.

He classifies himself as a “lead-by-example” guy who’ll speak up when necessary. On Twitter, he often hashtags accolades with #AGTG — short for “All Glory to God.”

Sample can recall when big-time college programs weren’t interested in him. Even though he’s suddenly receiving prestigious awards and massive hype, he still knows it’s the work outside the spotlight that truly matters.

When he reflects on his own past searching for advice to share with young athletes, Sample comes to a simple conclusion.

“Block out the noise and work,” he says.

“Ignore what people are tweeting and ranking, the stars, things like that. If you’re putting in the work and you’re passionate about what you’re doing, you’ll get rewarded for it.”

Photo Credit: Tulane Athletics

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• How French-Canadian Benjamin St-Juste Beat the Odds on a Journey to The NFL

It didn’t matter he’d graduated from high school with exactly one offer.

It didn’t matter he was going to play at 1-AA Northern Iowa rather than his dream school of Minnesota.

It didn’t matter he was a defensive end who weighed 190 pounds soaking wet.

Smith believed he was bound for the NFL.

“I thought I was good enough. I knew once I got the size, I’d be able to play pretty well. I knew there were opportunities out of Northern Iowa,” says Smith.

“But it was going to take a lot of work.”

That belief fueled one of the most remarkable physical transformations you’ll ever find in an athlete. Smith added nearly 70 pounds to his towering frame and became one of the strongest players in college football.

Today, he ranks as one of the top edge prospects in the 2021 NFL Draft class.

Adrian Peterson inspired Smith to play football.

As a kid growing up in Minneapolis, Smith was transfixed by AP’s transcendent play.

“I remember seeing (Peterson) early on in his career and I was like, ‘Okay, there’s something different about this dude.’ It just sparked a love for it at that point in my life. Watching Adrian Peterson really made me go and beg my parents to play football. So in sixth grade, they let me play football,” says Smith.

Smith wanted to emulate his idol and play running back, yet he was already among the tallest kids in his grade. He first played linebacker and quarterback before he migrated to defensive line at South High School (Minneapolis, Minnesota).

South hadn’t sent a player to the D1 level since the mid-1980s.

But Elerson was a special athlete. He was already well on his way to standing over 6-foot-6. What he lacked in bulk he made up for in raw talent. Smith also took the old-school route of athletic development, lettering in four different sports at South.

“Growing up, I always knew football was my sport and it was what I wanted to play in college. I liked track, but I was going to track because it could help with my top-end speed for football. I liked wrestling, but I thought that wrestling could help me with my leverage and my tackling for football. You just become an overall better athlete (by doing that) and you also don’t get burnt out on one sport,” says Smith.

“You get the opportunity to play all those sports in high school and spend time with your friends, too. Like basketball — I wasn’t the best at basketball, but I was part of a team, I worked to contribute and help that team, and I got to spend time with my friends doing it. So I think (playing multiple sports) was huge for me, both physically and mentally, throughout high school.”

Smith also brought a growth mindset and a positive attitude to his athletic career. He credits his stepfather, Joe Morgan, for helping instill that mentality. Morgan is also the long-time wrestling coach at South.

“One thing he always preaches is to just have fun and get better. So I’ve been trying to do those two things my whole career. I make sure I’m having fun, because if I’m not, it’s pointless,” says Smith.

“Then getting better. I always focused on one thing I wanted to get better at in practice. You know, ‘My first step looked pretty crappy the last game. So today in practice, all I’m focused on is my first step.’ You start stacking those days and you’ll eventually make those weaknesses into your strengths. That’s what worked for me.”

As a junior, Smith totaled 14 sacks while also starring at tight end for the Gallant Tigers. Yet he was barely a blip on the radar of big-time college programs. His recruiting was limited by two key factors. One, he was painfully thin for an athlete purporting to be a defensive end. Two, South won few games and competed in a conference that was far from a recruiting hotbed.

“I had ridiculous production numbers, but it was in a smaller inner-city football conference. So a lot of teams doubted those numbers,” says Smith.

“We weren’t a football factory school. Colleges coaches weren’t stopping there to see what we were doing. So getting my name out there was more about college camps … (I had to) get into camps and do it against guys who were held up with an expectation that they were gonna be future college players.”

Smith attended a camp at the University of Northern Iowa prior to his senior year.

While UNI is a 1-AA program, they’ve sent a surprising number of players to the pros — 21 different Panthers have gone on to play at least three years in the NFL to date. The program also has a reputation for uncovering overlooked players and helping them transform their bodies to unlock their true potential. In Smith, they saw their next potential project.

