Growing up, young athletes often look to the college and professional levels to identify the stars and players that they want to follow. Normally they choose them in video games to play with or collect their trading cards.
It’s these players who have a major impact on the youth in the sport, helping to model the way they play and the way they interact with both teammates and fans.
For Oregon Ducks redshirt freshman quarterback Ty Thompson, there’s a guy close to home that has had a pretty big impact on him. When asked at Oregon’s Media Day which NFL QB he emulates and works to mold his game after, Thompson had an answer that many Duck fans will approve of.
[lawrence-related id=26823]
“Not just because he came here, but I really loved watching him before I moved here — Herb, Justin Herbert,” Thompson said. “I mean the way he kind of carries himself not even on the field, but just how are you like a great leader that doesn’t say too much. He’s one of the best players in the league, but he’s really humble and doesn’t say a whole lot. He’s not a flashy guy. He’ll make the most crazy plays that you see on the ESPN top 10 plays every week.”
Herbert is close to dethroning Marcus Mariota as the most beloved QB in recent fan history in Eugene, despite Mariota’s Heisman Trophy win and trip to the national championship game. However, it’s Herbert’s success at the NFL level that has given Oregon fans so much to be proud of.
[lawrence-related id=26783]
He made waves as a rookie, breaking all sorts of records, and will continue his legacy this year as one of the best young players in the game. Despite all of the fanfare and attention, Herbert is still a guy who rarely lets the outside noise creep in.
“Just the way he takes care of his business. I really liked how he handles it,” Thompson said.
Not a bad rose model to emulate your game off of.
[mm-video type=video id=01g9qdsxv3p2wxc603aj playlist_id=01f27mq9z7hjgk6vc6 player_id=01f1jz1vgtfhzk6ner image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01g9qdsxv3p2wxc603aj/01g9qdsxv3p2wxc603aj-2cde228039cf2edc179a9b4d6bce97ef.jpg]
[listicle id=26882]