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LB Larry Grant (Official Thread)

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CPD

4/16/06

<H1 class=red>Linebacker Grant adjusts to new level

</H1>

Sunday, April 16, 2006

Doug Lesmerises

Plain Dealer Reporter

Columbus -- Larry Grant, welcome to the bottom.

"At my junior college, I was the upperclassman, and I was the head of everybody," one of the newest Ohio State Buckeyes said after practice this week. "I was the captain and everybody fed off my intensity. It's different coming here because I'm starting from the bottom. I'm just trying to make it to the bottom so I can get to the top."

Two months ago, when Ohio State coach Jim Tressel talked about Grant after he officially signed with the Buckeyes, Tressel emphasized the maturity and leadership Grant could bring to a linebacker position needing three new starters.

It's hard to lead from the outside.

The Scarlet and Gray Game will cap off spring practice on Saturday, but the national junior college defensive player of the year is still slowly adjusting to everything about the Buckeyes while playing with the third team.

"I did feel like an outsider sometimes," Grant said. "But they're trying to take me as part of the family, and it's getting better every day."

This is new territory for the Buckeyes. Grant is the first junior college player signed by Tressel in his six years at Ohio State. The spring has highlighted how extreme the jump is from a place like City College of San Francisco to Columbus. Even freshman linebacker Ross Homan, who should technically be a senior in high school, is ahead of Grant for now, listed with the second team.

"Everybody is a lot bigger and a lot faster, and there's more thinking, too.

Your knowledge of the game has to be way better," Grant said. "And the team chemistry is more together. At junior college, everybody was basically doing stuff on their own to get to the next level.

"It didn't seem like we did so many individual drills at the junior college level.

They said just go out there and play, and be an athlete. There's more technique here with using my hands, my footwork, my eyes, everything."

Not that all is lost. At 6-3 and 228 pounds, Grant's athletic ability stands out, and his work ethic and character were vouched for by former Buckeye assistant coach Dick Walker. And he played for a junior college national title.

"He's been tested," linebackers coach Luke Fickell said. "A national championship game is a national championship game. You can look into his eyes going into Texas or somewhere and it's not going to bother him even a little bit."

But while Grant was drawn to Ohio State in part because starters A.J. Hawk, Anthony Schlegel and Bobby Carpenter were graduating, stepping right in as a starter doesn't seem as likely as it did before he arrived. Grant even admitted he knew little about that trio.

"I just know that A.J. Hawk was, like, defensive player of the year," Grant said.

He doesn't have to learn his history to help the Buckeyes. But he does have to learn a lot of other things.

"The finding the ball is there, the hitting is there," Fickell said. "He has a lot of confidence in his ability, and as long as you don't have to sit there and wonder about that, you can focus on the things on the field, and that's what he'll do."

To reach this Plain Dealer reporter:

[email protected], 216-999-4479
Click to expand...
 
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I have been siked ever since I heard about his interest in Ohio, thinking he could be a gerat LB for us. Now, not because of that video, but the fact that he has all the physical tools to excel. The sky is the limit for Larry, and hopefully he can tap into it for the next few years.

Although he may not want to do this, but he does have some trouble picking up the schemes, he may redshirt a year and still have 2 to play. He has 3 years to play 2.
 
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lol...after seeing that video, I wonder if he will get playing time ASAP. Especially only having a few years left...Yeah, Im sure Tress will find a nice spot for him quickly.

That hit reminded me of Wilhelm picking up and driving Dorsey into the ground in the second OT.
 
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