When the ball is in his hands, IU commit and freshman-to-be Shane Covington expects to smell the end-zone. The 6’0”, 181 lb running back/wide receiver out of Milwaukee Riverside (WI) committed to Indiana University back in early August of 2007 after forming a relationship with then-running backs coach Gerald Brown. Since then, Brown moved on to the NFL, but Covington is still IU-bound and expects to help the Hoosiers in many ways.
Covington excelled in both football and track in high school
Covington racked up over 600 passing yards and 500 rushing yards as a senior and 478 yards receiving his junior year, in addition to ranking among the nation’s best in track (triple jump and long jump). He is one of several highly talented athletes that Lynch is bringing in to improve the team’s overall speed and explosiveness.
Here’s what Covington had to say about his recruitment and playing for IU next year:
On the main factors that drew him to IU:
I’d have to say the coaching staff. The coaches, they’re real for the players…I feel like I got a good connection with every coach, and I just feel like they’re part of my family.
On if Gerald Brown’s departure for the NFL made him second-guess the decision:
Not really, I just thought it was kind of a downfall, just because I wouldn’t have came in with the same coach, as far as the type of coach he is, and everything. Now they brought in Coach [Dennis]Springer, and he seems like he fits… I expected it, I expected to go there and work hard.
On if he followed IU at all before being recruited:
Yea, I did, kind of, because [current IU safety] Nick Polk went to a high school in Milwaukee, so yes, I followed IU.
CM: So you played back with him in high school?
Yea, when he was a senior I was a freshman, and I played against him.
CM: That must have been fun.
(laughs) Yea…
On what he’s been working on this spring:
Basically I’ve just been working on my grades, as far as school next year, being eligible and everything like that, staying on track with grades. Obviously, I’ve been staying in the weight room, and working on my speed and stuff like that. I’ve got a trainer that I work with, we work Monday, Wednesday, Friday. I’m just trying to staying focused and getting ready for the season.
On what he brings to the field:
I just try to make things happen…I’ve got that big play mentality, I want to take it to the house every play. I think that’s what my biggest thing is, as far as mentality-wise. As for as my natural ability, I’m a bob-and-weave type of back, I just try and make people miss.
On what position he was recruited for:
It was half and half, the main ones were wide receiver and running back. As long as I’m on the offensive side of the ball…I like to play receiver, I like to catch the ball, and I like to play running back. I think as long as I’m on the offensive side of the ball, that’d be the best thing.
On if the coaching staff has mentioned moving him around position-wise:
No, I haven’t talked to them on that level yet. Every time I see the
coaches, we take it one step at a time. By the time I get here I’ll have a better idea of what’s going on. I know probably right now they’re worried about grades and making sure I’m staying focused on coming here.
On whether or not Indiana will improve on its stellar season last year:
Yea, I think so. I think we’re gonna come out here, everybody’s gonna work hard, gonna have to do their part. We’ll just take it one step at a time, one game at a time, one play at a time, and I think we’ll be hard to beat.
On what excites him most about coming to IU:
I think just being part of a new environment, meeting new people, and getting in a new situation, playing football, and going to school. Just meeting new people and getting new experiences down there, a new town and new faces.
Covington is considering studying kinesiology or sports management here at IU.
Special thanks to Shane for this interview!
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