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University of Minnesota Athletics
Just Give Him the Ball - Junior Laurence Maroney
10/28/2005 12:00:00 AM | Football
Over time, that boy grew into Golden Gopher running back Laurence Maroney. You might not believe it by the media frenzy that has been created around him. Almost every article dealing with Minnesota football makes some mention of the star back. At every press conference, he is bum-rushed by reporters, asked every question under the sun, and asked to think about things that sometimes are not even related to football.
You might not believe it because of his personality. Number 22 has a smile on his face 99 percent of the time, usually yelling or hollering at somebody, singing his new favorite song lyrics, or just clowning around, doing what he does best, which is making others smile. Perhaps you don’t believe it due to the way he carries himself. Maroney walks, talks, lives with a confidence that toes the line of cockiness, but in all reality it is the way of a determined, confident young man.
The reason the whole concept is unbelievable is because for as much attention as he gets, as much as he says, Maroney is heard, but not necessarily understood. What he has accomplished in his career has never been about him; it’s been about football, about his team, about winning.
“I really can’t pay attention to it,” Maroney stated. “I just really have to go out there and do my thing and play my game because I may get attention now, but if we start losing all that attention is going to go away. As long as we are doing well it’s going to be here, and when you leave it’s going to leave with you.
“It’s something that I really don’t even think about. I don’t really care much about the Heisman Trophy. I just want to go out and help this team win the Big Ten Championship. I don’t even know if I’m a Heisman candidate. I’m just going to continue to go out there and do what I do best. That’s run the ball and help this team win.”
It is never Maroney who brings up the Heisman Trophy or the school records he is chasing, and when he’s asked to share his opinion on the topics, he downplays them every time. He is not bigger than this program; he’s a cog in a well-oiled machine. Except that in this machine the cog who wears number 22 is just that much faster than all the rest. Just ask head coach Glen Mason.
“I think the difference is, and I’ve been very fortunate to have good running backs most of my coaching career. The difference with Laurence is in his speed,” Mason recently commented. “He has superior speed; some of the guys may have been a bit stronger. His speed is really something.”
“I just think that I’m alright,” the humble junior said. “I just do, what any other back would do behind this line and in this program. It’s set up to where anybody can do what I do. With this line we have great downfield blocking. With this offense any good running back can rush for a bunch of yards.
“I just feel that half the stuff I do isn’t that special. Anybody can do it. Gary Russell, Amir Pinnix, Jay Thomas, they can all do this, and get the job done because the line is just that good. They make it just that much easier for me.”
The thing is that running the football comes easy for Laurence Maroney. He has a great deal of God-given athletic talent, and has learned what it takes to become a big-time running back. Regardless of how many times he’ll give credit to his linemen, he still has earned the reputation of a big-play back, who can take it the distance at any time.
However, life at the U of M is not all peaches and cream for the Gophers’ superstar running back. People forget that he is not just here to carry a football. He has to go to class, watch film, lift weights, write papers, meet with academic counselors, do interviews with the press, go to treatment with the trainers, and most importantly eat and sleep. For most collegiate athletes the concept of free time is nothing but a myth, and Maroney is no exception.
“Time management is tough,” he said. “So many people expect so much of your time that you really have to learn how to deal with it. You have to do this at this time, do that at that time, and still try to find time to do homework. Time management has been a little bit of a problem, but I’ve got it down, so I’ve been alright.”
The amazing part about it is even with so much weight on his shoulders, Maroney acts as if he doesn’t have a care in the world. His ability to see the positive in any situation and joke around with just about everybody is what makes him the likeable guy that he is. Whether it is trying to get starting quarterback Bryan Cupito to ride double with him on his moped to give Coach Mason a scare, or joking with beat reporters that he’s not answering their questions anymore, the guy is full of hilarious antics. Even after the difficult loss to Penn State earlier in the year, it wasn’t long before Maroney’s old smile was out and about again.
“You have to make everything fun; I could never get too serious about anything,” Maroney said. “If we lose, it hits me, but there’s no point in being sad and hanging your head down. That stuff isn’t going to bring that loss back; it’s not going to change it to a win. “I have to stay positive about everything. I try to make everything a game, because that’s basically what it is, and you have to have fun with it. When you take the fun away from the game, you are not going to play as well. I try to get everybody up, have fun, relax, and just go out there and play ball.”
The most serious side of Maroney is his relationship with his family, especially with his mom Terri Terrell. As a single mother, she did a tremendous job instilling in Laurence his morals and virtues and guiding him down the right paths, so that he could become all that he is today.
