University of Minnesota Athletics
A "Peaceful" Journey: Running Back Thomas Tapeh
9/12/2003 12:00:00 AM | Football
To Tapeh, Shepard was a man of wise words. This motto stuck with Tapeh and has become the words he lives by. Tapeh believes that people come into our lives for a reason, and Shepard was one of those people. As Tapeh struggled throughout most of his childhood, he looked to a few special individuals to help guide him to where he is today. Shepard was one of those people. He spoke to Tapeh about his potential, but he also kept his eyes open to other possibilities in case everything did not work out the way Tapeh wished. He kept Tapeh grounded. He basically helped Tapeh realize that if you are at peace with yourself, you have nothing to worry about. Growing up in Liberia, Tapeh's love was for the game of soccer. He brought that passion with him to the United States when his mother and two sisters moved to the Twin Cities in the winter of 1989. Tapeh's mother, Cecily Woiwor, has been his foundation and inspiration. The transition to the United States was not easy for Tapeh. Therefore, the support of Tapeh's family is what got him through the tough times.
"When I came to the U.S. it was a whole new beginning for me," Tapeh said. "I had to learn how to speak English. I was alone. All I had was my mother and sisters. I really did not fit in with the other kids and I did not have any friends. So it was real hard for me. In elementary school, I did the best I could to learn English. But I got in trouble a lot. I was really bad in junior high. But I did not know what to do because I didn't have a father and my mother worked all the time. So, my toughest time was my junior high years and that was when I really had fallen astray." However, the man that got him back on track in junior high was Steven Scroggins. Scroggins was another special person that made a huge impact on Tapeh's life. He was a liaison and basketball coach at Hazel Park Junior High. Scroggins realized that Tapeh had a lot of talent, however he was struggling in school. The only time Tapeh came to school was for soccer. Once the soccer season was over he was gone. Scroggins worked with Tapeh throughout summer school and lectured Tapeh about his potential.
"I didn't think much about his advice, but he told me that I would come around," Tapeh explained. "I took his word for it and I went from straight D's to the A honor roll. He followed me on to Johnson High School and he was my basketball coach. He stayed behind me all the way through. He is the one person I thank God for coming into my life. He has helped many other kids, but not many people have seen that."
For a long time, Tapeh did not want to play football. It did not interest him and he loved soccer. However, he finally realized that he was blessed with the special talent to play football and do great things on the field. He came to the University of Minnesota eager and ready to be the best he could be. However, he hit several roadblocks throughout his journey as a Golden Gopher.
Tapeh was forced to redshirt his freshman year due to academic reasons. In April of 2000, Tapeh suffered a sprain to his Lis Franc joint in his left foot. He needed surgery to repair his foot and it did not heal in time for the start if the 2000 football season. Midway through the 2000 season, Tapeh suffered the same injury to his right foot and had surgery once again. Tapeh then returned for the 2001 season. He missed the first game, but was used mainly as a fullback the remainder of the schedule. In 2002, everything seemed to be behind him. He played in every game and had his best year surpassing 900 yards rushing. Although Tapeh had a few setbacks he believes it was good for him in the long run.
"The injury was a great thing for me," Tapeh explained. "Because even though I did not play like I wanted to, my body did not get banged up. I take it as a blessing. The first time was real tough, but it was a little test. The second time, it really set me back, mentally and physically. I told myself I could not do this anymore. But my mother was by my side the entire time, pushing me to fight through it. And I did."
Tapeh enters the 2003 Gopher football season along side Marion Barber III and Terry Jackson II as one of the strongest and most talented backfields in the nation. The depth at the running back position is crucial to the team's success, and each brings something different to the Gopher offense. "I think we all mesh very well together and I love those guys," Tapeh said. "I couldn't ask for a better group."
Tapeh views himself as a silent leader on the team. Although he may not be a captain, the Gopher coaching staff and the rest of the team view him as one. His teammates look to him for support and encouragement and go to him with questions and expect answers. Tapeh leads by example. He is not the loud, vocal guy in the locker room or on the field. His laid back personality is what brings him the respect that he deserves. Tapeh is looking to have another powerful season. He hopes to lead the Gophers into post-season play and be a part of a great team. Although Tapeh is not one to set goals for himself, he definitely has a mental picture of what he wants to accomplish. "I don't really set goals," Tapeh said. "I have visions of what I want. But I leave it is a vision. If the vision becomes reality, than I am happy for it. But, if I speak abut my vision, than I loose sight of it and it's no longer mine."
