Geary Gears Up For Seventh - And Final - Season in Maroon and Gold
Ameer Eldomiatti, Student Assistant
8/31/2022
Clay Geary has been with the Gophers football team for a long time. So long in fact, he outdates P.J. Fleck and his staff in regards to duration of time spent with the program.
“It’s been a long time coming,” said Geary, who enters his final season after being a redshirt freshman in 2016. “But it’s special to be able to gain all this experience and do it playing the game I love.”
Most college athletes do not get to play their chosen sport for seven years, but Geary – after receiving extra years of eligibility due the Covid-19 pandemic and injury – still displays an extraordinary level of passion, commitment and resilience for the game. So much so that he still has those pinch-me moments that he is still playing college football.
“If you had told me as a walk-on, redshirt freshman back in 2016 that I would still be here seven years later, I would not have believed you,” he said.
Geary is entering his seventh season as a contributor to the offense after missing the 2021 season due to a knee injury he suffered in preseason training camp. He relied heavily on his faith to help him overcome the injury and to power him through his winding journey these past seven years. He has used his many experiences while with the Gophers to help mold his mindset in a more resolved way.
“In hindsight, I wouldn’t change a thing about my journey,” he said. “I think with a lot of pain and suffering, you get to experience joy at the other end. And I feel faster than I did before I tore my ACL, which is a blessing. These journeys that we go through in life, they ultimately shape us to who we are. I am grateful for the adversity I have been through because it has allowed me to really mature and develop physically, emotionally and spiritually.”
The manner to which Geary has prepared his mindset heading into the 2022 season has evolved from where it might have been in past seasons.
“For me, the biggest thing is just centering my faith,” said the Lakeville, Minn., native. “Having that being the focus of all my preparation. If I don’t have that right first, how can I possibly expect to be the best player I can be? Football is just a tool for me to grow.”
Geary’s grounded perspective has helped him overcome adversities and has helped him evolve into a crucial contributor.
For two of his seven years in college, Geary was roommates with friends and teammates Thomas Barber, Carter Coughlin, Kamal Martin and Antoine Winfield Jr. Coughlin, Martin and Winfield have all played in the NFL and Barber is now a graduate assistant with the Gophers.
“The first word that comes to mind thinking about Clay is that he’s a grinder” said Barber. “I remember the first time hearing of him; he wasn’t invited to camp initially, and when he came to camp, he had fresh legs. I remember coming back in to the defensive room and hearing people talk about how there was this guy named Clay who was just running around so swift and so aggressive. From that moment on, I just knew he was always going to be a grinder.”
Barber made it clear how selfless of a person Geary is both on and off of the field. He also shared some fond memories from their time playing and living together. Barber said that Geary was the cleanest of the five roommates, but that he also did not mind getting dirty when it was time to help others.
“Our relationship developed into a true friendship,” said Barber. “We went to Carter Coughlin’s cabin, the whole freshmen class, and Carter’s boat got stuck. It got stuck in the middle of the lake, and Clay swam under the boat, cleaned out whatever it is that was under there and helped us get home safely.”
The group formed a quick bond that will stand the test of time, in spite of them all being in different places in their careers.
“We always talk about how we wish we could run it back for just one week,” said Barber. “Clay and I will see Carter, Antoine and Kamal playing on Sunday we’ll be like ‘jeez, look at those plays’ and now this season we get the chance to watch Clay continue to play, and I get to watch him live.”
Although Geary is the last of the group to remain on the Gophers, he is still representing his former roommates and helping lead the team.
“It feels like a long time ago since when we were together,” said Geary. “We all have our own unique paths and I’m glad Thomas came back and is now coaching at Minnesota. I love getting to see him every day. It’s great to see his smile and being able to really let his light shine as a coach because that was something he was gifted with. He’s going to be a great asset for Gopher football. I am so happy for Carter, Kamal and Antoine. Those guys earned everything they got.”
Geary has kept in touch with all of his former roommates – the ones who were at Target Field with him in 2019 when he was put on scholarship – and he even convinced Martin to take up golfing, which has long been a passion for Geary.
That’s Geary though, always encouraging others to try something new and always putting the team first.
“From a team perspective, we feel like this is one of the stronger teams we have had,” he said. “We has a lot of guys coming back. The goal for the team is to just live up to the potential that we have and be able to play and execute at the level that we should. From an individual standpoint, for me I just want to leave it all out there and have the peace of mind knowing that I did everything I could to be the best player I could be. I don’t really pay attention to individual stats or details.
“Being a player here for seven years you definitely learn a lot. I started out having all of these goals and trying to do all these different things. But now, I’ve kind of morphed into thinking from a bigger picture of just being the best player that I can be, and not leaving anything out there that I regret.”
While Geary suits up for one final season with the Gophers, he knows that change is coming soon. And college has prepared him for that as well.
Geary is working on completing his master’s degree and had a recent internship with TrueNorth Financial Solutions, where he spent time gaining experience with mergers, capital finance and private equity.
It is a field he could certainly see himself working in one day, but first there is as season to be played. For Clay Geary, it will be his seventh – and last – as a Gopher.
