So you think you've got it tough? You take classes like psycho-bio, cognitive science and Old English. Try Middle Linebacking 454. It's a 20-credit class, instructor permission required, and there is a midterm every week. Bring about 12 spiral notebooks. You won't find this one on the COD.
Virginia coach Al Groh calls it "paralysis by analysis." Others simply call it being a student of the game. However you put it, junior linebacker Jon Copper specializes in tackling ball carriers and the intensive study of ACC offenses.
"If I didn't play football, I'd probably be a Ph.D. student by now," Copper joked.
So you've got the skills, talent and perseverance. But what does it take to rise to the top of your class, to be valedictorian and graduate with honors?
"The amount of hours Jon spends of his own time in the facility either studying himself or studying the opponent is hard to calculate," Groh said. "It's an example to anybody else who watches him how diligence and effort are a talent as much as intelligence and speed or whatever the case may be."
Each week, the staff prepares videos for the players to watch. They review themselves and study their opponents. With 92 tackles on the season, well ahead of senior Chris Long, who is second on the team with 69, Copper has a knack for using the videos to know what's going to happen, putting himself in the right place at the right time.
"I want to know what's the main one or two runs, what's the main tone or two-pass concepts out of each formation," Copper said. Putting his knowledge to good use, Copper got his second interception of the season last Saturday against Miami senior quarterback Kyle Wright.
"That was a route that we had seen all week and that Coach prepared us for," Copper said. "We knew when they got in that formation that that was one of about two things that they did."
But for Copper, it's an all-around effort of living the game. Knowing yourself and knowing your opponent. And that's in addition to being on the field, lifting weights and attending team meetings. Not exactly a light course load.
"There aren't any off days for Jon," Groh said.
Copper has his professor, his text and his class. He records his notes in a notebook, and every week he removes pages and fills new ones. And he's never at a loss for information. Though NCAA athletes are limited to 20 hours a week of coach-led practice?, not including game day, Copper is free to study the game as much as he can, and he doesn't spare a minute.
"Outside of meetings and practice, which I consider five hours of class a day, I spend an additional four or five hours a day doing football-related stuff, studying the game, and that sort of thing," Copper said. "In terms of stuff you wouldn't consider athletic -- just in the film room or something -- that's probably 20 to 25 hours, Sunday to Thursday."
And you can probably guess what Copper's doing every free minute he has Friday and Saturday.
Don't forget, Copper is still a full-time student. He's a religious studies major, and he's active in different Christian organizations on Grounds. But for football, Copper says he devotes about 50 to 55 hours a week to game preparation on and off the field. With Virginia Tech coming to town, there's no doubt Copper will use the team's bye week to his advantage in hopes of taking down Tech quarterbacks freshman Tyrod Taylor and junior Sean Glennon.
"I'm a little extreme," Copper admitted. "[The 50-55 hours] doesn't count Friday, which is pretty much all day, and that doesn't count Saturday, which is pretty much all day. That's a little on the more extreme side."
But with a trip to the ACC Championship on the line, an extreme work ethic might be exactly what it takes.
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