Smith led the state of Minnesota in sacks his senior season, but the hometown Golden Gophers never showed much interest. In fact, UNI was the only school willing to take a shot on him. The Panthers wound up as his lone offer.

Smith journeyed to Cedar Falls, Iowa with a scrawny frame and a chip on his shoulder. Since he desperately needed to gain strength and mass, a redshirt year was a given.

Jed Smith, UNI’s strength and conditioning coach, recalls Smith’s initial physique.

“My initial impression was I laughed. I looked at Elerson, and he’s a nice kid, but oh my goodness. I thought, ‘We’ve got a lot of work to do here.’ He would’ve been small for a basketball player we were recruiting and this was a D-lineman,” Jed says.

“There were times throughout that first year where Elerson would double-day. He’d come in during the AM and come back during the PM. It was sometimes eight or nine lifts a week. He put in the time in the weight room … He’s a hard worker and just a really good human being.”

Elerson’s potential was obvious despite his gangly physique. For an athlete of his stature, he was an exceptionally smooth mover, beating skill players in agility and conditioning drills from day one. Smith also added pounds to his max power clean in rapid fashion, indicating special fast-twitch ability.

He says the training “shocked” his body. Smith’s meal plan required him to devour five meals a day. When he found himself in a calorie-crunch, he’d down peanut butter & jellies to ensure his body remained in an anabolic state.

His strength numbers ballooned as slabs of muscle gradually filled in his frame. Yet Smith still had a ways to go with his technique and football IQ.

UNI defensive line coach Bryce Paup recalls Smith having a “deer in the headlights” look as a redshirt freshman.

When Smith wasn’t physically pushing himself to the limit in practices and workouts, he was attempting to master the complexities of the game while also handling a full academic course load.

Yet he persevered.

Smith credits his late biological father, Robert, for teaching him the right way to power through adversity.

“My dad was paralyzed for the last three years of his life. He had an aneurysm that paralyzed him from the neck down. I think the way he handled it is what really inspired me. I never saw him disrespect any nursing staff or doctors or anything like that. For someone in his position to have everything stripped away and still have high character and be the man that he was, that was extremely inspiring,” says Smith.

“He was fighting through a lot more than anything I’ve had to go through. In times of struggle on the football field, it puts things in perspective. Maybe I’m tired because it’s my eighth gasser, but my dad had to fight to try to move again. It always puts things in perspective and makes things easier than they are both on the football field and throughout life.”

By 2018, Smith had gained roughly 50 pounds without losing a step. He was ready to see game action.

Deployed mostly as a third-down specialist, Smith totaled 10 tackles for loss, 7.5 sacks and a forced fumble that season. Versus Iowa, he got the chance to test himself against Tristan Wirfs, the Hawkeyes’ ultra-athletic, 320-pound offensive tackle. Wirfs would later be drafted 13th overall in the 2020 NFL Draft.

Smith noted Wirfs’ immense talent and used it as motivation for improvement. Lucky for him, he had a comparable talent lined up across from him every day in practice.

Spencer Brown arrived at UNI alongside Smith.

Both received zero FBS offers and had to gain significant amounts of mass before they received meaningful playing time. While Brown had been a tight end in high school, UNI decided to mold him into an offensive tackle.

Day after day, Smith and Brown fought it out on the practice field. The fact their physical development almost perfectly mirrored one another made them ideal sparring partners.

“Spencer’s a freak athlete. He’s 6-foot-8 but he’s super athletic. He can bend and play with great leverage at the point of attack,” says Smith.

“We’ve been going at it since he was a 240-pound tight end and I was a 200-pound defensive end. That was huge for us because we’re both so competitive. There was never a day we let up on each other. I remember he came back for camp before (our) redshirt junior year and he felt twice as strong as he did the camp before. I was like, ‘Okay, I’m going to have to check myself,’ because he was beating my a— a little bit. (Spencer) was big for me — he motivated me to get better.”

Brown, who Smith calls an “awesome dude,” is now projected as a potential first-round draft pick. His Relative Athletic Score (a composite score of a prospect’s size and athleticism) is the highest of any offensive tackle in NFL history.

In high school, Smith relied almost entirely on raw athleticism to make plays.

Against better competition, he quickly realized that approach led to limited success. Smith looked to Paup, a UNI alumni who won NFL Defensive Player of the Year honors in 1995 and racked up 75 career sacks as a pro, to help him hone his craft.