In Thomas Tapeh's eyes, the Golden Gopher Football team is ready and eager to be successful. He says they all have a great attitude and Coach Mason has instilled a positive outlook in each and everyone guy on the team. The outsiders don't see how the team interacts on a day-to-day basis. Tapeh says they are a family, and people may not see the other side to the Golden Gophers.
As a team, Tapeh says there are certain goals set. The most important one is to just play hard. Play hard day in and day out. He wants to give the team everything he can. He is looking at every game as a bowl game and he believes that it is crucial for the team to know what it wants and have confidence that they can do whatever it sets its mind to.
"As a team we can keep our goals in sight by knowing what we want," Tapeh explained. "We know what we want. We are confident. We aren't cocky. That is a good thing to have. We just need to keep a positive attitude and play hard."
Thomas Tapeh is man with many strengths on and off the field. As a football player, he is blessed with the talent to do what he wants as long as he puts forth the effort.
"All I have to do is put my mind to it," explained Tapeh. "The hardest thing that Coach Mason says is the mental side. He says that 90 percent is mental. You have all the trials and tribulations off the field, but then you get to the field you have to fight to get in the right frame of mind to play. By then it may be too late. But my biggest thing is just to stay focused."
As a leader, Tapeh is a young man who is there to listen and if there is something he can do, he will be more than willing to lend a helping hand. As a person, Tapeh is blessed with a good heart. He cares about a lot of people and does not take anyone for granted.
Tapeh wants to utilize his strengths in the future by working with kids and helping them the way Shepard and Scroggins helped him. Tapeh graduated last spring with a major in family social science and youth studies and is looking forward to making a difference in children's lives.
"I want to change lives they way Steve (Scroggins) and Von (Shepard) did with me. If they can change my life, I want to be in a position to change many more."
As Tapeh plays in his last season as a Golden Gopher he will look back at his journey and be content with how he got where he is today. One thing he has learned is that "time waits for no one." Tapeh luckily realized early on to enjoy everyday that he steps on the football field.
"As a freshman, you don't think about it or see it," Tapeh explained. "But everyday I go out there I think about how someday it is going to be over with."
Tapeh has been down many bumpy roads throughout his life, but he has remained at peace with himself, which has driven him to be a successful person and an asset to the Golden Gopher Football program.
Written by Media Relations Student Assistant Jessica Fleischmann. She welcomes comments at gophers@umn.edu "If there is no enemy within, the enemy inside can do you no harm," said Von Shepard, who was Thomas Tapeh's academic counselor at Johnson High School in St. Paul.
To Tapeh, Shepard was a man of wise words. This motto stuck with Tapeh and has become the words he lives by. Tapeh believes that people come into our lives for a reason, and Shepard was one of those people. As Tapeh struggled throughout most of his childhood, he looked to a few special individuals to help guide him to where he is today. Shepard was one of those people. He spoke to Tapeh about his potential, but he also kept his eyes open to other possibilities in case everything did not work out the way Tapeh wished. He kept Tapeh grounded. He basically helped Tapeh realize that if you are at peace with yourself, you have nothing to worry about. Growing up in Liberia, Tapeh's love was for the game of soccer. He brought that passion with him to the United States when his mother and two sisters moved to the Twin Cities in the winter of 1989. Tapeh's mother, Cecily Woiwor, has been his foundation and inspiration. The transition to the United States was not easy for Tapeh. Therefore, the support of Tapeh's family is what got him through the tough times.
"When I came to the U.S. it was a whole new beginning for me," Tapeh said. "I had to learn how to speak English. I was alone. All I had was my mother and sisters. I really did not fit in with the other kids and I did not have any friends. So it was real hard for me. In elementary school, I did the best I could to learn English. But I got in trouble a lot. I was really bad in junior high. But I did not know what to do because I didn't have a father and my mother worked all the time. So, my toughest time was my junior high years and that was when I really had fallen astray." However, the man that got him back on track in junior high was Steven Scroggins. Scroggins was another special person that made a huge impact on Tapeh's life. He was a liaison and basketball coach at Hazel Park Junior High. Scroggins realized that Tapeh had a lot of talent, however he was struggling in school. The only time Tapeh came to school was for soccer. Once the soccer season was over he was gone. Scroggins worked with Tapeh throughout summer school and lectured Tapeh about his potential.
"I didn't think much about his advice, but he told me that I would come around," Tapeh explained. "I took his word for it and I went from straight D's to the A honor roll. He followed me on to Johnson High School and he was my basketball coach. He stayed behind me all the way through. He is the one person I thank God for coming into my life. He has helped many other kids, but not many people have seen that."
