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Former Walk-On Conducts Defense
By Raj Sagar, Virginia Athletics Media Relations
In 2004, Virginia played North Carolina in its home opener. The wide-eyed freshmen on the Cavalier roster felt butterflies in their stomachs as they prepared to run out of the locker room into Scott Stadium before the roar of the home crowd for the first time.
One current Cavalier, who was a first-year at the time, Byron Glaspy, was not nervous at all. Glaspy was one of the fans in the stands doing the cheering.
Through a lot of hard work and perseverance, Glaspy gladly traded his seat in the stands for a position on the field. He certainly has made the most of it the senior safety is now in his fourth year as a starter.
In the fall of 2004, Glaspy attended an open tryout at UVa. When he did not make the team as a walk on, he knew what had to be done.
With six months before the team held another open tryout in the spring, Glaspy conditioned and worked out every morning and afternoon on his own and watched home games from the student section in Scott Stadium.
“That was hard for me, but at the same time I knew my chance would come,” Glaspy said. “I just wanted to put myself in the best position to succeed.”
At the spring tryout Glaspy made the team and began to slowly work his way up the depth chart. In the eighth game of the 2005 season against Temple, Glaspy saw his first playing time.
He earned a start the next week against nationally-ranked Georgia Tech and made such an impression that he kept a starting position for the remainder of the season, including the team’s Music City Bowl win over Minnesota in which he recorded five tackles. His ability to catch on quickly was crucial to Virginia’s success that year, especially considering he had relatively little playing experience.
“Byron’s one of those players that this game makes perfect sense to,” Virginia head coach Al Groh said. “That’s a talent that separates certain players. If everybody had it, this coaching thing would be a lot easier.”
Starting in the final 11 games of the 2006 season, Glaspy finished sixth on the team with 56 tackles. His rapid ascension into the starting role was fueled mainly by the fact that he was so familiar with the schemes Virginia was running. Despite having to switch defensive coordinators three times in his career, Glaspy has always been the kind of player who is quick to learn new systems.
“Byron is an incredibly intelligent guy, and that really shows on the field,” senior linebacker and fellow former walk-on Jon Copper said. “He is the kind of guy that challenges himself to know the defense better than anyone else. By now he knows the schemes like the back of his hand, and we can always count on him to make sure everyone is in the right place.”
An exceptional student, Glaspy garnered interest from schools like Harvard and Georgetown while in high school. He was not highly recruited after missing the majority of his junior season at Ridge High School in New Jersey because of an injury but returned to the field with an incredible hunger for the game.
“It seems to have happened to me a few times in my career,” Glaspy said. “When you see everyone out there, and you know that’s where you should be, it’s a pretty gut-wrenching feeling.”
Glaspy came back for his senior season with a vengeance. He started at both wide receiver and safety and led Ridge High to the New Jersey AA state title in 2003.
“Winning the state title was one of the best moments of my life,” Glaspy said. “I had been playing touch football with those guys since I was little, and to have made it that far with them, after being on the sideline the previous year, made it all the more rewarding.”
Following his senior year, Glaspy was set to play football at Georgetown, but after a little deliberation, he had a change of heart.
“I realized I really wanted the opportunity to play with a BCS program,” Glaspy said. “I started getting offers from schools like North Carolina, Boston College and Virginia. After I visited Virginia and went to a few home games, the choice was clear.”
Originally an engineering student, Glaspy changed his major to economics once he made the football team. After graduating last year with a bachelor’s degree in economics, Glaspy is now enrolled in the Curry School of Education, competing as a graduate student.
Last season Glaspy started all 13 games at safety and recorded a career-high 71 tackles. He was a crucial part of a Virginia defense that ranked 16th nationally in points per game and 13th in rushing yards allowed. He was one of three former walk-ons to start in the Gator Bowl, joining Copper and wide receiver Staton Jobe.
“I would say, not only does he have the inside track, but he has ownership of the position,” Groh said. “He is a really good player. He is one of our most alert, knowledgeable players and sees to it that we are properly lined up, that all the checks and adjustments are made in a timely way.”
High praise for the only member of the team who started his football career out from the stands.