It's Not How You Start, It's "Ware" You Finish: Interview W/ Jeremy Ware
In the midst of bowl preparation, I was lucky enough to catch up with Michigan State's hard hitting corner; Jeremy Ware.
The 5'10'', 188 lb. fifth year senior out of Fort Myers, Florida will forever be remembered in Michigan State Football history for his record-tying five pass break ups against Northwestern last year.... Who am I kidding, he'll be remembered for knocking the taste from out of the mouth of Iowa's Colin Sandeman!
When it came to laying guys out in the Big Ten, #9 was #1 in that department.
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O9ZdFlZ_wcA In case you haven't watched this a thousand times like I have, have another look!
The South Carolina transfer capped off his stay in East Lansing in impressive fashion in 2009; recording 46 tackles (34 solo, 12 assists) and an interception. Ware was one of the senior anchors in the Spartan secondary this past season, starting 11 of 12 games.
Without further ado, here's what Jeremy had to say about his senior season at Michigan State, and "the hit".
First of all I’d like to congratulate you on that monster hit you laid on Iowa’s Colin Sandeman. How’d it feel to dish out one of the biggest, bone jarring hits in college football this year? State’s biggest (hit) since Nehemiah Warrick lambasted Wisconsin’s Kyle Jefferson in 2006.
JW: “ It felt good, real good, the biggest thing was trying to sway the momentum of the game, trying to get crowd into the game, get the fans excited."
(I asked Jeremy, off the record of course, if that's how he "really" felt. Strangely enough, he's quite humble about his plowing of Colin Sandeman. Ware's intentions were to "sway the momentum", as he put it, and boy, did it ever!)
You guys finished 6-6, with a strong offensive showing against Purdue. Did the team think that bowl eligibility would come down to the Boiler game?
JW: “Not really, we knew we had to finish up strong. Win the last couple of games to put us in the best situation possible to get a decent bowl game. We wanted to take it one game at a time.”
(Again, off the record, I tried to get more than a "politically correct" response from Jeremy, but this is how the team truly felt. Ware told me that the Spartans were confident in either having to beat Purdue or Penn State to become bowl eligible. Jeremy is a true team player, there's no "I" about this guy.)
At what point, if any, were you guys questioning your abilities? The losses to Central, ND, and Iowa must’ve been tough.
JW: “It’s just how the ball bounced. Close games could go either way.The ball can bounce any way. We never questioned ourselves. Every game in the Big Ten is a hard game, you could be upset at any moment.”
(With all but two games that I'd call "real" losses, Wisconsin and Penn State, Michigan State was competitive right down to the very end of EVERY loss this season. As Jeremy stated, sometimes the ball just doesn't bounce your way.)
Defensively, the Iowa game was the defenses’ best showing all year, wouldn’t you agree?
JW: “We played real good versus Iowa. We knew we had a good defense, all about coming out executing, making plays. That’s what we tried to do against Iowa, we tried to do that the whole season.”
The secondary was under a lot of scrutiny all season long, how’d your unit deal with the criticism?
JW: “You just gotta go to practice the next week, keep playing. We all know the secondary is the toughest position to play on the field anyway. A lot of people looked from the outside in, they just see the last person in the picture when they scored a touchdown.”
Danny Fortener and Chris L. Rucker came up big for you guys in the Michigan game, was that a play that unified the secondary?
JW: “It meant a lot to see them make a play like that in the rivalry. It was a good clutch play." Later adding, "the rivalry just grew on me over the 3 1/2 years".
(Even a guy from Florida knows how big this game is/was! As Jeremy put it, the rivalry grew on him over the years, this was a big win for the program, fans, and players alike).
Your name will be forever remembered at Michigan State, you tied the record for most pass break ups with five against NW last year. It has to be a great feeling to be in the books at State, is that your crowning moment at State?
JW: “Just to be to be forever known at Michigan State is a good thing. The most important thing is to graduate.”
You started all 11 games at corner this season, but you hit more like a safety. Would you feel more comfortable as a safety if you’re to go onto the next level?
JW: “When you talk about going to the next level. It be a blessing just to go. I’d feel more comfortable as a safety, but just to go, I’d feel blessed.”
Texas Tech has a dynamic offense, high powered with Taylor Potts leading the charge. Does his 306 ypg intimidate you?
JW: “No, actually, we like situations like this. We like playing against the best, that’s what you sign up for.”
Pat Narduzzi will most assuredly have his hands full with the adjustments he’ll have to make regarding Potts, what’s YOUR plan?
JW: “We haven’t really studied him much. Once we do, we’ll determine how we’ll attack. We don’t really know, we’ll know when the time comes.”
How much did it mean to beat Michigan in back-to-back years, ’08 and ’09?
JW: “The rivalry grows on you, being here for almost 3 ½ years, it became more a big deal.”
Finally, who was the best quarterback in the Big Ten this year?
JW: “I can’t really say, they were all pretty good. In the Big Ten, they all were good, they all come to play. They're all on scholarships."
(Jeremy did agree with me, however, on the fact Kirk Cousins is an NFL caliber signal-caller).
There you have it, directly from the mouth of Jeremy Ware, the hardest hitting Spartan since Nehemiah Warrick.
I'd like to thank Jeremy for his time, and wish the Spartans the best of luck in their upcoming bowl game. Please take the time to read my Alamo Bowl Preview. If this match-up comes to fruition, it'd put the Red Raiders of Texas Tech head-to-head with the Spartans for a duel in the Lonestar State: San Antonio style.
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