LB James Laurinaitis (St. Louis Rams)

[hoat]

http://www.mnsun.com/articles/2005/1...aurinaitis.txt


Quote:


<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=3 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=headingbar height=20>Sports:</TD><TD class=topbar align=right><SCRIPT src="/shared-content/newsys/common/date.js"></SCRIPT><SCRIPT><!--showCurrentDate(1);//--></SCRIPT>Friday, November 4, 2005<NOSCRIPT></NOSCRIPT></TD></TR><TR><TD colSpan=2>Wayzata grad goes from Trojan to Buckeye

By Nick Clark\Sun Newspapers
(Created: Thursday, November 3, 2005 1:47 PM CST)</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD></TD></TR><TR><TD background=/art/new/dot_horz.gif></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=3 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=small> | Text Size | </TD><TD align=right>Print Version | E-mail This Story</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD background=/art/new/dot_horz.gif></TD></TR><TR><TD></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=3 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD colSpan=2>As the day faded into night last week over Columbus, Ohio, Wayzata graduate James Laurinaitis was acting like most college freshmen across the country.

Homework was his top priority that evening. But as he studied for one of his freshman courses at Ohio State University, one thing became obviously clear: Laurinaitis isn't your average college freshman.

Laurinaitis is listed on the Buckeye football team roster. However, what's even more impressive is that he's actually playing.

<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=4 align=right border=0><TBODY><TR><TD align=middle><SCRIPT ******************** src="/shared-content/adsys/creative.js" type=text/**********></SCRIPT><SCRIPT ******************** type=text/**********>aAds = new Array();aAds[0] = new Array();aAds[0][0] = '+instory';aAds[0][1] = '32899';aAds[0][2] = 'swf';aAds[0][3] = '250';aAds[0][4] = '250';aAds[0][5] = 'http%3A%2F%2Fwww.special-sections.com%2Fmnsun%2Fsplash_ad.html';aAds[0][6] = '%2Binstory';displayAd('http://adsys.townnews.com', 'mnsun.com', aAds);</SCRIPT><OBJECT id=32899 codeBase=http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0 height=250 width=250 classid=clsid27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000 name=32899>



















<embed src="http://adsys.townnews.com/77290481288011/creative/mnsun.com/+instory/32899.swf?clickTAG=http://adsys.townnews.com/96799737520827/creative/mnsun.com/%2Binstory/32899.swf%3Fr%3Dhttp%3A%2F%2Fwww.special-sections.com%2Fmnsun%2Fsplash_ad.html" wmode="opaque" quality="high" width="250" height="250" name="32899" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer"></embed></OBJECT><NOSCRIPT><object classid='clsid27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000' codebase='http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0' width='250' height='250' name='32899'>


<embed src="http://adsys.townnews.com/1987208990/creative/mnsun.com/+instory/32899.swf?clickTAG=http://adsys.townnews.com/822360656/creative/mnsun.com/%2Binstory/32899.swf%3Fr%3Dhttp%3A%2F%2Fwww.special-sections.com%2Fmnsun%2Fsplash_ad.html" wmode='opaque' quality='high' width='250' height='250' name='32899' type='application/x-shockwave-flash' pluginspage='http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer'></embed></object></NOSCRIPT></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>Most major college football programs redshirt their freshmen in order to give them another year of development.

But, the only red shirt that Laurinaitis is putting on this season is the one he wears on game days in Columbus.

"It's been pretty cool," Laurinaitis said. "I didn't know if I would play this year or not. Then Marcus Freeman got hurt, so I moved to No. 2 on the depth chart and I've just stayed there. It is an honor. Not many freshmen get to play."

It was a decision his coaches wrestled with, but after the injury to Freeman, Laurinaitis was their next best option.

Ohio State Linebackers Coach Luke Fickell thought Laurinaitis could play and was mature enough to join the team the first two weeks of the season.

"I kept telling him that if we have the luxury of being able to redshirt I think it would be a good thing," Fickell said. "When Freeman got hurt, he was one of the next guys that we could put into a game and trust. That is what he wanted to do and I think it will be for the best for him."

Laurinaitis has seen action in all eight of Ohio State's games this fall, and has worked his way onto the field in just about every special teams situation.

He was on the field over the weekend in the Buckeyes' 45-31 win over Minnesota, starting on the special teams unit and getting some late action at linebacker. He managed two tackles on the Gophers' last drive.