“Coach Paup did a great job spending extra time with me and making sure he gave me all the help I needed — whether it was my first step, (defending) the run, or adding new moves to my pass rush arsenal. But I think the biggest one was understanding the film room and the schematics behind the game,” says Smith.

“I probably took my biggest step when I locked in on that and really made a full-hearted effort to try and learn the game in and out. I was lucky enough to have a coach like Coach Paup who he knew everything.”

Smith had a monster season in 2019.

UNI’s first game pitted them against Iowa State. The Cyclones entered the intrastate showdown ranked the 21st-best team in the FBS.

Smith was a one-man wrecking crew, totaling 5 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, a sack, a QB hit, and a forced fumble that was returned for a touchdown. The Panthers took the Cyclones to the brink before falling in triple overtime.

The performance only strengthened Smith’s conviction that he could play at the highest level.

Later that year, Smith matched up against North Dakota State and Dillon Radunz, an offensive tackle who’s now receiving first-round buzz. Smith finished the game with five tackles, a sack, a QB hit and a pass deflection.

His season totals were staggering — 63 tackles, 21.5 tackles for loss, 14 sacks, 5 forced fumbles and 5 deflected passes. That was good enough to earn Smith AP FCS All-America honors.

By that point, Smith weighed roughly 255 pounds and measured in taller than 6-foot-6. His bench and squat numbers had nearly doubled over the previous four years. All the while, he’d maintained his incredible speed and flexibility.

With another season of eligibility left to boost his draft stock, the sky was the limit.

Then Covid-19 happened.

Smith’s first priority? Find a gym.

“I was on campus so I was lucky enough to have a weight room set up across the street from me in another football player’s house. Every day I was getting up and lifting and doing something,” says Smith.

Then a different tragedy hit close to home.

On May 25th, George Floyd was murdered by police at the corner of E. 38th and Chicago Avenue in the Powderhorn Park neighborhood of Minneapolis.

Smith was outraged. The fact the incident occurred at an intersection he’d driven through hundreds of times made it all too real. Smith returned home to participate in peaceful protests and do whatever he could to help.

“That happened five minutes from my house where I grew up. So to have something like that happen right in your community hits home pretty hard,” Smith says.

“(I’d like to use my NFL platform) to bring awareness to that and help the community in any way I can, because I think the community of Minneapolis really needs it.”

In July, Phil Steele named Smith the FCS Preseason Defensive Player of the Year.

A month later, word came down the Missouri Valley Conference had cancelled their 2020 football season.

Smith was devastated. He briefly explored transferring to a different school so he could play his redshirt senior season and did receive an offer to join an SEC team.

However, NCAA transfer rules at the time would’ve still required he sit out a year before being eligible to play.

Smith ultimately chose to set his sights on the 2021 NFL Draft. He hired an agent and returned to Minneapolis to start preparing.

This photo from UNI Strength & Conditioning shows Smith’s incredible transformation

There, he linked up with Roy Palmer of In-Tension Training. Since max strength was no longer a weakness for Smith (he could squat nearly 600 pounds by that point) their approach focused on making him a more complete athlete.

“Elerson was already very strong when we first started training together,” says Palmer.

“We wanted to improve his ability to produce force rapidly in order to maximize transfer to the football field. In addition, we really trained everything needed to improve his performance, help him move well, and reduce his risk of injury … (He’s) an absolutely stellar athlete and one of the most kind, humble people I know.”

Smith arrived at the 2021 Senior Bowl still somewhat of an unknown. He hadn’t played a 2020 season and had only two years of college production — both of which came at the FCS level.

Smith quieted such concerns when the pads began popping. The fact four other players from the Missouri Valley Conference were also in attendance helped calm his nerves.

“It’s a legit conference. Maybe it’s dudes who weren’t 240 and 6-foot-5 coming out of high school — (but) it’s a lot of guys like me who just took longer to progress. That doesn’t mean I’m any worse than any of these other (prospects) because they were bigger than me at 17,” says Smith.

“I think it showed at the Senior Bowl. We had five dudes there and we all did pretty well. That actually helped me a lot (that week) because a few plays in, I was like, ’These guys aren’t any better than the guys I faced every week.’”

