Fresno State Athletics
Bulldogs Draw Inspiration from Motivational Speaker
8/12/2015 12:00:00 AM | Football
Aug. 11, 2015
By Jason Clay
jaclay@csufresno.edu
GoBulldogs.com
FRESNO, Calif. - On day seven of the Fresno State football team's fall camp, Bulldog head coach Tim DeRuyter surprised the team with a major change in the daily routine.
With an all-important scrimmage coming up on Thursday night that will help start a pecking order to the depth chart, DeRuyter altered Wednesday's plan to refresh and re-energize the team.
Instead of holding the planned two-and-a-half-hour practice, the team was allowed to sleep in a bit and only went through a 75-minute walk-thru in no pads.
The big surprise came after practice. Fresno State brought in Vietnam War veteran, four-time world record holder in the bench press and motivational speaker Bob Wieland to address the team.
Wieland's message to the team was simple. Believe in yourself and have a strong heart and there is nothing in your life that you will not be able to overcome.
"What an unbelievable treat for our players and our staff to bring in somebody like Bob," DeRuyter said. "Our thought process was to bring someone in with not just a great message, but somebody who has lived it and done it. When I heard his story I was inspired by how he was able to overcome circumstances, how no matter what was thrown in front of him he found a way to get past it.
"People laughed at what they thought he could do, but he proved everybody wrong and I thought that message was perfect for our team."
Wieland told the team of his story, how on June 14, 1969 he lost both of his legs in the Vietnam War. While in the hospital after escaping death from a mortar mine, doctors had him attempting to lift a simple five-pound weight as part of his recovery, and at that time he could not lift it. However, the determined Wieland told doctors right then that he would go on to break world records lifting weights.
Doctors laughed at him, but Wieland inspired himself to prove all doubters wrong and he went out and did just that. He is now the proud former four-time world record holder in the bench press with a best lift of 507 pounds. He also walked across America on his arms in three years, eight months and six days to prove that there is nothing one can't do.
Wednesday also proved to be an educational experience for the Bulldogs.
"We talk about overcoming adversity on the football field, in a game of football, but this guy proved it in life," DeRuyter said. "Having to overcome the loss of two legs, never getting down, I can't imagine how traumatic that would be. I think the parallels for life and the parallels for football make for just a powerful, powerful story."
Linebacker Jaamal Rose is able to relate closely to Wieland's story. Rose has missed two seasons in his career due to two separate knee injuries and is fighting now to get back on the field to finish his career playing the sport he loves.
"It rang a bell. As soon as he started talking about how he lost his legs, I've had two ACL surgeries, one on my left leg and one on my right leg, and it really hit home," Rose said. "Whatever I want to do this season on the field, I can make that happen. All of my goals, I can accomplish."
For sophomore offensive lineman David Patterson, whose father is a Marine veteran, Wieland's story struck a different chord with him.
"It was really motivational with all the stuff he was able to overcome and everything he has accomplished," Patterson said. "It shows you just how much stuff goes on in the world and that there are a lot more problems that people face than you would think. It puts everything into prospective and how grateful we should be with where we live and how safe it is."
The timing of Wednesday's events couldn't have been better for the players. It broke up the grind of camp, infused a new energy in to the team and gave them a chance to get their legs back underneath them as they head into Thursday's scrimmage (Bulldog Stadium, 6-8 p.m., open to the public).
"Coach DeRuyter had a perfect lineup for a day off," Rose said. "We're a week into camp, we squatted yesterday and our legs are really heavy right now. Today we had a great speaker come in and give us an energizing, motivational speech, so it was perfect."
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