“I’m very competitive. I don’t like when people think they’re better than me, so that drives me,” said John.
Division 1 commit, John Wetzel believes that his competitiveness has carried him throughout his athletic career. This trait has allowed John to compete at the collegiate level and it all started when he first picked up a football at nine years old. This moment marked the beginning of a great connection, “Ever since then, I fell in love with the game,” John said.
On June 25, 2024, John announced his commitment to Marshall University. The athlete plans to join the school’s football team as a safety. When considering his options, such as West Virginia, Cincinnati, and Boston College, John was initially drawn in by Marshall’s great program, but other factors contributed to his decision. John got the chance to meet the other safeties that will soon become his teammates, and they welcomed him with open arms. The player ultimately chose Marshall because the program aligns with his aggressive and fast style of play. “The defense fits what I like to do in how I play, so it just seemed like a good fit,” said John.
John’s road to this point in his career has been far from effortless. His sophomore year, Coach Prady joined the staff as head coach and required John to pick up a new position at quarterback. This new role forced him to learn the playbook, which caused the safety’s defensive play to take a hit. When his junior year rolled around, both the quarterback and safety side of John were prepared to lead the team. Through this experience, John learned the importance of his emotional and mental game. “You have to be on your A game because how you practice determines, and sets the tone, for how the offense will practice,” John said.
However, John was able to overcome the challenge at hand and even saw benefits from his experience. He believes that having to “own” a major postion bettered him as a player and made him more appealing to college coaches. His position coach at Marshall admitted that the team liked how he played both offensively and defensively. Marshall wasn’t the only school that thought this way, and John got a majority of his offers due to his play on both sides of the ball. In hindsight, what originally seemed to be a burden proved to take the safety’s defensive capabilities to new heights. “It’s helped me. Especially being a defensive back, knowing what the quarterback’s going to do, how they read, and stuff like that, is very helpful,” said John.
Throughout John’s football career, he’s always had a great support system. While the junior was trying to find the right college, John had his teammate, Alex Tatsch, at his disposal. Alex had already gone through the recruitment process, committing to Penn State, when John began receiving offers. The safety was glad to have his teammate, and friend, to talk to and ask the uncomfortable questions that he felt only Alex could answer. “It was cool to have someone going through the same thing,” John said.
While John mostly turned to Alex throughout his recruitment process, the athlete also had the rest of the football team in his corner. “My teammates have also been very supportive of everything, so that’s great,” said John.
Coaches have also played a huge role throughout John’s athletic career as both a football player and a basketball player. For football, the safety attributed the majority of his achievement to Coach Prady. John explained that Coach Prady had a huge role in his recruitment process and it seemed like every day the safety would be in his classroom to discuss offers. “He’d be emailing coaches, calling coaches, and texting coaches about me,” John said.
John feels the support of his basketball coach on the court, but even more so at home. Coach Wetzel has been John’s basketball coach during his high school career, and more importantly his father. Coach Wetzel always wanted what was best for his son, and would frequently encourage him to work out or improve his athletic abilities.
Originally, the player put more energy into his skills on the court, but thankfully football and basketball had direct benefits on one another in John’s eyes. The athlete thinks that the overall movements in each sport are related, so the work he puts into basketball can be seen on the football field and vice versa. “I think that all the footwork and everything really translates both ways so it’s very helpful,” said John.
John’s ready to jump into his freshman year at Marshall University. The upcoming graduate is well aware the atmosphere will be much different from high school, with the coaching becoming more strict and the workouts more frequent. All this aside, the freshman won’t be worried and is willing to take on any challenges that come his way. “Getting better and getting to play at that level of college football, you know. I’m just really excited about it,” said John.
The football player is already preparing his goals for his first season of college football. John knows that a starting position won’t come by easily and that he’ll have to work to earn his spot. “You’re the lowest on the totem pole, so you’ve gotta go up,” said John. However, the athlete already has a plan in mind for how he’ll climb through the ranks. Everyone has to start somewhere, and John plans to get his start on special teams. From there he plans to stand-out, so he can get reps and eventually see playing time. John has heard that Marshall isn’t shy to start a freshman, so this will motivate the safety even further. “There’s definitely an opportunity, it just depends on how I play,” John said.
