TicketsBy Bill Koch
GoBEARCATS.com
CINCINNATI – No matter how much a player accomplished in high school or how highly he's rated by the recruiting services, when he gets to college he has to prove himself all over again.
University of Cincinnati freshman linebacker Jarell White was acutely aware of that when he arrived on the UC campus this summer after helping Cincinnati La Salle High School win three straight Division II Ohio state championships. Suddenly, the big man on his high school campus was just another freshman trying to carve out a niche.
"I just look at it as being humble," White said. "I'm trying to take advantage of my talent right now, just studying my playbook and learning from the other players, watching them to get mental reps instead of just going out there thinking that I know it all."
White was also determined to make a name for himself as quickly as possible, in a humble sort of way, of course.
"I came in with the mentality that I wanted to stand out and be that true freshman that leads my class," White said.
His plan worked. Along with Toledo running back Michael Warren, White has been one of the most impressive true freshmen in camp.
"It's not easy for freshmen," said UC head coach Luke Fickell. "But Jarell has shown us that he can play. When you turn the lights on, he makes the plays in the scrimmages. It's just the little fine things that keep a coach kind of laying awake to make sure, hey, he's a true freshman, does he really understand? When the bullets start flying, what will we get? I know we'll get the effort, I know we'll get the right attitude and that's the most important thing."
The 5-foot-10, 208-pound White played all over the field at La Salle. As a sophomore running back, he rushed for 1,545 yards playing in the same backfield with Jeremy Larkin, who now plays for Northwestern. He was moved to defense his junior year but continued to carry the ball when he was needed. He also returned kickoffs and punts. It wasn't unusual for White to play multiple positions in the same game depending on what the coaching staff needed at the moment.
Playing defense wasn't a problem for White. When he transferred to La Salle from Princeton after his freshman year, he considered himself a defensive player. And now that he's at UC, he says, his days as a running back are over.
"Sometimes I do miss running the ball," he said, "but when I look at my future I know that defense is going to take me a long way, a lot further than running back. On offense, you're gonna take a lot of hits, but I love hitting. I'd rather not get hit every play and be the one to deliver the hit."
White was recruited primarily by Marcus Freeman, UC's defensive coordinator and linebackers coach. Freeman first developed a relationship with him while he was recruiting him for Purdue. So when he left Purdue after last season to become part of Fickell's staff, he already had an in with one of the best high school players in Cincinnati.
He and Fickell acted quickly to make the most of that connection.
"You try to get to know a kid personally," Freeman said. "No matter what product you're selling it's about who you are as people. Even if you go from one school to the next school, I'm still the same person. The biggest thing with him was hey, let's try to keep the best players home, man, and you can be the guy that starts this whole new era of recruiting. Let's keep the best players in Cincinnati home."
White responded to that pitch, even though he had planned to go away to school. In addition to Purdue, he was being recruited by Indiana, Kentucky, Illinois and Iowa, among others. UC was not even on his list.
"I had an offer from them the middle of my sophomore year," he said, "But I didn't get recruited. It was just an offer and then that was it."
Fickell called him shortly after he took the job at UC on Dec. 10. It didn't take long for White to alter his plans and decide to stay home.
"He was the number one target that we went out there and tried to get to," Fickell said. "He bought in and believed."
White bought in so completely, he started recruiting other players to join him in UC's class. "He's got that kind of personality," Fickell said.
What made White so amenable to UC so quickly?
"He told me to have blind faith and just believe in him," White said of Fickell. "And I felt comfortable with the coaching staff. Coach Freeman, he was recruiting me at Purdue. He knew that I was talented. Then when he came here he still recruited me. From there on I just took that lead and became that leader for my class and set the tone.
"At first I was kind of nervous about it. I never wanted to stay at home and play. But something inside of me told me to make that move to do something different and come here for my city. Deep down inside I did want to be that leader."
So far White's decision has been a good one. He made a strong, positive impression right away and has spent most of training camp getting reps with the second team defense, occasionally playing with the first team.
"To me, it's the knowledge of defensive schemes," Freeman said, "the knowledge of playing the position. It's similar to what he played in high school, so he has a good feel for it. He has to get better and continue to understand the details of the position, and the details of the defense, but he has the natural ability. And being a local kid, he was able to start learning some stuff before he even got here so he's been a little bit of a step ahead of some of the other guys."
Fickell says White will definitely see significant playing time this season.
"He'll start out on special teams and hopefully he'll have an opportunity to play some on defense," Fickell said. "He's right there in that mix. He is that guy that you know has some spark in him."
Bill Koch covered UC athletics for 27 years – 15 at The Cincinnati Post and 12 at The Cincinnati Enquirer – before joining the staff of GoBearcats.com in January, 2015.
