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football Edit

Blasko talks about recruiting

Earlier this month Jayhawk Slant got a chance to talk with tight ends coach Jeff Blasko. At the time, the coaches had just gotten finished with signing day and hadn't yet watched much tape on the current players on the team. Blasko has worked with Rob Ianello and Ron Powlus as a graduate assistant at Arkon and last year got the opportunity to learn under Charlie Weis as a quality control coach at Florida.
Blasko on Charlie Weis …
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He is very tough, very demanding, and very honest. I think he gets that reputation because of his honesty. He is going to tell it like it is. He is very intelligent, and one of the most creative individuals I have ever seen. He is also very loyal. I am fired up to continue to work for him. I have tried to keep up with him mentally and he is so smart and intelligent and he is always thinking ahead. One of his best characteristics is his poise in adverse situations. When things don't go extremely well he does an outstanding job of keeping his cool in particular on game day. Last year we were playing Division I-AA Furman at Florida and they had a two touchdown lead on us. Everybody was in kind of a panic that this shouldn't be happening and he kept his cool and his poise. He kept everybody in line and we were able to come back and win the game. I can be chaotic at times when things don't go well so I have learned from him and I know I can continue to improve in that area.
Blasko on Weis' football intelligence…
Again, he is really creative. For example with protection, if you have a defensive lineman who is going to create some problems and he will create something where the running backs will prove some chip help and he will design a formation that is just unbelievable in putting his players in a position to be successful. That's the beauty of his offensive system is it tailors around what his players do well.
Blasko on the interview process…
We had talked through the holiday period and Coach Muschamp had elevated me to quarterbacks coach at the University of Florida for the bowl game. Really there wasn't much of an interview process because I had already worked for Coach Weis and he knows what I am about. He knows I am going to run through the wall for him and do everything I need to do.
Blasko on his recruiting responsibilities…
I wasn't hired until January 11th so my main involvement was with the tight end recruits Charles Brooks and Jordan Smith. Building a relationship and getting connected with those guys as quick as possible. For the 2013 class I am going to be out on the west coast recruiting all the junior colleges in the state of California. In addition to that I am going to be recruiting all the junior colleges in the state of Arizona. I think recruiting comes down to work ethic and building relationships. From a work ethic standpoint, there may be coaches who work as hard as I do but none harder. I take pride in that. I am looking forward to building relationships and communicating with as many people on the west coast as I possibly can.
Blasko on his previous recruiting experience…
At Florida I was the quality control coach so I wasn't allowed to partake in any of the recruiting responsibilities. At Arkon, Rob Ianello who would send me out on the road and it helped me get experience in recruiting prospects and that was a great experience for me. I am looking forward to taking the challenge head on.
Blasko on Charles Brooks…
We are excited because he can attack all three levels of the defense from a pass catching standpoint. He runs extremely well. He is a high character kid. He is very mature. We are very excited because we feel he can come in and compete and help us right away.
Blasko on Jordan Smith…
You turn on the tape and see that he runs extremely well. He runs like a wide receiver. To be honest at the point of attack he does a nice job from the tight end position. At defensive end you see him shed blocks and chasing things down from the backside. That excited me and anytime you get a guy who is 6-4 or 6-5 and is 240 pounds it is wise to take him. He is a high character guy who comes from a great family and I am excited to coach him.
Blasklo on working with Scott Holsopple at Florida…
Coach Holsopple is the type of guy you can drop out of a helicopter into the jungle and he will survive. He is very intense and there couldn't be a better guy for that job here.
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