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Askew-Henry Getting Comfortable
August 10, 2015 04:01 PM | Football
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. - They say spring is a time for new beginnings. Well, for West Virginia University sophomore free safety Dravon Askew-Henry, it was also a time of self-discovery.
Askew-Henry came to WVU as one of the most prized recruits in the Mountaineers’ 2014 signing class, committing to West Virginia over the likes of Ohio State, Alabama, Penn State, Michigan and Pitt.
He made a rapid ascent toward the top of the depth chart and actually began the season as West Virginia’s starting free safety in the opener against Alabama, which turned out to be an eye-opening experience for the Aliquippa, Pennsylvania, resident, for sure.
“I was thrown in the fire,” he admitted.
“How many young kids can come in and play?” said West Virginia coach Dana Holgorsen. “If your team is in a good place then there is not going to be many.”
West Virginia’s defense was not in an ideal place at the beginning of last year, particularly at free safety where Askew-Henry was asked to make an immediate impact.
He was considered one of top prep safety prospects in the country in 2014 after a stellar four-year career at Aliquippa High where he was twice named first team all-state and won the Mercury Award, presented to the top high school football player in Western Pennsylvania by the Pittsburgh Athletic Association.
Yet despite his lengthy list of accomplishments, Askew-Henry found himself swimming upstream as a true freshman playing a Power 5 conference schedule that included Alabama, Maryland and a full Big 12 slate.
“I pretty much had to learn as I went,” he said. “Each game I got better at something – it could have been something little like my angles or my ball-catching skills.”
Askew-Henry admits it wasn’t until spring practice last April when he finally felt comfortable playing in Tony Gibson’s 3-3 stack defense. Keep in mind, that includes a full 13-game season last year, which is pretty remarkable considering how talented of a player Askew-Henry is.
That just goes to show you how difficult and unforgiving the game of college football can be, especially for young, inexperienced players.
“(Spring football) was when I started getting my confidence up and was feeling like I did back in the day when I was in high school,” he said. “I’ve still got to work on little things, but I could feel myself getting better.”
It wasn’t like Askew-Henry was a bad player last year, though, posting 45 tackles, one tackle for a loss, two pass breakups and a pair of interceptions, including a pick-six in West Virginia’s big win at Oklahoma State last year.
Still, there were times last season when Askew-Henry believed he could have done more.
“Every time I watch film from last year I would say to myself, ‘I should have made this play,’” he noted.
Holgorsen said he has seen a dramatically different player in Askew-Henry so far this fall.
“Night and day from where he was last year,” said Holgorsen. “Last year we didn’t put him on a single special team because he couldn’t handle being a full-time starter as a true freshman and be able to do additional things. There were a lot of times when he was lost last year, even in games he was lost – he wasn’t as physical and he wasn’t triggering the right way. (Now) he looks no different than Karl and KJ out there as far as what to do, breaking on the ball, being a sure tackler, being in the right place at the right time and we’re starting to experiment with a couple of things we can do with him on special teams as well.”
Senior bandit safety Karl Joseph was once in Askew-Henry’s shoes back in 2012 when he was thrown to the wolves as a true freshman, and sensing the burden that was placed on Askew-Henry’s shoulders, he took it upon himself to take Dravon under his wing last year.
“I actually asked to room with him last year so I could be able to talk to him and make sure he understood things because I knew what it was like just being thrown out there as a freshman,” said Joseph.
Joseph said Askew-Henry performed well in his first career college game against the Crimson Tide while going up against the top wide receiver in the country in Amari Cooper.
“I think he did well for his first game but you could tell he was a little nervous,” said Joseph. “I was talking to him after the game and he said he was nervous – not only for his first college game but especially going up against a great program like Alabama.”
Joseph said Askew-Henry’s situation was a little different than his circumstances four years ago when he was a true freshman playing his first college game against Marshall - not only because of the magnitude of the game, but also because Joseph was a young guy on a defense full of young guys trying to learn together what they were doing.
In Askew-Henry’s case, he had several experienced players around him in the lineup when he made his college debut, meaning there was more pressure on him to perform.
Dravon Askew-Henry
“The defense I was playing on my first year wasn’t very good,” Joseph admitted. “It was more like just going out there and trying to make plays; for him it was trying to do your job and make sure you handle your responsibilities.”
Askew-Henry performed well enough last year to earn freshman All-America honors, just as Joseph did in 2012, and he is anxious to show Mountaineer fans what he is truly capable of doing this season with a year’s worth of experience under his belt.
“There has been a lot of growth playing with Karl and (spur safety) KJ (Dillon), and they’re pushing me to toughen me up,” Askew-Henry said, adding, “the game has slowed down a lot for me.”
Joseph sees a bright future for Dravon Askew-Henry in a Mountaineer football uniform, and possibly beyond.
“He’s a great talent and he’s going to be a great player here in the years to come,” Joseph concluded.
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