"I wanted to make sure I got to play in that game," Laurinaitis said. "It was always my goal to make the traveling squad so I would have the opportunity to play at the Metrodome this year."

The game allowed him the opportunity to erase the memory of his last dome appearance.

Laurinaitis' Wayzata team lost in the state title game last November on the same field. The game against Minnesota was his first time back in the building.

"I need to forget that last game and replace it with something new," he said.

Laurinaitis said that he's been paying close attention to what's been going on at Wayzata this fall and that he still talks to the coaches and some members of the team almost weekly.

"I have to keep in touch," he said. "But in the end, they ask me more questions than I ask them."

He said a lot of the time they want to know what it is like to play in front of excess of a 100,000 people.

"It's crazy," Laurinaitis said. "Words can't even describe it."

Laurinaitis also said his former teammates want to know what it is like to play behind what is arguably the best group of starting linebackers in the country.

The senior trio of A.J. Hawk, Bobby Carpenter and Anthony Schlegel have been highlighted weekly this fall on the Buckeye's national televised games. Hawk is up for just about every defensive award this year and his name has come up in Heisman talk around Columbus as well.

Draft experts consider all three as locks for the NFL draft next spring and Laurinaitis is paying close attention as to how they go about their business.

"He's a very smart kid and he has absorbed a lot," Fickell said. "He's watched those guys work in practice. He's a very mature kid with great abilities, but we ask these guys to do a lot here and learn a lot, so for him to be able to work side by side with those seniors will really pay off for him."

Laurinaitis was impressed with the way the three seniors welcomed him onto the team.

"What people don't get to see is how good of guys they are," Laurinaitis said. "They help me out tremendously. If I have any questions at all they'll answer them. I watch them, how they take care of themselves, how they prepare for game and how they practice during the week. For me, I couldn't be in a better spot to learn."

If Laurinaitis stays in his current place on the depth chart, which is backing up Carpenter, he will be starting next year. That's a goal that Laurinaitis said he's been thinking about since he first stepped a football field.

"That is why I came to Ohio State," he said. "You want to play with the best and against the best. If that happens, I couldn't even imagine a better situation to be in."

It is a situation that has produced many of the greatest linebackers to play college football. Laurinaitis wants to be the next one, and his coaches, including Fickell, think he's got a legitimate shot.

"The one thing that he is going to give us even next year is the versatility to play all three positions," Fickell said. "Not many players can do that. He is smart enough to do it. He is going to be a great asset for us."

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[martinss01]

to be a freshman with the talent to play in garbage time playing behind the trio of lb's we have with fickell as the coach. talk about all the cards falling in the right place at the right time. don't want to put any more pressure on him than is already there but im really excited to watch him develop over the next 3 or 4 years.

[AirForceBuck]

Great read, greenies for you. I must say that I am very impressed with young Animal, he will be a force next year. The kid looks like he brings the wood on every tackle.

[AirForceBuck]

Originally Posted by ohiostate=life

Is it just me or does he look waaay skinnier than he really is in this picture. He's 231 pounds but this picture makes his arms look tiny. He needs some different pads or something.

To be honest, Im not at all worried about it. I see where youre comming from but if you look at Hawks arms they are buldging like Carpenters or D'Andreas. I think he is a pretty good resemblance to Hawk IMO.

[Taosman]

Word is with Carp banged up, Lil Animal could see a lot of playing time Saturday.

[Buckin' A]

He is a pretty mature kid for is age. Looks like daddy has him working on the old traps!

[WoodyWorshiper]

I wonder if Animal has any eligibility left? That is one bad-ass looking muther[censored]er!

Something tells me that Jim is going to be considered one of the real jewels of the "05 recruiting class when it's all said and done. Wouldn't surprise me to see him get up to about 255 by the time he's a senior.

[jwinslow]

I didn't realize the animal was still wrestling. Pretty impressive for a 43 year old.

[kippy1040]

This was the 1st game i have ever seen him play. Being from Minnesota he had to be a little nervous. At first he appeared to be small, compared to our 3 starting L/B's we have now. But maybe we will see more of him against Illinois. I am so wrapped up in watching Carpenter, Hawk and Schlegel that i have lost track of who will be ready for linebacking corp of 2006. Could Laurinatis be one of the candidates?

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

link

11/21/05

Buckeyes' Laurinaitis handles initiation well

By MATT MARKEY
BLADE SPORTS WRITER

<CENTER></CENTER>
ANN ARBOR - Consider it freakish football fate that a gangly, fresh-faced 18-year-old kid from Minnesota gets dropped smack in the middle of a centuries old conflict between Ohio and Michigan.