One of biggest risers out of Senior Bowl week is @UNIFootball EDGE Elerson Smith. @ElersonSmith has elite tools (6064v, 262v, 1048 hand, 8300 wing), will blow up his pro-day, and was arguably most impressive physical specimen at weigh-ins. Oh, and he can rush inside & outside. pic.twitter.com/FYuLzCLicA

— Jim Nagy (@JimNagy_SB) February 12, 2021

Smith followed up his phenomenal Senior Bowl with an awesome Pro Day. Highlights included a mind-boggling 41.5-inch vertical jump, a 1.60 10-yard split and 26 reps on the bench press.

Some analysts believe Smith will need to add another 10-20 pounds of mass before he can become an every-down player at the next level. Yet his physique and skillset have also drawn comparisons to Jason Taylor, the slender six-time Pro Bowl selection who currently ranks seventh on the NFL’s all-time sack list.

Wherever Smith lands, he plans to use the same approach that helped him go from an obscure high school recruit to a likely NFL Draft selection.

“I’m just going to contribute wherever they need me. I think that’s what I’m excited to do. I understand it’s a team game and everyone has roles, so whether my role is just a third-down specialist right away or special teams, I’m going to compete and do my best to exceed (expectations) in my role,” says Smith.

“I’m going to do that by working hard and getting after it every day.”

Photo Credit: AP Newsroom, Minneapolis South High School, UNI Athletics

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He’d just finished his first D1 football camp. The long-limbed defensive back had done his best to separate himself amid the roughly 1,400 attendees.

His English wasn’t great. He often had to watch other campers run through a drill before he understood exactly what to do.

But now, the head coach was speaking only to him.

“The first big camp I ever did was at Michigan. I had zero ideas about four-stars, five-stars, offers — all that stuff. Coach (Jim) Harbaugh said, ‘Yeah, I’m offering you a full scholarship to come play here.’ I was like, ‘Alright, cool.’ I didn’t speak proper English, so some of the words and sentences didn’t resonate with me,” St-Juste recalls.

“I didn’t even know what I had at first … (But) that kind of sparked the whole thing. I was like, ‘Oh, I can really make this happen.’”

Once he understood the magnitude of Harbaugh’s offer, St-Juste quickly gave a verbal commitment to Michigan. He also realized football was no longer just a hobby, triggering a journey that’s led him to become one of the top defensive back prospects for the 2021 NFL Draft.

Growing up as kid in Montreal, St-Juste believed a D1 or NFL career was beyond outlandish. Few kids made it to the big time out of Quebec in any sport but hockey.

Indeed, St-Juste started his athletic career with a stick in his hand and skates on his feet.

But football was in his blood. His dad, Wilbert, had played the sport and once received an invite to training camp with the Miami Hurricanes.

When Benjamin began playing football at age eight, he knew he’d discovered his true passion.

“I was just gifted. I was smooth out there on the field. And I liked the team bond, I liked being around my friends,” St-Juste says.

“Where I’m from, everybody was playing hockey. Everybody wanted to make it to the NHL. I wanted to be that kid that was different.”

But his dreams were limited. He envisioned a standout high school career and then, perhaps, a playing career at a university in Canada.

“Going to play D1 football and going to the NFL is a far, far dream where I’m from. So as a young kid, you were kind of humbled all the time. People around you would say, ‘It’s too hard. You’re not going to make it.’ And I kind of listened to that when I was younger. I just played football for fun (and) to kill some time,” says St-Juste.

“When I was 16, my parents said, ‘You watch all these Nike camps and Rival camps on Youtube. But you never sign up for one. Why don’t you sign up for one?’ My parents saw the potential in me … So I said, ‘Alright, I’ll sign up.’”

Soon enough, he and his parents were making the ten-hour drive from Montreal to Ann Arbor, Michigan. He left with a full-ride offer to one of the most prestigious programs in college football.

Then things got serious.

St-Juste joined the track team and began lifting weights. He went to the practice field every day to work on his drops, plants and ball skills. He started watching movies in English rather than his native French, determined to become fluent so he could hold meaningful conversations with future coaches and teammates.

He also continued to test himself against American athletes by signing up for more camps.

St-Juste soon found every coach wasn’t willing to gamble on a raw defensive back out of Quebec. Many questioned his level of competition and feared the potential backlash of offering him a scholarship over a “safer” American recruit.

Yet St-Juste also possessed freakish talent.

At 6-foot-3, he was gargantuan for a defensive back. Long arms helped him suffocate receivers and compensate for any lack of polish. St-Juste’s hockey background had also gifted him superhuman agility and loose, fluid hips.

