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From new guy to team leader
Hard work, focus pay off for former Toledo running back
| Friday, Aug 15 2008 11:23 PM
Last Updated: Monday, Aug 18 2008 2:49 PM
One year ago, Bruce Frieson wasn't even on the Bakersfield College football roster.
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Bruce Frieson
Age: 20 Year: Sophomore
Height, weight: 5-9, 190
Hometown: Cleveland
Position: running back
2007 stats: 174 carries for 1,104 yards and 7 TDs
Major: Education
Career goal: Become a coach
Photos:
Bruce Frieson.
Bakersfield College running back Bruce Frieson carries the football during practice drills Friday.
Bakersfield College football players wait their turn as they participate in kickoff coverage drills on campus Friday afternoon.
A running back from Cleveland who spent his first collegiate year as a grayshirt at the University of Toledo because of Proposition 48, Frieson was encouraged to transfer to BC by the Toledo coaching staff and arrived in Bakersfield in late August, two days before the Renegades had their annual scrimmage versus College of the Sequoias.
Frieson's talent was obvious, BC coach Jeff Chudy said. It was a matter of learning the system, and Frieson was far behind all other running backs because of his late arrival.
"But you could see from Day 1 his work ethic was second to none," said Ken Chapman, BC's running back's coach.
That hard work paid off. By midseason, Frieson's playing time increased. When the season ended, Frieson was only the 12th player in BC's history to top 1,000 yards in a season. He had a team-high 1,104 rushing yards and was a key factor in BC's 12-1 season with several electrifying, big-yardage touchdown runs.
"He wasn't playing that much until our sixth game against Citrus," Chudy said. "From Game 6 to Game 13, he probably had 90 percent of his yards. That's really remarkable."
Frieson has a new role this season: a team leader.
Frieson is trying to take the lessons he learned last year and pass them on to the freshmen joining BC's program this season.
"Pat Patterson and Matt Perralta really made me feel comfortable last year," said Frieson, who grew up in Cleveland's inner city. "When I got here, I was a little homesick. They made me feel at home. They showed me how to run in our system and how I should carry myself, on and off the field."
"He's not a rah-rah type," Chapman said. "He leads by example, and he'll help them one on one off the field. The best leaders are the ones who lead by example."
As a grayshirt at Toledo, Frieson had fewer than 11 units, and his "clock," used by the NCAA to determine the starting point for a Division I athlete's eligibility, didn't start. He has three years of collegiate eligibility remaining and also has a redshirt year available.
But his focus is this season. BC officially began its football practice schedule Friday afternoon, although the players have been busy in a summer school football class since early August. Approximately 120 players were on the practice field Friday.
"I think we'll have a successful season," Frieson said. "All of the hard work, all of the focus everyone is putting into this. We're not thinking about our last game (a season-ending 47-42 loss to Mount San Antonio in the Southern California championship game that ended BC's undefeated season and dashed all hopes of a state championship). We're taking it one practice at a time and getting ready for our first game (vs. Fresno City College on Sept. 6)."
Frieson is one of the few returnees at an offensive skill position. The Renegades need to replace quarterback Jacob Bower, who is now at Tulsa after shattering most of BC's single-season passing records last season, and a receiving crop that saw the team's top three pass catchers (Brandon Banks, Attrail Snipes, Dashan Miller) transfer to Division I schools.
Frieson, Perralta and former East High standout Andre Smith are all listed as tailbacks, and all should be busy this season.
"It's not about one guy getting all the carries," Frieson said. "It's about the whole group. We're learning from each other."
One area Frieson has focused on since arriving at BC is academics.
"I just got in over my head at Toledo," he said, adding that he is on schedule to earn his Associate of Arts degree next spring. "If I'm not on the field, I'm on the books. I knew I needed to man-up."
NOTES
The BC Helmet Club, which benefits the Renegades football program, will hold its kickoff dinner next Saturday at 6:30 p.m. in Memorial Stadium, immediately following an intrasquad scrimmage that begins at 4 p.m. Outback Steakhouse will provide the food and tickets cost $20 each. Tickets are available at Green Frog Markets, Luigi's, Barber Honda, Pavletich Electric, Flashco and Villa Mondavi Apartments. Call 316-5302 for more information.