Eric Gentry was injured in the October Utah game last season with USC. He returned to the lineup late in the season and played in the Pac-12 Championship Game against Utah. He wasn’t ready. Utah physically overpowered him.
Gentry’s speed and length are his foremost attributes. Long arms and long strides enable him to cover ground and deflect passes. Plays involving speed, reach, and quickness were — and are — his wheelhouse. Plays which involved pure power and being able to fight through bodies to either make a hit or enable a teammate to finish off a tackle? That’s where Gentry struggled, and it really showed up against the power of the Utes, who beat USC twice last year and very plainly prevented the Trojans from making the College Football Playoff.
Gentry knew where — and how — he had to improve in the offseason as he recovered from an injury. He was recently listed at 6-7 and 223 pounds, evidence of a substantial weight and muscle gain. That’s important. What’s also important: being more mature.
Gentry talked about his physical and mental improvements with 247Sports:
“I feel like I pushed myself to my limit this offseason. I feel like he was the reason I was able to do that. I feel like I couldn’t have done more. Weight room wise or any of that. I did as much as I could on the field,” said Gentry. “I really look back at the offseason and feel I did as much as I can. Coach (Bennie) Wylie just really gave me a reality check, Day 1 in January.
“We had like an hour conversation just about everything I need to work on, life in general. It was a real good [conversation] obviously for sure. Not even just young man to a grown man but just in general player to coach. It was really just a real good [conversation] that I feel like really opened my eyes.”
Gentry discussed feeling calmer on the field:
“I’m really trying to not be that emotional leader anyone, more on-the-field type of stuff,” he said. “It’s good to be an emotional leader, but you [can] get riled up and still not play [well]. You’ll be good for one play then be done. It’s more calm right now. There is so much different I know now than I did last year. It’s maturity. It’s maturity for sure.
“I think I was too worried about what everybody else was doing last year. I feel like I was too worried about what people thought of me, not playing as comfortable,” he added. “It’s really about being self-centered and going back to myself…I feel way more calm.”
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