Eric Peterman's 2008 Spring Blog
Throughout Northwestern's spring season, senior wide receiver Eric Peterman (Sherman, Ill./Springfield Sacred Heart-Griffin) will share his thoughts on the Wildcat football team. Peterman starred for the 'Cats in 2007, leading the team in receptions (66 catches for 744 yards, 3 TD's) and earning the team's co-MVP honors. He also was named a second-team All-Big Ten selection by Rivals.com. Check back on this page throughout the month of April for Eric's updates.
April 10, 2008 Thirty degrees and spitting rain is not exactly a receiver's top choice for a weather forecast. Cold plus rain does not equal a great day for passing the football. Throwing a simple hitch route can become a daunting task for a quarterback. Catching a wet football with wet gloves can be a very challenging duty for a wideout. Needless to say, trying to pass the football this morning was a little more difficult than usual. There were dropped passes by receivers, drops by running backs -- of course there were dropped passes by defensive players, but we expect that -- and issues with the center-quarterback exchanges. Playing in the rain is something that you cannot let affect you if you want to be a great team. While practicing in great weather conditions may allow you to play your best, playing in the rain is something that a football player needs to deal with. Consequently, anytime it rains we try to practice outside to put ourselves in the most difficult of conditions. As Coach Johns would say, "Wet ball drills win football games!" In addition to practice, schoolwork is stacking up fast even though it is only the second week of the spring quarter. Trimesters go by so quickly that it forces you to stay on top of your work from the first week of class or you will fall behind in a hurry. Having problem sets due on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday every week is really forcing me to stay on top of my studies this quarter. The late-night study and homework sessions have already begun as my fellow athlete-industrial engineers and I were huddled inside of the Technological Institute computer labs last night until the wee hours of the morning trying to figure out the solutions to Mark Daskin's Service Operations Management problem set. Being a Northwestern industrial ngineer and an NCAA student-athlete creates a busy and sleep-deprived lifestyle, but I think I speak for all of us in saying that we wouldn't have it any other way. In addition to class work, finding a job or internship is vital in the development of an engineer. Without work experience, it is extremely difficult to find a job in any industry post-college, and playing football year-round makes this a complicated chore. A seven-week summer is not sufficient time for a serious summer internship, especially since most players workout twice a day, take summer school and also participate in 7-on-7 sessions sprinkled in three times a week. This extremely busy schedule is not very attractive to potential employers. Last summer I landed two internships but was unable to accept either of them because of the time commitment to football. The process of scheduling and planning our short summers can be very hectic. By the time we finalize our plans, we look up to find Coach Cush and Coach Jerry Brown escorting us onto buses for a family vacation to Kenosha, Wis. The great thing about Coach Fitzgerald is he understands the importance of preparing us for life. He prepares us not only for Iowa, Michigan or Illinois every Saturday but he molds us into successful human beings that will thrive beyond football. On Monday, Coach Fitz organized a panel of former Wildcats, who are now flourishing in the working world, to come speak to us about what it takes to succeed in the business world. The panel consisted of lawyers (Ray Bogenrief and Josh Kolar), investment bankers (Sam Valenzisi), an ESPN marketing department representative (Doug Szymul), and real estate agents (Jeff Dyra and Hugh Williams). We had a great question-and-answer session that lasted nearly two hours with these awesome guys. The tips they gave and the advice they passed down to us are invaluable. They stressed points of networking, relationships, and how well-prepared and well-rounded we are becoming because of the activities that we partake in everyday. They opened our eyes and provided us with great examples of how football prepares us for situations that we will encounter in the future. While Sam dominated the conversation and told us his whole life story beginning in the womb, he did present a great example that illustrates how football can help us prepare for working for a company, (Sam speaking to a co-worker about his experiences as a football player) "Imagine your boss filming your every action from the moment you step into your office every morning until the time you clock out every night. The following morning you have a meeting with all of your friends, peers and your boss. Your boss will review the film from the day before and critique you on it, yelling and screaming in your face about anything and everything you did wrong. This is a small taste of what it's like to be a football player." I think it's safe to say that this is a unique experience we get as football players that will help us remain composed and prepared with different situations in life. Let's not get ahead ourselves, however. Sometimes people these days try to grow up too fast. While preparing for our future we can't let the present pass us by. Before we get our panties in a wad because we didn't get the perfect internship for the summer, we will take our frustrations out in Rock Band over at Woody's (Mark Woodsum) place while not listening to Dinard preach to us about all of his philosophical ideas. We will have our fun in the "Palace," but we know that when it's time to work. We all have the same goal, and while we are here, we're going to do everything in our power to achieve that goal. So, "when it's time to go, it's time to go." It has already started, but it continues on Saturday … The road to Pasadena. - EP
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