Christian Olsen: Patience & Persistence
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Sept. 9, 2006
by Jim Daves, Assistant Director of Athletics for Media Relations
Christian Olsen is getting all kinds of advice as he steps into the starting quarterback role for his final season at Virginia. He knows it comes with the territory. But from Frank Beamer, the head coach at Virginia Tech?
Playing partners at the ACC’s football media golf outing in Jacksonville in July, Beamer had an interesting observation about the UVa signal caller.
“He was swinging a little fast at the start, but once he slowed down, he really started hitting the ball well,” Beamer comment after the round.
Ironically, that’s one piece of advice Olsen realized heading into last week’s opener at Pittsburgh, he needed to take to heart.
“The first thing coach (Al) Groh told me the day we met last spring was not to try and make up for five years in 12 games,” said Olsen about the day he learned he would become the starting quarterback. “He said, `Go out there and let things come to you. Don’t force anything and try to make the spectacular play. But, when the opportunity does come, we have to hit it.'”
You cannot blame Olsen for being anxious about his new role on the team. His well-documented collegiate journey started at Notre Dame in 2002 where he redshirted his freshman season. After earning MVP honors at the Irish spring game, he opted to transfer to a university where he felt more comfortable. He found the perfect setting in Charlottesville.
“It is a great place to be just for football, but the overall school is exceptional,” said Olsen who completed his degree in drama last year and is currently taking graduate courses. “I graduated from the number one public institution in the nation and that was very exciting. From a football perspective, I like the pro atmosphere that Coach Groh brings. He knows what it is like to be in the NFL. He knows how things should be run.”
A standout prep player while playing for his father at Wayne Hills High School in Wayne, N.J., Olsen has patiently waited his turn while watching Matt Schaub and Marques Hagans direct the Cavalier offense the last three years. The past two seasons he appeared in just eight games, completing 17 of 23 throws.
Olsen might have the least amount of playing time of any UVa player who was selected as a captain for his senior season. That selection came easy for his teammates who enjoy Olsen’s playful demeanor off the field and tremendous work ethic when it comes to football.
“He keeps people energized in the locker room,” said defensive lineman Chris Long. “He’s a real positive guy. When you are in the weight room or out on the practice field, he is more serious than any guy on the team. Some guys are a little shocked by that at first. They know him as a pretty free-spirited guy off the field, but when he gets in there and it is time to work, he is dead serious. He’s one of those guys that, when he speaks, people listen.”
Deyon Williams, UVa’s leading returning wide receiver, said Olsen was a natural leader from the moment he was named a starter.
“When he got in the huddle in the spring, it was like he had always been in that position,” Williams said. “By watching Marques Hagans and Matt Schaub, when they were here, he really learned a lot. He just caught on real quick. To show his knowledge and his toughness and his ability, to lead the team that quickly, was very impressive.”
To hear Olsen describe it, his long road to being a starter might include an element of fate.
“If you are willing to wait for four years to get your chance, I think that shows people how much you really love the game and how much you really want it,” Olsen said. “I knew it would all work out in the end.”
A true student of the game, Olsen would like to follow in his parents’ footsteps and pursue a coaching career. While his dad Chris is widely known as his high school coach, his mother Sue was the softball coach at Wayne Hills.
“Everyone knows my dad, because I play college ball and so does my brother (Greg at Miami),” Olsen said. “But up until a couple of years ago, my mom had actually won more state titles than my dad.”
Olsen enjoyed growing up in a family full of athletes and athletic outings. When it came to football, there was a clear line where being a family member stopped.
“My dad drew that distinction for us,” Olsen said. “He was always harder on Greg and myself than he was on anybody else on the team. He did not want to make it look like he was trying to favor either one of us. We always had to be that much better than the guy in front of us. If we were even, he was going to play the other guy, so we had to be considerably better. We knew why he was harder on us, but sometimes it was tough. In the long run, it made us better as a team.”
Olsen stays in constant touch with his younger brother Greg, who enters his junior year at Miami as one of the nation’s most highly touted tight ends. They will meet on the field Nov. 18 when the Hurricanes come to town.
“We’re both looking forward to that,” said Olsen, who also has an 11-year old brother, Kevin. “We’ll have a lot of family here, and it will be our Senior Day.”
While Olsen’s wait to finally quarterback the Cavaliers might seem like an eternity, he will find that last home game will come much too quickly. Olsen, who aspires to be a college coach, is looking forward to the journey, and even all the advice that will come along the way.
1st and 10 With Christian Olsen
Most embarrassing song on my iPod: “I Want It That Way” by Backstreet Boys
Favorite class at UVa: Learning Communities
Most prized possession: My watch that was given to me from my brother
Favorite Place on the Corner: The Mellow Mushroom for the pizza
Favorite Team to play on a video game: The 2004 Florida Gators with Danny Wuerffel and all those great receivers
The extreme activity to I would like to try: Bungee Jump
My favorite website: ESPN.com
Favorite junk food: French Fries
Best Christmas present as a kid: A leather Dallas Cowboys jacket
The first thing I will buy with my first paycheck: I want to take over my car payment from my parents.
The place I want to visit: Australia