Nieman’s defense rules
59ers score 20 unanswered points in 2nd half of win against Kankakee Valley
Behind a slew of senior talent last year, Andrean linebacker Adam Nieman noticed he was becoming complacent.
It was then he realized he needed to kick it into gear if he wanted to earn more playing time.
“I made it my goal to work my (butt) off,” Nieman said. “We had lifting four days a week, and then on off days I would go to the Crown Point YMCA and lift for about two hours there. I think I gained about 20 pounds of muscle.”
Behind a Nieman-led defense and running back Ryan Walsh’s 155 yards and three touchdowns, the 59ers scored 20 unanswered points in the second half for a 30-13 Northwest Crossroads Conference win over Kankakee Valley.
Nieman entered Friday as the leader in tackles with 34, including 19 solo, for Andrean (4-3, 2-1).
“Adam’s really done a great job of prepping himself to play at this level,” coach Chris Skinner said. “He’s put a lot of muscle mass on in his four years. It’s good to see someone who works hard and really dedicates themselves to the program and have that translate to the field.”
Behind Nathan Swafford’s 10 carries for 57 yards, including a 32-yard TD, Kankakee Valley (2-5, 0-3) held a 13-10 halftime lead. Swafford was then held to seven carries for 11 yards in the second half.
“We had a great game plan, and we were slanting to where the tight end was,” Nieman said. “That way it clogged up gaps, and it allowed the middle linebackers to scrape. They had a great call with that counter for a TD, but we made great adjustments at half and shut him down.
“We were very disappointed after Hobart (two weeks ago), but ever since the Monday practice after that game it’s been a laser focus and one week at a time.”
Skinner has Nieman, who has a 4.31 GPA, in his Advanced Placement Biology class. Skinner said those smarts translate to the field, where Nieman is the leader of Andrean’s 3-4 base defense.
“He’s a really bright kid that understands the game and where guys need to be,” Skinner said. “He was behind a very talented senior group last year, but Adam always did a great job of being ready. He might not be the biggest or the fastest, but he uses his intelligence and his understanding of the game to make up for that.”
Making the defensive calls isn’t something new to Nieman; he ran the second-team defense in practice last year. He believes his study habits in the classroom have been crucial to his play.
“I’ve always made it my mission to have strong study habits, and for football that means always knowing my role and what I’m supposed to be doing,” he said. “Not only do I have to know what I’m doing, but I need to know what everyone else is doing. That way, we can all get to our spots and keep making plays.”