GoBEARCATS.com
CINCINNATI – No matter how much a player accomplished in high school or how highly he's rated by the recruiting services, when he gets to college he has to prove himself all over again.
University of Cincinnati freshman linebacker Jarell White was acutely aware of that when he arrived on the UC campus this summer after helping Cincinnati La Salle High School win three straight Division II Ohio state championships. Suddenly, the big man on his high school campus was just another freshman trying to carve out a niche.
"I just look at it as being humble," White said. "I'm trying to take advantage of my talent right now, just studying my playbook and learning from the other players, watching them to get mental reps instead of just going out there thinking that I know it all."
White was also determined to make a name for himself as quickly as possible, in a humble sort of way, of course.
"I came in with the mentality that I wanted to stand out and be that true freshman that leads my class," White said.
His plan worked. Along with Toledo running back Michael Warren, White has been one of the most impressive true freshmen in camp.
"It's not easy for freshmen," said UC head coach Luke Fickell. "But Jarell has shown us that he can play. When you turn the lights on, he makes the plays in the scrimmages. It's just the little fine things that keep a coach kind of laying awake to make sure, hey, he's a true freshman, does he really understand? When the bullets start flying, what will we get? I know we'll get the effort, I know we'll get the right attitude and that's the most important thing."
The 5-foot-10, 208-pound White played all over the field at La Salle. As a sophomore running back, he rushed for 1,545 yards playing in the same backfield with Jeremy Larkin, who now plays for Northwestern. He was moved to defense his junior year but continued to carry the ball when he was needed. He also returned kickoffs and punts. It wasn't unusual for White to play multiple positions in the same game depending on what the coaching staff needed at the moment.
Playing defense wasn't a problem for White. When he transferred to La Salle from Princeton after his freshman year, he considered himself a defensive player. And now that he's at UC, he says, his days as a running back are over.
"Sometimes I do miss running the ball," he said, "but when I look at my future I know that defense is going to take me a long way, a lot further than running back. On offense, you're gonna take a lot of hits, but I love hitting. I'd rather not get hit every play and be the one to deliver the hit."
White was recruited primarily by Marcus Freeman, UC's defensive coordinator and linebackers coach. Freeman first developed a relationship with him while he was recruiting him for Purdue. So when he left Purdue after last season to become part of Fickell's staff, he already had an in with one of the best high school players in Cincinnati.
He and Fickell acted quickly to make the most of that connection.
"You try to get to know a kid personally," Freeman said. "No matter what product you're selling it's about who you are as people. Even if you go from one school to the next school, I'm still the same person. The biggest thing with him was hey, let's try to keep the best players home, man, and you can be the guy that starts this whole new era of recruiting. Let's keep the best players in Cincinnati home."
White responded to that pitch, even though he had planned to go away to school. In addition to Purdue, he was being recruited by Indiana, Kentucky, Illinois and Iowa, among others. UC was not even on his list.
"I had an offer from them the middle of my sophomore year," he said, "But I didn't get recruited. It was just an offer and then that was it."
Fickell called him shortly after he took the job at UC on Dec. 10. It didn't take long for White to alter his plans and decide to stay home.
"He was the number one target that we went out there and tried to get to," Fickell said. "He bought in and believed."
White bought in so completely, he started recruiting other players to join him in UC's class. "He's got that kind of personality," Fickell said.
What made White so amenable to UC so quickly?
"He told me to have blind faith and just believe in him," White said of Fickell. "And I felt comfortable with the coaching staff. Coach Freeman, he was recruiting me at Purdue. He knew that I was talented. Then when he came here he still recruited me. From there on I just took that lead and became that leader for my class and set the tone.
"At first I was kind of nervous about it. I never wanted to stay at home and play. But something inside of me told me to make that move to do something different and come here for my city. Deep down inside I did want to be that leader."
So far White's decision has been a good one. He made a strong, positive impression right away and has spent most of training camp getting reps with the second team defense, occasionally playing with the first team.
"To me, it's the knowledge of defensive schemes," Freeman said, "the knowledge of playing the position. It's similar to what he played in high school, so he has a good feel for it. He has to get better and continue to understand the details of the position, and the details of the defense, but he has the natural ability. And being a local kid, he was able to start learning some stuff before he even got here so he's been a little bit of a step ahead of some of the other guys."
Fickell says White will definitely see significant playing time this season.
"He'll start out on special teams and hopefully he'll have an opportunity to play some on defense," Fickell said. "He's right there in that mix. He is that guy that you know has some spark in him."
Bill Koch covered UC athletics for 27 years – 15 at The Cincinnati Post and 12 at The Cincinnati Enquirer – before joining the staff of GoBearcats.com in January, 2015.