Justin Wilcox discusses Jaydn Ott
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00 Do you have concerns about him adding weight or is that a good thing?
00:03 >> No, not necessarily.
00:06 We don't have that concern with him.
00:08 He doesn't look overweight by any means.
00:10 Jayden's an explosive player.
00:14 He's had some great moments here and
00:17 we still think there's room for him to get better.
00:22 And I think he feels the same and we're gonna count on him.
00:27 We also wanna make sure that we gotta have more than one running back
00:33 that we can count on.
00:34 And he's been here a little while now and Jayden's one of the older guys,
00:40 even though it's only his third year.
00:42 And I think he is embracing that and he's grown as a not only a player but
00:49 as a person here and will continue to do so.
00:52 And obviously his play will earn the respect of his teammates and
01:00 his peers and also realizing that his actions off the field,
01:05 what he does in the workouts and the weight room and
01:08 what he does off the field can really make a difference and influence in others.
01:15 And so I think he takes that seriously and like all guys, we can all improve.
01:21 He can keep improving and so can his teammates, but
01:24 I'm glad that he's embracing that and it's important to him.
01:28 >> In terms of off the field stuff, as an example to his teammates,
01:32 what do you see that you like there?
01:35 >> Well, I think it's when you first get here, you're really trying to figure
01:40 things out and make sure you're in the right places and doing the right things.
01:45 And handling school and what you're doing off the field is productive.
01:51 And the older you get and you kind of you catch your rhythm and
01:55 you realize that some of the younger guys, maybe they could use a little
02:00 bit of help that maybe somebody gave you when you first got here.
02:04 And so that's part of that growing up process and that development
02:10 process is once you realize that you can impact somebody else on the team and
02:15 help them achieve their goals and whether it's what you're doing,
02:20 how you take care of your body outside of workouts and the sleep you're getting.
02:27 And what you're doing off the field, last night we had a professional round table
02:31 at about 50 players and 20 professionals from all different walks of life and
02:36 incredibly impressive group.
02:37 And we had people in real estate and civic service and tech and media.
02:42 And these people are very, very successful and we don't make it mandatory for
02:48 the players, but these are people that they can create networks with for
02:53 their time that's coming after football, whenever that might be.
02:58 And I mean, there's Jaden front and center engaging in that and
03:01 taking advantage of what Cal has to offer off the football field.
03:05 So I think people recognize that and when he takes it serious,
03:08 he's a guy that does have a future playing football.
03:11 He's conscious about some other things off the field.
03:16 So I think that moments like that,
03:18 I think will influence other guys on the team in a positive way.
03:23 >> And do you think it was the weight gain something you guys talked about as a whole,
03:27 all of you, his coaches, the training people or something he decided to do?
03:31 Because maybe he would need it for the future at the next level.
03:35 >> I think you probably wanna carry as much good weight as you can without losing
03:39 your explosiveness and quickness.
03:41 He's no different.
03:44 Football is a really physical game, playing running backs, a physical position.
03:48 And you wanna have the ability to sustain elite play,
03:53 the entire game, the entire season.
03:57 And I think that's one thing that most players when they come in here,
04:01 especially as high schoolers, can work on.
04:04 Is gaining good weight, continuing to be as explosive and fast as possible, but
04:09 understanding this is a very physical game.
04:11 And the games and the seasons are long, and you gotta be robust.
04:18 And I think he's taken that to heart and
04:22 done a good job of addressing some of that and trying to improve himself.
04:26 >> In what ways do you expect he might be better than he's been?
04:30 >> Well, I think the ability to carry the ball,
04:36 there's a couple times late in the year where he carried it a lot more.
04:40 I think finishing games, being able to finish games,
04:46 play more consistently throughout the year, he's had great moments.
04:49 We all know that, he's an explosive player.
04:51 And then doing that week in and week out, and the consistency.
04:55 And I think that would be the goal for Jaden.
04:58 And that's just the next step in his development,
05:01 is being that explosive threat.
05:05 Down in, down out, game in, game out,
05:07 understanding we still have to have more than one running back.
05:10 But a guy that can do that on a week to week basis.
05:15 >> And when you, pardon me, when you look at him, do you think to yourself,
05:19 we've really got a special player here.
05:21 I mean, this is not a guy you get every year.
05:23 >> Yeah, Jaden is a very talented young man, there's no doubt about it.
05:30 And we're gonna make sure that Jaden has the opportunity to touch the ball.
05:35 I think we've talked about this before, and utilize his talent.
05:39 And also continue to build the offense and
05:43 threaten people in different ways.
05:46 So it's not just Jaden, for example, and it's not just the run game,
05:52 it's the RPO game, it's the pass game.
05:56 And I think when you have a guy like that, can run the ball and
06:00 create explosive plays, then we gotta be able to take advantage of that.
06:03 And then create some opportunities elsewhere on offense.
06:06 [BLANK_AUDIO]