Photo via AP
Texas is in the midst of a bye week, and something stuck out to me when I spoke to Longhorn players on Tuesday.
The bye week is not a time for fun.
Typically, you think of players heading home during the bye week. Maybe a weekend getaway. Basically, anything but football.
However, Longhorns will be happy to learn the veterans on this year’s team are more focused on improving as players instead of an escape from football. From what I remember, this is a different point of view than I heard from players in previous years.
Here is what a few players had to say about the bye week:
Charles Omenihu
“When you get older, you look at bye weeks differently. I look it as studying the guys who are doing their thing, or around college football, because they must be doing something right. You pick from that to add on to your game.”
- Omenihu told me he intends to study Clemson’s Clelin Ferrell and Austin Bryant, Ohio State’s Chase Young, Oklahoma State’s Jordan Brailford, and Old Dominion’s Bunmi Rotimi during the bye week.
- Omenihu on his bye week focus as a young player: “I was trying about trying to get away. Needed time away. Now, it’s for me to refocus and get myself right, and mentally become better. That’s half the game there.”
- Omenihu on trying to influence the younger players with his bye week approach: “If a young guy sees me doing it (studying film), he’s going to want to join in. The leaders, as you can say, do that, the more other guys will gravitate to it. The formula must be working. Why stop? Why would you divert? Next year, there’s no drop off.”
Chris Nelson
“I pretty much live in the training room (during the bye week). It’s a great thing that I have my degree. I get in there as early as I can, stay in there, and get everything worked on for the next game.”
- Nelson on his bye week focus as a young player: “When I was a freshman and sophomore, every chance we had free time, I was trying to figure out a way to get back home. As soon as we figured out we had off time, I was trying to get my plane ticket to go back home. Right now, I’m an older guy. I haven’t been home in a while. I just stay up here. I’m having more fun here than when I go back home. The thing is, nothing changes back home. It’s still going to be the same. People are still going to be there, still going to be on the corner chillin' under the tree. Nothing changes.”
Calvin Anderson
“As a veteran, I think the longer you play this game, you realize having opportunities like a bye week gives you advantages, and you have to take advantage of those. An opportunity to study more film, get your body right. That’s the biggest thing, I think in the past, when I was younger, I looked at a bye week like, ‘Oh, I get to do something else and get my mind off football.’ Now, I look at it as an opportunity to be purposeful about getting my body recovered instead of just taking time off.”
