Caught up with Daniel Arias today after practice a bit ago. I don't know if there is anyone on the team who matches the output of effort given by Arias on a day to day basis.
Coach Tucker, Chev, plus some of the Colorado Sports Info Dept guys who help the media every day in grabbing coaches and players, all of them comment, sometimes laughing, that Arias is routinely the last guy on the field after practice wraps up.
As most of the team sprints up the inclined ramp from the lower practice fields back up to the Champions Center on campus, Arias lingers awhile on the practice fields. So today, I asked him specifically, what he actually is doing for that time (usually anywhere from 10-30 minutes, usually leaning closer to 30). His response really blew me away as an articulate and calculated answer.
"I’m understanding and reflecting on how practice went for me, what I did wrong today, what are some things I still need to keep getting better at, what are some things that I was good at today, so I just spend this time to sort of reflect on that.”
Really profound stuff coming from a sophomore. Right now, Arias is starting on kickoff, punt and punt return. Last year he set a school record for 13 fair catches forces and in turn was very successful on the punt team playing gunner.
But strictly speaking in terms of WR, Arias is putting in extended work to do all in his power to better his craft and earn minutes in games.
At 6-foot-4, he is Colorado's tallest wideout likely to see action in 2019. Laviska and Vontae Shenault are both 6-foot-2, coming next in terms of height.
Point being, not only does he have his height as a benefit, but also the work ethic of someone demanding of themselves to be better. And get better he has.
"He wants to be great," assistant head coach Darrin Chiaverini said. "He's got an opportunity — he's 6-foot-4, 210 pounds and he can run by any corner in the Pac-12. He continues to work. And I told him, if you continue to work, your work ethic is going to show up during games...he's trying to sharpen his tools so he'll be able to play at his highest level on Saturdays."
Chiaverini and Arias himself will admit that as a freshman, there were growing pains related to playing college football. But by all indications, he has made leaps and bounds in turning into more of a seasoned player.
“From last season, it’s been a huge difference for me just knowing what I’m supposed to do. If you know what you’re doing, you have confidence to make plays. Just studying my playbook and knowing not just what I’m doing, but what everyone’s doing, has really helped. I just have to keep working, understanding the game, talking to my coaches and getting better."
Chiaverini elaborated: "He's got a lot better — he's cut his mental mistakes in half. He's really worked hard at it, he knows the offense and now it's just a matter of applying his technique to play at a high level."
Arias certainly hopes to play at a high level, and has since spring, when he and coach Chev sat down to talk.
"He told me [during] the Spring Game: go out, make plays and have fun," Arias said. "I listened to that, I took it all in and I made sure I had fun and made plays so he’s been a really big help to me, just giving me that mindset to be a dog."
On another interesting note, Arias mentioned that he is constantly looking for ways to apply in his game the best aspects of his fellow wideouts' game.
"I’ve just got to keep working, improving and keep looking at Viska, Tony, K.D. — even the lowerclassmen. I'll look at Vontae [Shenault] and I'll ask him ‘hey bro, you see that release you made, how’d you do that?’”
And there is the mark of a true adult and athlete: a willingness to shelve one's pride in asking a younger player for advice for the sake of getting better.
Arias went on to say that the past few days, he's been running extra routes with Steven Montez and that his bond with him, and trust level, is rising.
Really looking forward to seeing what he can do in 2019. So much potential. By the time he's a senior I think he's gonna be the recipient of serious NFL attention.
Coach Tucker, Chev, plus some of the Colorado Sports Info Dept guys who help the media every day in grabbing coaches and players, all of them comment, sometimes laughing, that Arias is routinely the last guy on the field after practice wraps up.
As most of the team sprints up the inclined ramp from the lower practice fields back up to the Champions Center on campus, Arias lingers awhile on the practice fields. So today, I asked him specifically, what he actually is doing for that time (usually anywhere from 10-30 minutes, usually leaning closer to 30). His response really blew me away as an articulate and calculated answer.
"I’m understanding and reflecting on how practice went for me, what I did wrong today, what are some things I still need to keep getting better at, what are some things that I was good at today, so I just spend this time to sort of reflect on that.”
Really profound stuff coming from a sophomore. Right now, Arias is starting on kickoff, punt and punt return. Last year he set a school record for 13 fair catches forces and in turn was very successful on the punt team playing gunner.
But strictly speaking in terms of WR, Arias is putting in extended work to do all in his power to better his craft and earn minutes in games.
At 6-foot-4, he is Colorado's tallest wideout likely to see action in 2019. Laviska and Vontae Shenault are both 6-foot-2, coming next in terms of height.
Point being, not only does he have his height as a benefit, but also the work ethic of someone demanding of themselves to be better. And get better he has.
"He wants to be great," assistant head coach Darrin Chiaverini said. "He's got an opportunity — he's 6-foot-4, 210 pounds and he can run by any corner in the Pac-12. He continues to work. And I told him, if you continue to work, your work ethic is going to show up during games...he's trying to sharpen his tools so he'll be able to play at his highest level on Saturdays."
Chiaverini and Arias himself will admit that as a freshman, there were growing pains related to playing college football. But by all indications, he has made leaps and bounds in turning into more of a seasoned player.
“From last season, it’s been a huge difference for me just knowing what I’m supposed to do. If you know what you’re doing, you have confidence to make plays. Just studying my playbook and knowing not just what I’m doing, but what everyone’s doing, has really helped. I just have to keep working, understanding the game, talking to my coaches and getting better."
Chiaverini elaborated: "He's got a lot better — he's cut his mental mistakes in half. He's really worked hard at it, he knows the offense and now it's just a matter of applying his technique to play at a high level."
Arias certainly hopes to play at a high level, and has since spring, when he and coach Chev sat down to talk.
"He told me [during] the Spring Game: go out, make plays and have fun," Arias said. "I listened to that, I took it all in and I made sure I had fun and made plays so he’s been a really big help to me, just giving me that mindset to be a dog."
On another interesting note, Arias mentioned that he is constantly looking for ways to apply in his game the best aspects of his fellow wideouts' game.
"I’ve just got to keep working, improving and keep looking at Viska, Tony, K.D. — even the lowerclassmen. I'll look at Vontae [Shenault] and I'll ask him ‘hey bro, you see that release you made, how’d you do that?’”
And there is the mark of a true adult and athlete: a willingness to shelve one's pride in asking a younger player for advice for the sake of getting better.
Arias went on to say that the past few days, he's been running extra routes with Steven Montez and that his bond with him, and trust level, is rising.
Really looking forward to seeing what he can do in 2019. So much potential. By the time he's a senior I think he's gonna be the recipient of serious NFL attention.