And though some coaches doubted the caliber of his competition, the rules of Canadian football put defensive backs at a distinct disadvantage.

The field is wider, defenders must play at least one yard off the line of scrimmage, and the rules around offensive motion are far less prohibitive. In Canada, offenses can send multiple players buzzing in motion at any time, and legal forward motion means receivers can build a full head of steam prior to the snap.

“The fact the receiver can run with a 10 or 15-yard head start means you’ve really got to have your feet activated and be quick. Imagine Julio Jones coming in with a 15-yard head start against a corner. That’s just crazy. So playing (Canadian rules) definitely made me a little bit better,” says St-Juste.

“Also, all the motion helps prepare you to understand what’s going to happen pre-snap.”

Back in Canada, St-Juste also often played against athletes three or four years older than himself.

Quebec’s distinct education system allowed him to graduate high school early before enrolling in a “collège d’enseignement général et professionnel,” or CEGEP.

The concept, unique to Quebec, is similar to a junior college but with little or no tuition fee. St-Juste enrolled at Cegep du Vieux Montreal at age 16. This allowed him to earn college credits and play football against older competition.

Every time St-Juste resurfaced at another American camp, he looked sharper and more refined. The legend of the towering, lockdown defensive back with a French-Canadian accent continued to grow.

St-Juste decided to sign up for The Opening Regionals in New Jersey as a way to both test and prove himself. He knew the top performers would receive an invite to the most high-profile recruiting event in America — The Opening Finals.

“My recruiting process was so quick nobody knew me,” St-Juste told MLive in 2016.

“I was a kid from Canada who committed to Michigan and all that. (People wonder), ‘Is he good, is Michigan doing a good thing of keeping this guy?’ I need to go to these camps and clear all the doubts”.

At the New Jersey Regionals, St-Juste tied for the fourth-highest composite athletic rating of any attendee and popped during competitive drills. He received an invitation to The Opening Finals just a few days later.

“I was super hype. I’d been watching those camps for (the past) three years. I really wanted to make it, and being the first one ever out of Montreal and Quebec to do it was great,” St-Juste says.

“There was a lot of doubt. A lot of people were like, ‘Oh, can you compete with us?’ I knew I could and I tried to show it. So being on that big stage and being an all-star selection at the end of the tournament proved I was one of the top defensive backs.”

Still, St-Juste felt disrespected. While he’d earned a four-star rating from 247Sports, he’d received offers from just three schools — Michigan, Virginia Tech and Rutgers. Most American four-star defensive backs boasted 20 or 30 different offers.

St-Juste’s commitment to Michigan ultimately held. He enrolled early and quickly proved the talent he displayed on the camp circuit was no illusion.

“He’s 6-foot-3, he’s long, he’s athletic, he’s fast,” Don Brown, UM’s defensive coordinator at the time, said of St-Juste early in his college career. “I’m very confident as to where he’ll end up.”

St-Juste went on to appear in 12 games as true freshman and earned his first varsity letter.

However, a hamstring injury suffered shortly thereafter would prove problematic. Rehab wasn’t immediately effective and St-Juste was sidelined for the entire 2018 season. Disagreements about the extent of the injury and its impact on St-Juste’s athletic future led him to ultimately seek a transfer.

St-Juste thanked Michigan and officially announced he was entering the transfer portal on May 7th, 2019.

Joe Rossi, the defensive coordinator at the University of Minnesota, messaged him almost immediately.

Within 14 days, St-Juste was officially a Golden Gopher.

“I met coach (P.J.) Fleck, who’s a young, energetic, super-honest coach. He said, ‘I’ve got one scholarship. I need a corner right now. I need you to come in and be a starter and be a captain. Can you do that for me?,’” St-Juste recalls.

“I liked that straightforward approach. I said, ‘Okay, let’s roll with it.’”

It didn’t take long for Fleck, Rossi and the rest of the Gophers staff to realize they pulled off a recruiting coup.

“We heard nothing but good things about (Benjamin) at Michigan … He’s incredibly long, incredibly athletic. His flexibility for his size is uncanny. And then he’s a smart kid who cares with great character,” Rossi told The Minnesota Daily midway through the 2019 season.

St-Juste started nine games that year, recording 45 tackles and and 10 pass break-ups (tied for the team lead) on his way to All-Big Ten Honorable Mention status. He helped the Gophers go 11-2. It was their most wins in a season since 1904.

