Interview with WR Austin Sheehan
By Kyle
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Kyle: What’s your biggest strength as a football player?
AS: “I think I get open really well and I’m a pretty speedy guy, I run a 4.5 flat forty and adding on to coach Collinsworth, he’s really helped me in every route possible to try to explain how to make yourself open more and I think that showed this year in the yards per catch. And having big yards down-field.”
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Kyle: What would you be doing today if you weren’t playing football?
AS: “I’ve been playing sports since I was five years old, so I’d probably be playing another sport. I like baseball a whole bunch, basketball is a lot of fun. Yeah I’d probably be playing another sport, enjoying that, hanging out with my friends, you know, normal stuff.”
Kyle: Football players don’t usually get to do a lot of that stuff, huh?
AS: “No, no, we’ve got a full schedule.”
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Kyle: You had an injury late in the season this year. How has the recovery gone from that and what is your current status?
AS: “Yeah that really sucked. It took me like a month I think, were I went to rehab and therapy and all that good stuff. I’ve been lifting weights every day since the offseason and therapy every other day, and so they cleared me two weeks ago to stop going to therapy and now I‘ve been getting back into curling heavier weights and today was actually the first day that I was able to max out on the chest press with the dumbbells, so this is actually my first day back lifting weights hardcore. It’s exciting too, cause I’ll tell you what, it’s awful only being able to lift one arm and then just killing your legs.”
Kyle: What exactly was you injury, a separated shoulder?
AS: “No, I dislocated my elbow.”
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Kyle: You had decided to walk-on at Kentucky earlier this year and have said previously that you grew up a UK fan. Who was your favorite Wildcat as a kid?
AS: “Dicky Lyons Jr., I liked him a lot because that’s probably the year I started going to a lot of the games. Jared Lorenzon, I remember him playing because he played for Highlands, so that was kind of fun watching him. Steve Johnson, Andre Woodson, Keenan Burton, all those guys. That was a fun year to experience. That whole group right there, I liked them all.”
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Kyle: What attracted you to the Cats initially? Did you just grow up as a fan from the beginning, when you were a kid was there something, what made you follow the Wildcats in the first place?
AS: “I just grew up a fan, like you said, but going to going to all these games and then going to other places, I think the one place that is closer, but I wouldn’t rank it as high would be Cincinnati at Nippert stadium, that place is pretty sweet, but you can’t really beat Commonwealth. The atmosphere there is just unbelievable. I’m excited if I go to Kentucky, cause I’ve got some other options, but I’m excited to run out on that field and experience this because really, it’s just a dream come true.”