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Great read…
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-> “I was very close with him,” Swenson said during a conversation in the UConn football linebackers meeting room recently. “What I struggled with the most was that I didn't know how to handle it. So what I did was, I went back for the funeral, did all that, and then came back here and just …” Swenson snapped his fingers.
“I started putting my head down and grinding,” he continued. “I really didn't grieve as much. It took me a while to figure out how to deal with it. It was helpful that I was around a bunch of people I had been with for a few months at that point. I was in a new environment and football kept me busy. Morning, get up, go, treatments, class. I had such a full schedule to help ease that. And I had built great relationships here.” <-
-> So while it’s easy to ask Swenson why he stuck it out as a UConn football player for six years as the program struggled at historic levels, it’s probably more appropriate to wonder why he would have ever left. Swenson calls his football experience the “cherry on top” of an overall educational experience that has shaped his life by guiding him through a most trying time. Being at UConn, even as a member of a football program gone awry, gave him direction and purpose when he needed them most. <-
-> “My mind always goes to Ian,” Mora said. “He's been through so much, but he just hung in there. … He's inspirational to everybody. Ian's had his battles on and off the field that everyone understands and has seen first-hand. He's kind of that pillar. Like, this is the guy that stuck it out. This is the guy that walks in every morning with a smile on his face. This is the guy who is always saying, 'Tell me how to get better,' and 'Yes,' and works hard every day. You can count on him. On the field, he's consistent. He's dependable. He's likable. The players like him and really respect him. So we point to him a lot. And I think a lot of these guys feel a responsibility to Ian — and to others, but primarily to Ian, to send him out the right way. Because he's the guy whose been here the longest and been through the most.” <-
Alternate access link here <<
-> “I was very close with him,” Swenson said during a conversation in the UConn football linebackers meeting room recently. “What I struggled with the most was that I didn't know how to handle it. So what I did was, I went back for the funeral, did all that, and then came back here and just …” Swenson snapped his fingers.
“I started putting my head down and grinding,” he continued. “I really didn't grieve as much. It took me a while to figure out how to deal with it. It was helpful that I was around a bunch of people I had been with for a few months at that point. I was in a new environment and football kept me busy. Morning, get up, go, treatments, class. I had such a full schedule to help ease that. And I had built great relationships here.” <-
-> So while it’s easy to ask Swenson why he stuck it out as a UConn football player for six years as the program struggled at historic levels, it’s probably more appropriate to wonder why he would have ever left. Swenson calls his football experience the “cherry on top” of an overall educational experience that has shaped his life by guiding him through a most trying time. Being at UConn, even as a member of a football program gone awry, gave him direction and purpose when he needed them most. <-
-> “My mind always goes to Ian,” Mora said. “He's been through so much, but he just hung in there. … He's inspirational to everybody. Ian's had his battles on and off the field that everyone understands and has seen first-hand. He's kind of that pillar. Like, this is the guy that stuck it out. This is the guy that walks in every morning with a smile on his face. This is the guy who is always saying, 'Tell me how to get better,' and 'Yes,' and works hard every day. You can count on him. On the field, he's consistent. He's dependable. He's likable. The players like him and really respect him. So we point to him a lot. And I think a lot of these guys feel a responsibility to Ian — and to others, but primarily to Ian, to send him out the right way. Because he's the guy whose been here the longest and been through the most.” <-