Minnesota anoints game captains rather than season captains, and it wasn’t long before St-Juste found himself wearing the C on his chest.

“I’m one of those guys who’s pretty quiet. I’d talk when I needed to talk, but when I didn’t need to talk, I wasn’t talking. I led by example because I was giving everything I had in practice, in the weight room, and on game day. When you do that on a consistent basis and you’re on top of things and you’re trustworthy, people see that more than the people who talk,” St-Juste says.

The Big Ten played a shortened schedule in 2020 due to Covid-19. St-Juste appeared in five games, making 14 tackles and breaking up three passes.

He then faced a decision.

While he had a season of eligibility left at Minnesota, NFL teams had token note of his special skillset.

For the past two years, St-Juste had gone head-to-head with Rashod Bateman, a potential first round talent, during practice. He knew he could guard elite receivers.

St-Juste had also already obtained both his bachelor’s and his master’s degrees in sports management thanks to years of hard work.

And he believed NFL evaluators would only think more of him after seeing him up close during the pre-draft process.

St-Juste declared for the 2021 NFL Draft on December 20th, 2020.

Talent evaluators got a first-hand look at St-Juste at the Senior Bowl.

His measurements alone (a tick over 6-foot-3 in height with a sprawling wingspan over 80 inches) were enough to generate buzz.

On the field, St-juste used his rare size to consistently spoil would-be receptions and proved he was nimble enough to shadow smaller, shiftier receivers.

But it was his performance at Minnesota’s Pro Day that proved he was a true football unicorn.

St-Juste clocked a blazing 4.00 in the 20-Yard Shuttle and an astonishing 6.63 in the 3-Cone Drill.

NFL Combine data gives context to St-Juste’s outlier status. Dating back to the year 2000, just 17 cornerbacks matched or beat his times at the NFL Combine.

Among those 17, just four measured 6-foot-1 or above. And none were taller than St-Juste.

St-Juste points to his hockey-playing roots as a key contributor to his freakish agility.

“The fact I was able to grow up playing multiple sports, especially hockey, gave me those great results. That’s really unique about me. Being a 6-foot-3, 200-something-pound defensive back, (people) expect me to be stiff and to not be able to move,” St-Juste says.

“My agility going side to side and being able to bend and move I got from playing hockey. My ability to high point the ball and jump over people I got from playing basketball. Running track helped me understand my running motion and my stride and how to use my speed.”

St-Juste’s 4.51 40-Yard Dash was also impressive for his size and his physique passed the eye test with flying colors. He didn’t bench or squat much during high school, so committing to a legit weight training program in college helped him back on 20 pounds of muscle.

St-Juste quickly admits he’s not a finished product. He only played about 15 games at cornerback in college. There’s speculation he may eventually transition to safety.

His motto is to simply get 1% better each day and let the rest take care of itself.

“I’ve just got to be a new Benjamin, a better Benjamin, every day,” says St-Juste.

“I have potential to be great, to be legendary, in what I do on and off the field. I fear missing that opportunity or being a shoulda-coulda-woulda type of person. I don’t want to be that person.”

While St-Juste may still have a world of potential to unlock, he’s already pretty darn good. Bateman said his Minnesota teammate was “definitely, by far, the best DB” he’d faced in his career — no small feat when you consider Bateman went up against teams like Auburn, Penn State, Wisconsin, Iowa and Ohio State in college.

St-Juste also envisions an NFL impact beyond the box score. He wants to utilize his platform to stand up for social justice issues and hopes to prove to kids in Quebec that football can take them farther than they might think. He aims to establish a camp in Montreal and bring in fellow pros to help out as counselors.

He also wants to help the next generation of athletes realize that dreams are meaningless without action; that aspirations ring hollow without sacrifice.

“My advice is consistency and motivation. The dream is free but the hustle is sold separately. My dream of going D1 and going to the NFL? That’s fine. But I had to put in a lot of work and sacrifice to be where I am. So you might have to sacrifice going out, going to parties, the girlfriends, the other friends that maybe don’t play football who want you to do some of that stuff. Sacrifice a lot so you can focus on your dream and take advantage of anything,” St-Juste says.

“I reached the NFL, but in the process, I was able to graduate with a 3.0 from Michigan and get a master’s from Minnesota with a 3.7. Maximize your opportunities. Football isn’t going to be there that long, and you’ve got to be somebody after that. So maximize your opportunities and create your identity.”

Photo Credit: AP Newsroom, Scout.com, Student Sports, Minnesota Athletics

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