“She’s been my everything. Anything I ever wanted to know or did know she told me, or tried to tell me,” Maroney said. “She’s always been there whenever I needed her. I didn’t have a father; she was my father. She’s just been everything for me.”
Ms. Terrell is not only his role model and confidant; she’s also his number one fan, making it to nearly every game. That kind of support has made it easy for Maroney to stay focused and work hard at achieving his dreams.
“I’d never been away from her until college,” Maroney said. “I always wanted to go somewhere close, where I could see her all the time, but I still have good family support. She’s basically up here every week, and at every game.”
With 2005 bringing an increase in carries and a bigger role in the offense, a lot of the hard work that Maroney had to do was in the weight room. Playing in a physical conference like the Big Ten, a running back who is going to handle 70 to 80 percent of the team’s carries has to be durable. Maroney claims that all the lifting and working out has allowed him to stay fresh even after weeks like the Purdue game, where he carried for a career high 46 carries and 217 yards.
“I worked hard in the off-season putting on weight to help endure this pounding,” he said. “It’s something that at first I had to get used to, carrying the ball a lot, but I got used to it. Everything’s still the same.”
Maroney has proven that he’s for real. He’s demonstrated that he’s more than just a finesse back. He has the ability to take over a game, yet having the humility to give credit to others for helping him prosper. He has gained so much acclaim, that he is considered a legitimate Heisman Trophy candidate and a potential NFL first round draft pick. This is all old news to those who follow Golden Gopher football. What may be new news to those same people is that if it wasn’t the main story every week in the papers, or on the news, Maroney might not even think about it.
“You just have to take things one day at a time,” Maroney said. “I just go day in and day out, work hard in practice, try to learn this stuff and get my schoolwork done. So, I just try to keep my focus on what is in front of me.”
One can guarantee that Golden Gopher fans, coaches, players and staff appreciate all that Laurence Maroney has done already, and hope that he can continue to keep doing what he’s been doing for as many games as possible. And if you remember one thing about that little boy from St. Louis, let it be that he could play football, that he could play great, nothing more, nothing less.
Story written by Dominic Ladd, athletic communications graduate assistant Growing up in St. Louis around ten years ago there was a little boy who loved football. A little guy who dreamed of scoring touchdowns, of leading his team to victory, of doing the things that make fans’ jaws drop and cheer uncontrollably. He just wanted to play football. Nothing more, nothing less.
Over time, that boy grew into Golden Gopher running back Laurence Maroney. You might not believe it by the media frenzy that has been created around him. Almost every article dealing with Minnesota football makes some mention of the star back. At every press conference, he is bum-rushed by reporters, asked every question under the sun, and asked to think about things that sometimes are not even related to football.
You might not believe it because of his personality. Number 22 has a smile on his face 99 percent of the time, usually yelling or hollering at somebody, singing his new favorite song lyrics, or just clowning around, doing what he does best, which is making others smile. Perhaps you don’t believe it due to the way he carries himself. Maroney walks, talks, lives with a confidence that toes the line of cockiness, but in all reality it is the way of a determined, confident young man.
The reason the whole concept is unbelievable is because for as much attention as he gets, as much as he says, Maroney is heard, but not necessarily understood. What he has accomplished in his career has never been about him; it’s been about football, about his team, about winning.
“I really can’t pay attention to it,” Maroney stated. “I just really have to go out there and do my thing and play my game because I may get attention now, but if we start losing all that attention is going to go away. As long as we are doing well it’s going to be here, and when you leave it’s going to leave with you.
“It’s something that I really don’t even think about. I don’t really care much about the Heisman Trophy. I just want to go out and help this team win the Big Ten Championship. I don’t even know if I’m a Heisman candidate. I’m just going to continue to go out there and do what I do best. That’s run the ball and help this team win.”
It is never Maroney who brings up the Heisman Trophy or the school records he is chasing, and when he’s asked to share his opinion on the topics, he downplays them every time. He is not bigger than this program; he’s a cog in a well-oiled machine. Except that in this machine the cog who wears number 22 is just that much faster than all the rest. Just ask head coach Glen Mason.
“I think the difference is, and I’ve been very fortunate to have good running backs most of my coaching career. The difference with Laurence is in his speed,” Mason recently commented. “He has superior speed; some of the guys may have been a bit stronger. His speed is really something.”
