While Penn State football gets another big win this weekend at Northwestern, the freshman continue to grow more accustom to Penn State Football. They continue to see the power of the program and want to grow into the leaders on the team. One player who wants to be that leader on the field one day is Evan Presta.
Evan is a currently a red shirt freshman from Cathedral Prep. Evan was a dominant defensive tackle in high school and plans to do the same here. Evan started his journey to the football powerhouse in high school. Growing up playing hockey, Evan eventually was not able to keep up with the sport. “I had played hockey most of my life but it got to the point that the game got to fast and I couldn’t keep up with it.” As for football, Evan didn’t start that until high school, “One of my teachers kept telling me I should play football and eventually I was like ‘fine I’ll come out to practice today.'” Evan kept up with football once he started saying that he had always played sports and it felt normal to be playing.
“Football has played an important part of my life, I had always liked Penn State as a school but playing football here was what sold me”. So far Evan says that he loves Penn State so far but like any student he is having some problems getting used to college life, specifically struggling to balance football, school work, social, and sleep. “I have a lot going on and I need to work on balancing out my time”. Evan is currently enrolled in the Division of Undergraduate studies but plans on getting a degree that will help him hold a position in his father’s company. “My dad runs multiple companies selling building supplies, my goal is to get involved in those companies.”
Evan described himself as being very social and likes to give back. “I was pretty well off financially and I have always found it really important to help out those in need”. Evan also said that he tries to be a leader in everything that he does. In his free time, Evan loves to be outdoors. “I love to be outside. I like to fish, hunt, and just be outside. Over the summer after I would come home from workouts, I would always either be fishing or out on a jet ski or something in the woods. I have just always loved being out in nature.”
Penn State football has become an important part of Evan’s life. Evan described the team as a family where he was automatically accepted when he walked in. Evan also says he has learned a lot so far from the program. “I really learned to be resilient, it is weird going from being a starter at your high school to come and being one of the regular players on the practice squad. Accepting this part really helps to develop you as a player and gives you more drive to become better.” As for Evan’s favorite part of being on Penn State football, “I love being a part of something this special. It is amazing to think about being one of about a hundred guys.”
View Evan’s High School Highlights Here
I think this blog idea is a great way for us to get to know our fellow classmates and feel the football players on a more personal level. I can say that as they’re typically looked at as a higher status than most of the other students at Penn State, this shows that we’re all just students trying to make our way through college. You’ve done a great job conveying to everyone else that the football players are just like the rest of us too.
Great post, Nick. It’s an amazing idea to interview freshman football players and to understand their perspective on the PSU football scene. I like how you presented an objective, unbiased report of Evan’s experience with the program. It’s interesting how our football players need to balance a hectic work schedule while allowing for plenty of study time; our athletes work incredibly hard for the school they represent. I can’t imagine the pressure these guys have to deal with! I look forward to reading more about the players on the team.
Billy Young