James Laurinaitis, the first Minnesota player on scholarship with the Buckeyes in 72 years - since Sid Gillman was an Ohio State captain in 1933 - took that precipitous plunge.
A second-team linebacker for the Buckeyes as a freshman, Laurinaitis expected to spend most of his late fall Saturday afternoon here nervously milling around on the sideline, and taking in the aura of the Big Ten's annual battle of the titans.
But when Ohio State senior Bobby Carpenter got hurt on the first defensive play of the game for the Buckeyes, and with intense pain etched on his face hopped on one foot toward the OSU training staff, the coaches frantically called for Laurinaitis to get out on the field.
Exactly one year ago he was playing the big school state championship game in Minnesota, and now Laurinaitis was standing next to Ohio State All-America linebacker A.J. Hawk and facing live fire from No. 17 ranked Michigan in the Big House. That is time travel.
"It was a little bit of a shock, but we're always coached to prepare like you're a starter, and to be prepared to play at any moment," Laurinaitis said.
"On that first play my mind was just flying around. I kind of wasn't sure what I was doing, but then A.J. Hawk settled me down."
Laurinaitis, who was rated as the top linebacker in Minnesota when he led Wayzata High School with 193 tackles last season, said he also got counsel from Carpenter, who had his injured right leg X-rayed during the first quarter, then returned to the sidelines on crutches, wearing a protective boot.
"Bobby told me he believed in me and the coaches believed in me, and he said he was confident I was going to go in there and do a great job," Laurinaitis said. "He said to play real physical, and no matter what happened, to just keep playing hard. This is a guy who I've looked up to ever since I got to Columbus, and he's an incredible athlete and a great player. It has been a blessing for me to have someone like Bobby Carpenter to work with in practice every day, and to learn from."
Laurinaitis, who had seen mop up work in nine games for the Buckeyes before getting thrown into the fire against Michigan, was credited with one tackle in the game, and was part of an Ohio State defense that limited Michigan to only 32 rushing yards and 223 yards of total offense in the 25-21 victory by the Buckeyes.
"James got tossed in there unexpected, and I think he played really well," Hawk said. "Those are huge shoes to fill, and for a freshman, that's tough. If you think about it, your first real game duty is against Michigan, in Michigan Stadium, that is tough for anyone to do. But James stepped in there and played. He didn't seem nervous at all. You have to give him a lot of credit for what he was able to do in a really difficult situation."
Ohio State coach Jim Tressel, who might be without Carpenter for the bowl game since the senior's injury has been diagnosed as a fracture in the fibula near the ankle, said Laurinaitis did what he was coached to do.
"You hate to lose one of your leaders, your veterans, your playmakers," Tressel said, "but all of our guys just keep playing. It doesn't matter what the score is, what the weather is or who is injured. They play. That's the way they work."
For Laurinaitis, the kid from the land of 10,000 lakes who maybe had to hum a few bars of Carmen Ohio after the first couple of Ohio State victories this season, will know all the words, and be ready to play on first down in the bowl game.
"If that's what I have to do, I'll be prepared for it," Laurinaitis said.
Contact Matt Markey at: mmarkey@theblade.com or 419-724-6510.

[AJHawkfan]

Great read about a kid who kind of got lost in the after glow of the game. He filled in marvelously. He's going to be a good one.....

[Jeffcat]

i bet he was in the "oh [censored]" zone when they were calling his name on the sidelines to go into the game.

[MililaniBuckeye]

No disrespect at all to Bobby Carpenter, but was there any noticable dropoff when Launrinaitis was in? No. That's more of a compliment to James. I'm more confident in our LB situation next year than I was before The Game, and even then I wasn't all that worried.

[smith288]

I didnt even notice his presense which I guess is both good and bad.

Good: He didnt foul up and get "replayed" (the time when the replay focuses on your getting burnt)

Bad: He didnt make very many plays (but that could be outside of his control too)

When I first saw his pic I was thinking "Thats a LB? he looks 150 lbs" but the dude is way more cut than I thought. He will need to bulk up more but I see him as a slightly more slender Hawk by the time its all said and done.

If he ends up like "Animal"...man...look out.

[NFBuck]

He did a hell of a job Saturday. Good on him. It's going to be fun watching Little Animal play the next couple years. He already has a cool nickname too.