For a long time, Tapeh did not want to play football. It did not interest him and he loved soccer. However, he finally realized that he was blessed with the special talent to play football and do great things on the field. He came to the University of Minnesota eager and ready to be the best he could be. However, he hit several roadblocks throughout his journey as a Golden Gopher.
Tapeh was forced to redshirt his freshman year due to academic reasons. In April of 2000, Tapeh suffered a sprain to his Lis Franc joint in his left foot. He needed surgery to repair his foot and it did not heal in time for the start if the 2000 football season. Midway through the 2000 season, Tapeh suffered the same injury to his right foot and had surgery once again. Tapeh then returned for the 2001 season. He missed the first game, but was used mainly as a fullback the remainder of the schedule. In 2002, everything seemed to be behind him. He played in every game and had his best year surpassing 900 yards rushing. Although Tapeh had a few setbacks he believes it was good for him in the long run.
"The injury was a great thing for me," Tapeh explained. "Because even though I did not play like I wanted to, my body did not get banged up. I take it as a blessing. The first time was real tough, but it was a little test. The second time, it really set me back, mentally and physically. I told myself I could not do this anymore. But my mother was by my side the entire time, pushing me to fight through it. And I did."
Tapeh enters the 2003 Gopher football season along side Marion Barber III and Terry Jackson II as one of the strongest and most talented backfields in the nation. The depth at the running back position is crucial to the team's success, and each brings something different to the Gopher offense. "I think we all mesh very well together and I love those guys," Tapeh said. "I couldn't ask for a better group."
Tapeh views himself as a silent leader on the team. Although he may not be a captain, the Gopher coaching staff and the rest of the team view him as one. His teammates look to him for support and encouragement and go to him with questions and expect answers. Tapeh leads by example. He is not the loud, vocal guy in the locker room or on the field. His laid back personality is what brings him the respect that he deserves. Tapeh is looking to have another powerful season. He hopes to lead the Gophers into post-season play and be a part of a great team. Although Tapeh is not one to set goals for himself, he definitely has a mental picture of what he wants to accomplish. "I don't really set goals," Tapeh said. "I have visions of what I want. But I leave it is a vision. If the vision becomes reality, than I am happy for it. But, if I speak abut my vision, than I loose sight of it and it's no longer mine."
In Thomas Tapeh's eyes, the Golden Gopher Football team is ready and eager to be successful. He says they all have a great attitude and Coach Mason has instilled a positive outlook in each and everyone guy on the team. The outsiders don't see how the team interacts on a day-to-day basis. Tapeh says they are a family, and people may not see the other side to the Golden Gophers.
As a team, Tapeh says there are certain goals set. The most important one is to just play hard. Play hard day in and day out. He wants to give the team everything he can. He is looking at every game as a bowl game and he believes that it is crucial for the team to know what it wants and have confidence that they can do whatever it sets its mind to.
"As a team we can keep our goals in sight by knowing what we want," Tapeh explained. "We know what we want. We are confident. We aren't cocky. That is a good thing to have. We just need to keep a positive attitude and play hard."
Thomas Tapeh is man with many strengths on and off the field. As a football player, he is blessed with the talent to do what he wants as long as he puts forth the effort.
"All I have to do is put my mind to it," explained Tapeh. "The hardest thing that Coach Mason says is the mental side. He says that 90 percent is mental. You have all the trials and tribulations off the field, but then you get to the field you have to fight to get in the right frame of mind to play. By then it may be too late. But my biggest thing is just to stay focused."
As a leader, Tapeh is a young man who is there to listen and if there is something he can do, he will be more than willing to lend a helping hand. As a person, Tapeh is blessed with a good heart. He cares about a lot of people and does not take anyone for granted.
Tapeh wants to utilize his strengths in the future by working with kids and helping them the way Shepard and Scroggins helped him. Tapeh graduated last spring with a major in family social science and youth studies and is looking forward to making a difference in children's lives.
"I want to change lives they way Steve (Scroggins) and Von (Shepard) did with me. If they can change my life, I want to be in a position to change many more."
As Tapeh plays in his last season as a Golden Gopher he will look back at his journey and be content with how he got where he is today. One thing he has learned is that "time waits for no one." Tapeh luckily realized early on to enjoy everyday that he steps on the football field.
"As a freshman, you don't think about it or see it," Tapeh explained. "But everyday I go out there I think about how someday it is going to be over with."
Tapeh has been down many bumpy roads throughout his life, but he has remained at peace with himself, which has driven him to be a successful person and an asset to the Golden Gopher Football program.
Written by Media Relations Student Assistant Jessica Fleischmann. She welcomes comments at gophers@umn.edu
