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Steve Martin interviews Wilrey Fontenot III
Interviewed on: Wednesday, September 27th, 2006 Steve Martin: Wil, thanks for calling back man! Wilrey Fontenot III: No problem. SM: Do you have the time to do the interview right now, or...? WF: Sure, this is fine. SM: OK. Now I already read up on you a lot, and a friend of mine has been after me to call you all summer for an interview. But you know, I already had interviewed three guys from your school, and I was hesitating to make it look like I was favoring Arizona over some other schools. But then, I started watching you more closely on film this year, and I am saying to myself, "Man, he was right about this kid." WF: Thank you. SM: Man, I have been scouting for almost 25 years and I have never seen so many quality players for the draft on a team that is doing so poorly. WF: Yes, especially on our defense. SM: Yea, like in the USC game, you guys were right there with them when few people thought you could play them that tough. WF: That's true, especially after the LSU game. We really would have done much better in that game, but we were down 17 so quick... SM: Yea, it kind of just took the wind out of your sails. WF: Yes it did. SM: Is your mom (Cheryl Fontenot) still an assistant principal? WF: No, that's old information. I keep asking them to update my profile in there but they never do...She's now the principal of her school. SM: Oh really? Cool. What is the name of her school? WF: Actually, hmmm...I don't remember the name of it but its is in the Aldine School District. SM: OK, that's cool...and is your dad (Wilrey Fontenot, Jr.) still a police officer? WF: Yes sir, he is. SM: And do you have just the one brother, Denzel? WF: Yes. He is a sophomore in high school now. SM: Still playing football? WF: Yes sir. SM: What position is he, Wil? WF: He's a cornerback also. SM: Oh, following in his big brother's footsteps, huh? WF: (laughing) Yes, sir. SM: Is he about your size? WF: Actually, I think he's going to end up being a little taller than I am. SM: Can you give me a real accurate height and weight on yourself, Wil? WF: Yes sir. The scouts measured me back in the spring and I was 5'9 and seven eighths. I just weighed in again today and I am at 178. SM: Is that the weight you plan to be at for the pro days or Combine? WF: Actually, I will try to gain a couple pounds...I am shooting for 183. SM: What is a good conservative 40 time for you? WF: I would say 4.39. SM: Was that on turf, grass....? WF: That was on grass. SM: Hand held? WF: Yes, sir. SM: Do you know how many reps you can do at 225. WF: Yes, I did that too recently and I did 21 reps. SM: What?? At 178 pounds? Man, you have got to be one of the strongest, if not THE strongest cornerback in the country! WF: Thank you. I really work at it. SM: Do you guys max on the bench, or the power clean or squat? WF: No, we do workout on all those, but that's it. SM: What is your verticle? WF: 38 inches. SM: Can you remember how old you were when you first began playing organized football, Wilrey? WF: Yes sir. I was in the 4th grade... SM: Pop Warner? WF: Yes sir. SM: What position did they put you at when you first came out for football? WF: I was a running back. SM: Always had those wheels, huh? WF: (laughing) Yes sir, I guess so. SM: How long did you play Pop Warner? WF: All the way up through 6th grade. Then I began playing middle school ball in 7th grade. SM: Which middle school? WF: In 7th grade I played for Atascocita Middle School, and in 8th grade I played for Timberwood Middle School. SM: Did you play any defense? WF: I played a little bit of cornerback in middle school, but I played mostly offense. SM: When you got to be a freshman at Humble High School did you play on the freshman team or the JV team. WF: I was the starting tailback on the freshman team. I didn't play any defense at all that year either. SM: How big a school is Humble? WF: Well it's pretty big. It's 5A. There were about 4000 students altogether, and I had 890 in my graduating class. SM: Wow, that is a big school....So what happened your sophomore year? WF: I started out as a starting wide receiver for the varsity, but as the season went on, for whatever reason, I lost playing time and they put the seniors in a lot more. SM: So when did you finally play cornerback? WF: Not until the end of my junior year. That's why it is all still pretty new to me. I am still really learning the position. SM: Well, that's good too, Wilrey...(laughing)...That's what they call "upside." WF: Yes sir. I am going to just keep working hard to be the best corner I can be. SM: Tell me about your junior and senior years... WF: Well I played wide receiver both years, but my senior year I was a 2-way starter and did pretty well as a cornerback. SM: I should say so. I see you had 40 tackles, 3 picks, 4 PDs...What did you do as a wideout that year? Do you remember? WF: Yea...I had about 20 catches. SM: So you guys must have been more of a running team then, huh? WF: Yes, sir. SM: You graduated in 2003, right Wil? WF: Yes. SM: So that makes you redshirt Junior, then...? WF: Yes. SM: So you will have a pretty big decision ahead of you in a couple more months, huh? WF: Oh, yes sir, I will. SM: What will be some of the factors you will be weighing? WF: Well, it will be based on what the teams feel about me. I've heard it is kind of a weak year for corners, so that is something to consider. Here I've kind of been known as "the other corner" so that has motivated me. Antoine (Cason) and I get along great, but the coaches have told me that I am just as good if not better. They've told me to continue to play with that "poor step child" mentality and everything will turn out just fine for me. SM: Can you comment on some of the issues some of the guys have had. We've all heard rumors about some guys even wanting to transfer because they weren't pleased with the coaching. WF: Well, you know, everybody has there days... SM: Were you one of the guys considering a move? WF: Nah...I've always figured that when you make a decision that you should stick with it. SM: What do you perceive as being some of your unique strengths as a corner prospect, Wil? WF: I would say my speed...but also my ability to react to receivers. I feel I am quick enough to stay with the smaller receivers and aggressive enough to do fine against the bigger ones also. This year we've been begging Coach Stoops to let us play more man-on-man, and because he is more comfortable with the defensive line this year he has been allowing us to do more of that... SM: You like man better than zone, I take it? WF: Oh yes sir. I like the challenge of going one-on-one. I like focusing on just one person. I really feel I can be a shutdown corner and this gives me more of a chance to show that. SM: What is something you are still working to get better at, Wil? WF: Well, my footwork. Just some of the little fundamentals about the position that are still a little bit new to me. SM: Are you one of these guys who sets personal goals for himself coming into a season? WF: I do, but you can't really focus on that at all. I like to let everything just come to me. SM: Have you had any picks yet this year?...or PDs? WF: No picks yet, but I've had about 3 or 4 PDs. SM: Did the team set any goals coming into this season. WF: Yes we did. One of those was to win all our home games, and we've already messed that one up. But going to a Bowl Game is our #1 goal right now, and I still think we can achieve that. SM: When are you set to graduate? WF: This coming May. SM: Oh great, so having that degree behind you will be another factor that might say "go ahead" when it's time to make that decision...I mean, at least mom and dad won't be after you to finish your degree first. WF: That's true. But they have been very supportive in saying I should do what I feel would be best for me. SM: Are you still a psych major? WF: Yes, sir. SM: Do you know what your GPA is right now? WF: No, I actually need to check on that. SM: OK, well, I really appreciate your time Wilrey, and I wish you all the best. WF: Thank you, sir. |