Hey everybody! Sorry for the slight delay in getting more information in but I was able to talk to Sam Wiglusz after he was put on the Biletnikoff Watchlist.
Danneker/offensive line piece:
https://www.athensmessenger.com/sports/offensive-line-con... Wiglusz:
How was the summer? What were you working on?
“It was a good summer. We had a really good winter and spring, which makes everything easier. A lot of good guys are on this team so we're just excited to get to work this summer. We got right back into it and it was a little bit of a squeeze because of the Week 0 game, it was a little bit different than usual and less time off but we’ve got a lot of good work in and came to camp ready to go and we’re ready to go.”
How important is the continuity from last year to this year offensively?
“Last year we had new guys, and now those new guys are old guys, which makes everything a lot easier. The relationships are getting better on and off the field which makes it easier on the field. We lost a couple guys but there’s some young guys that people might not know about that are big time too. We’ve got a lot of guys in a lot of spots that are going to help us.”
How’s it feel to be put on the Biletnikoff watchlist?
“It’s pretty special, I’m grateful to have the opportunity to get on the field and show what I could do here. I’m forever grateful to what the coaches here have given me and it’s pretty special.”
Are you the back up long snapper?
“That is true. A couple of years ago during COVID, we had some guys with COVID at Ohio State so then they were trying to find some guys who were on the cusp of the travel team that could potentially long snap. The coaches, they came up to me and said ‘Could you long snap?’ and I said yes. He was like ‘Have you ever before?’ and I was like ‘No, but I could.’ I figured out how to do it, I got with some of the long snappers there, they told me how to do it. Luckily I never had to do it in a game and I would have to warm up to long snap in games, so it was pretty fun.”
“I think I’ve I showed them once or twice that I know how to do it but no, I’ve never done any practice or anything.”
How is it coming back for year two at Ohio?
“Last year I was a little lost. I had done four camps before but it was totally new people, a new facility and a new schedule. This year is exactly the same and I’m feeling really good, made a lot of friends during the time and got close with the coaches so everything is a lot more comfortable and I feel good really good about it.
What is the goal for this season? (Can’t say MAC championship)
“That’s tough because it is the goal… I’d like to be All-MAC again, I think that would be really fulfilling to do that two years in a row and I think if I had the opportunity to do that again, I think all the team goals will come too. If I can do what I need to do to put us in that position, then we can win the MAC Championship.”
What in your game specifically have you tried to improve on?
“I’ve been working a lot on yards after the catch. I feel like I had quite a few touchdowns where I was catching the ball in the endzone or going into the endzone, so I’m really trying to work on making that first move and getting a couple of extra yards after the catch. I put on some weight, got a little bit stronger so maybe break a couple tackles. That’s been my one big focus.”