Sunday, June 28, 2015

1975 Profile: Carl Barzilauskas

Defensive Tackle
No. 77
Indiana
"He was something else. He towered over everybody in the room. They certainly don't come much bigger. Not when you're 6-6 and weigh 280 pounds. Yet, he stood there a bit uncomfortable. It all seemed strange to him. Answering questions before the New York writers was something new. He never experienced it before. Not in Waterbury, Connecticut or Bloomington, Indiana. But he was something special. Everyone who attended the press conference at the posh 21 Club could sense it. Such a setting is only reserved for super stars or a number one draft choice. And last spring Carl Barzilauskas was only a number.
But that was a year ago. Suddenly, Barzilauskas is something more. His rookie year disclosed that. He started every game at defensive tackle. And he was tested time after time. He was double-teamed and often triple-teamed. Yet, all the while he learned. He learned so well that he was almost named Rookie of the Year. More important, Barzilauskas is looked upon as a future super star, which is the way the Jets figured it all along.
It took a lot of figuring, too. Barzo, as he is known to his teammates, didn't have the greatest of years his final season at Indiana University. But there was a reason. Barzilauskas played all season long on a broken foot. He wouldn't quit. That more than anything else impressed the Jets. That and the obvious fact that he was big and strong. He had that much going for him. He certainly didn't get much recognition. That doesn't come easy when you're exposed to three years of losing football. It can get awfully frustrating.
NFL coaches and players, however, were the most frustrated. Tommy Prothro, the head man of the San Diego Chargers, lauded Barzo by saying he was one of the finest young defensive linemen to come along in years. Don Shula of Miami echoed those same sent sentiments.
Jim Langer, the All-AFC center from Miami, was given a particularly rough time by Big Barz and later in the Dolphin locker room said that he's 'one of the strongest players I've ever faced.'
'I never made anything in college, not even All-Big Ten,' shrugged Barzo. 'But a lot of that is politics. You have to come from a winning team. We only won 10 games in my three years at Indiana.'
Whatever Barzilauskas achieved he did through natural talent and the willingness to learn. He didn't have the greatest background for football as a youngster in Waterbury, Conn. And Barzo is the first to admit it.
'The football back home was really weak,' he admitted. 'I was way behind when I got to Indiana and I knew it. I didn't have much confidence in myself. The reason I went there was that Indiana was the only major school that offered me a scholarship.
'I thought I had a pretty good junior year. I know I improved a lot. My senior year proved plenty of things to me, but I can't be happy about it. What I really wanted was to be on a winner. That's what you play for.'
For a while last season Barzilauskas didn't know much about winning. The Jets were 1-7 and Barzo felt like he never left college. Suddenly, though, things began to happen. Good things. The Jets began to put it all together, offensively and defensively. And, they didn't stop until they won six straight games to finish at 7-7. Significantly, the winning streak was also the turning point in Barzo's emergence as the key of the front four.
'Midway through the season I started to play loose,' revealed Barzilauskas. 'I was very tight in the beginning. I didn't know what to expect. I finally reached a point of doing things by habit rather than having to think about them. I hesitated quite a bit at the beginning but as the season progressed I had everything done to me that could be done so I learned.
'There's such a difference between college ball and the pros. In college they tax your heart more than your mind. Some people try to get you to do impossible things in college. They almost expect you to cover the whole defensive line by yourself. In the pros, you've got a job and you do it and then try for the big play. In college, it seemed like they wanted the big play every play.'
'He's without question the finest defensive lineman I've ever coached,' praised Jet defensive line coach Dick Voris. 'He's got outstanding strength, good quickness, intelligence and he's dedicated. All he needs is experience and he'll one of the best around.
'Barzo needs to improve his pass rush. But he will. It is something all young linemen have to learn. In college they used to blow right in. But here they have a lot of old pros waiting to knock them down with moves the kids have never seen.
'We have three secrets to get to the quarterback. Carl has the inclination to wrestle too much with an opposing lineman. You have to shove him out of the way quick or the time element will beat you. He'll learn how, don't worry.'
Head coach Charley Winner was pleased with Barzo's rookie play. Actually, he was ecstatic at the progress his budding star made. So much so that he began to compare him with an all-time great. Gino Marchetti. And that's saying a lot.
'He practices like I remember Marchetti practicing at Baltimore,' beamed Winner. 'The thing I like about him is his concentration every time he lines up in practice. He's very intense and he wants to learn. I hope he never loses that attitude.'
There's no way he will. For the first time, Barzilauskas has experienced winning. He discovered how enjoyable it all is. He isn't about to stop now ... "

-Lou Sahadi, The New York Jets Official 1975 Yearbook

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