“I just think that I’m alright,” the humble junior said. “I just do, what any other back would do behind this line and in this program. It’s set up to where anybody can do what I do. With this line we have great downfield blocking. With this offense any good running back can rush for a bunch of yards.
“I just feel that half the stuff I do isn’t that special. Anybody can do it. Gary Russell, Amir Pinnix, Jay Thomas, they can all do this, and get the job done because the line is just that good. They make it just that much easier for me.”
The thing is that running the football comes easy for Laurence Maroney. He has a great deal of God-given athletic talent, and has learned what it takes to become a big-time running back. Regardless of how many times he’ll give credit to his linemen, he still has earned the reputation of a big-play back, who can take it the distance at any time.
However, life at the U of M is not all peaches and cream for the Gophers’ superstar running back. People forget that he is not just here to carry a football. He has to go to class, watch film, lift weights, write papers, meet with academic counselors, do interviews with the press, go to treatment with the trainers, and most importantly eat and sleep. For most collegiate athletes the concept of free time is nothing but a myth, and Maroney is no exception.
“Time management is tough,” he said. “So many people expect so much of your time that you really have to learn how to deal with it. You have to do this at this time, do that at that time, and still try to find time to do homework. Time management has been a little bit of a problem, but I’ve got it down, so I’ve been alright.”
The amazing part about it is even with so much weight on his shoulders, Maroney acts as if he doesn’t have a care in the world. His ability to see the positive in any situation and joke around with just about everybody is what makes him the likeable guy that he is. Whether it is trying to get starting quarterback Bryan Cupito to ride double with him on his moped to give Coach Mason a scare, or joking with beat reporters that he’s not answering their questions anymore, the guy is full of hilarious antics. Even after the difficult loss to Penn State earlier in the year, it wasn’t long before Maroney’s old smile was out and about again.
“You have to make everything fun; I could never get too serious about anything,” Maroney said. “If we lose, it hits me, but there’s no point in being sad and hanging your head down. That stuff isn’t going to bring that loss back; it’s not going to change it to a win. “I have to stay positive about everything. I try to make everything a game, because that’s basically what it is, and you have to have fun with it. When you take the fun away from the game, you are not going to play as well. I try to get everybody up, have fun, relax, and just go out there and play ball.”
The most serious side of Maroney is his relationship with his family, especially with his mom Terri Terrell. As a single mother, she did a tremendous job instilling in Laurence his morals and virtues and guiding him down the right paths, so that he could become all that he is today.
“She’s been my everything. Anything I ever wanted to know or did know she told me, or tried to tell me,” Maroney said. “She’s always been there whenever I needed her. I didn’t have a father; she was my father. She’s just been everything for me.”
Ms. Terrell is not only his role model and confidant; she’s also his number one fan, making it to nearly every game. That kind of support has made it easy for Maroney to stay focused and work hard at achieving his dreams.
“I’d never been away from her until college,” Maroney said. “I always wanted to go somewhere close, where I could see her all the time, but I still have good family support. She’s basically up here every week, and at every game.”
With 2005 bringing an increase in carries and a bigger role in the offense, a lot of the hard work that Maroney had to do was in the weight room. Playing in a physical conference like the Big Ten, a running back who is going to handle 70 to 80 percent of the team’s carries has to be durable. Maroney claims that all the lifting and working out has allowed him to stay fresh even after weeks like the Purdue game, where he carried for a career high 46 carries and 217 yards.
“I worked hard in the off-season putting on weight to help endure this pounding,” he said. “It’s something that at first I had to get used to, carrying the ball a lot, but I got used to it. Everything’s still the same.”
Maroney has proven that he’s for real. He’s demonstrated that he’s more than just a finesse back. He has the ability to take over a game, yet having the humility to give credit to others for helping him prosper. He has gained so much acclaim, that he is considered a legitimate Heisman Trophy candidate and a potential NFL first round draft pick. This is all old news to those who follow Golden Gopher football. What may be new news to those same people is that if it wasn’t the main story every week in the papers, or on the news, Maroney might not even think about it.
“You just have to take things one day at a time,” Maroney said. “I just go day in and day out, work hard in practice, try to learn this stuff and get my schoolwork done. So, I just try to keep my focus on what is in front of me.”
One can guarantee that Golden Gopher fans, coaches, players and staff appreciate all that Laurence Maroney has done already, and hope that he can continue to keep doing what he’s been doing for as many games as possible. And if you remember one thing about that little boy from St. Louis, let it be that he could play football, that he could play great, nothing more, nothing less.
Story written by Dominic Ladd, athletic communications graduate assistant
