LB can’t skate but trained with NHL players in native Canada
Few athletes in the world have made the best of the COVID-19 pandemic better than Penn State linebacker Jesse Luketa.
During the last few months, most were fortunate to find a dumbbell and a resistance band to get their strength training in. Luketa stayed ahead of the curve (while also flattening it) by getting creative with his workouts.
There aren’t as many football players in Ottawa as there are in, say, Pittsburgh. Luketa had to take advantage of his native Canada’s pastime even though he can’t skate.
Philadelphia Flyers star Claude Giroux and Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Ben Hutton joined Luketa in training sessions.
“We got some good work in, just making sure I was physically
prepared,” Luketa told reporters via Zoom on Tuesday. “When I was back home, the biggest thing for me was training and trying not to get complacent.”
The third-year junior racked up 24 tackles with four passes defended and a half-tackle for loss. Luketa didn’t show a bit of lethargy when laying out his goals for the linebacker unit for the Nittany Lions, if there is indeed a 2020 season.
“We have the opportunity to have the No. 1 linebacker room in the nation,” Luketa said.
Micah Parsons is one of the best players in college football and heads the group. Luketa is vying with Ellis Brooks for the starting inside linebacker spot. Lance Dixon and Brandon Smith are competing for outside positions.
“We have a lot of depth in the room. We have a lot of competition,” Penn State defensive coordinator Brent Pry told reporters in May. “It’s a good group that wants to be great. We have the ingredients for success.”
It won’t matter if Luketa starts or not, because the Nittany Lions will be counting on him. Luketa spent the quarantine time doing the work that he hopes will make him a reliable player.
“Now it’s my turn to step up, and I have to essentially be the old head in the room,” Luketa said.
A glance at Luketa’s Instagram page shows a labyrinth of physical exertion through weights and cardio with the NHL stars. It’d be easy for a young athlete to be in awe of pros. However, Luketa’s life placed him in the realm of people with celebrity status before he was even aware of it.
Luketa works out at a gym where retired NHL player Mike Fisher trains in Ottawa. Fisher came with his wife, multi-platinum country star Carrie Underwood. Luketa didn’t make the connection until he was watching a “Sunday Night Football” game.
“I have a funny story,” Luketa said. “So she was in the facility, and I would walk in and say, ‘Hi Carrie,’ but I never really knew who Carrie Underwood was. Mike Fisher was there or whatever, [but] I was a little kid. I’d come into the facility and play football. Later on, when they left, I ended up seeing her on the commercial for the NFL intro, and I was like, ‘Wait, that’s Carrie!’ ”
Luketa trained with hockey players and kickboxing champ Tony Greco. As tight as the workouts were, they perhaps weren’t as arduous as the journey Luketa and teammate, safety Jonathan Sutherland, took from Ottawa back to Penn State during the pandemic.
“It was kind of hard at first because travel is still banned and everything,” Luketa said. “So as far as myself and Jonathan, we had our paperwork to get back in the country. But the question was if we’d be able to cross [the U.S.Canada border] if somebody drove us. So, I had to have one of my coaches drive us to the border. He dropped us off there, and then we had a representative from Penn State come to pick us up and brought us back to State College.”
Luketa’s trek was different, but he’s ready for action.
“It’s weird being back in State College,” Luketa said. “I want to be around all my guys, all my brothers, but I have to keep my distance. That’s what’s most important.”