Persistence Pays Off
November 19, 2003 09:50 AM | General
November 19, 2003
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – West Virginia University junior safety Lawrence Audena once had to convince his father Chancelier that it was okay for him to play football. Now he is starting to reap the benefits of his persistence.
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| Safety Lawrence Audena made a critical interception in last Saturday's game against Pitt to help WVU to a 52-31 victory. (All-Pro Photography/Dale Sparks) |
When Lawrence was little his dad wouldn’t let him play Pop Warner football because he thought the game was too rough for his son. It wasn’t until he caught one of Lawrence’s older brothers sneaking out of the house to go to high school football practice that Chancelier finally relented.
That led to Lawrence playing football as a high school freshman and then eventually winding up at West Virginia where he earned a scholarship to play for the Mountaineers.
Last Saturday night, all of Chancelier’s inhibitions about his son playing football have come full circle. The first message on Lawrence’s cell phone was from his proud papa, who watched Lawrence on television make a critical interception that helped West Virginia defeat Pitt 52-31 Saturday night in the Backyard Brawl.
“I know you’re not going to pick up but nice interception and good job,” was the message Chancelier left for his son during the game.
What a wonderful present for Lawrence to get when he finally made it to the locker room. He got other calls, too.
“I got tons of messages when the game was over,” he said. “Everybody decided to call me which was cool.”
It may have taken Lawrence Audena a little longer than others to make an impact on the Mountaineer program. But make no mistake about it -- he is starting to make a difference.
“Lawrence was my personal player of the game,” said teammate Lance Frazier. “He had a key interception and I believe he caused the interception that I had.”
WVU cornerbacks coach Tony Gibson explains, “Lawrence picked up (Larry) Fitzgerald and they kind of had him bracketed and (Rod) Rutherford scrambled out. Frazier broke down in front of him and Lawrence had him over the top and the ball was right there,” he said. “Lance picked it off and ran it to the one.”
Coaches and players alike have witnessed Audena’s considerable physical talents in practice. Audena’s position coach Bruce Tall goes as far as calling him one of the “best athletes” he has among the safeties.
But having great athletic ability doesn’t necessarily equate into playing time. Audena has found that out the hard way.
“Mentally I wasn’t doing what I had to do,” he admitted. “I wasn’t as focused as I should have been.”
Frazier agrees, “Lawrence has always been a guy that is very capable of making plays for us,” said the senior. “He’s never really had the opportunity and he’s had a couple of problems staying focused and now he’s really maturing and coming around for this ball club.”
And while Audena managed six tackles last year -- mostly on special teams -- and also picked off a pass against Tennessee-Chattanooga, prior to last Saturday’s Pitt game he was perhaps best known for once sporting a distinctive, long hairstyle. The soft-spoken Norwalk, Conn., native finally chose to shave it off during the spring of his sophomore season.
“I had so much hair that my helmet was too close to my face,” he admitted. “I could stick my tongue out and touch my face mask so it got to the point where I had to cut it. Maybe I shouldn’t have cut it all off, maybe just trimmed it down some because my head was kind of cold for a while.”
At least for the time being Audena has sacrificed fashion for safety. Now he is hoping to get more of an opportunity to sacrifice his body at safety.
“I always knew I could do it -- I just needed the opportunity to show myself,” said the 5-foot-11, 190-pounder. “The coaches gave me that and I appreciate it.”
Audena is currently backing up Leandre Washington, but according to Mountaineer head coach Rich Rodriguez that could very well change this week if Audena has a great week of practice.
“I don’t read the papers so I don’t know what he said,” said Audena of his new-found status as a potential starter. “I’m just going to go out and do my best and see how it all works out.”
Bruce Tall, the man presiding over the West Virginia safeties, is exciting about the prospects of now having two seasoned players at one position and another outstanding safety on the other side in Mike Lorello.
“We’re at the point where we want to continue to keep (Audena’s) progress going; you don’t want to slow him down,” said Tall. “By the same token, I’m happy and pleased with the other guys.”
Tall said it was just a matter of Audena believing in himself and continuing to work hard before he got his big break.
“Each week he is progressing and we keep challenging him to do better,” Tall said. “I told him, ‘You just keep hanging in there and be ready because we’ll get you ready.’”
Audena’s opportunity came early in the Pitt game when Washington was sidelined with a minor hip injury. Audena made the most of his chance midway through the third quarter when he intercepted a Rod Rutherford pass at the West Virginia 44 and gave the Mountaineers great field position at the 49. WVU went on to score the go-ahead touchdown.
“Anytime you come off the bench unexpectedly like he did you really have to pat that guy on the back,” said Frazier of Audena’s performance.
In addition to the interception, Audena was also credited with four tackles, a tackle for a loss, and a pass breakup.
“I’ve always believe in him,” said Tall. “He’s an extremely fast player. He’s strong and physical and I think he’s a good cover guy who has improved in the run game.
“If you time him in the forty he’s going to be as fast as anyone but that’s not important as game speed,” Tall added. “If you watch his feet he’s as fast as anyone out there. Speed-wise he can play any of the positions in the back end.”
Now that it appears Lawrence Audena has solidified his status in West Virginia’s two-deep, he certainly has a great deal to work for in practice.
It also means Chancelier Audena will have something important to do, say around noon on Saturday when ESPN2 shows West Virginia’s game against Syracuse.
This game of football may finally be growing on him a little bit.
