Kaleb Hopson spotlighted in feature article
1/2/2012 7:18:00 AM | Football
By Derrick Stuckly
The Brownwood Bulletin
For complete article see Kaleb Hopson Feature
Sam Houston State junior offensive tackle Kaleb Hopson was groomed to play in big games during his high school career at Early, where he was a vital piece of the Longhorns' runs to the 2006 state quarterfinals and the 2007 state semifinals.
On Saturday, however, Hopson will compete in the most important game of his football career as the 14-0 Sam Houston State Bearkats will tangle with North Dakota State (13-1) in Frisco for the NCAA Division I FCS national championship. Kickoff is slated for noon at Pizza Hut Park and the game will be televised nationally by ESPN2.
This has been one of our main goals all season," said Hopson, who started 41 consecutive games and was an honorable mention all-state selection during his time at Early. "Everybody who plays college ball, this is what they want to be playing for."
Sam Houston State on the cusp of capturing a national championship is a far cry from where the Bearkats were when Hopson first stepped foot on campus. Prior to the 2011 campaign, Sam Houston State had lost as many games as it had won - posting an 11-11 overall record - in Hopson's first two seasons.
As a freshman, the 6-6, 300-pound Hopson - who started the final 10 games of his initial season - and the Bearkats finished with a mere 5-6 record. Willie Fritz - who guided Blinn College, in Brenham, to back-to-back NJCAA national championships in 1994 and 95 - was brought in as head coach prior to the 2010 season, and Sam Houston State improved slightly to 6-5 overall and placed third in the Southland Conference.
Though the Bearkats returned 10 offensive and nine defensive starters from the 2010 squad, Hopson didn't anticipate Sam Houston State making the dramatic strides it has this season.
Asked whether he thought when he arrived in Huntsville that Sam Houston State would have a chance to play for a national championship, Hopson said, "Not at all. When I first got here, our first season was a losing season. My second season we had a winning record and a winning record against teams in our conference, but that was after Coach Fritz got here and turned everything around. He just has a great winning attitude and he reinforces the positives in every little thing we do. Everything is hyped up and it makes us want to do it more and more."
On the way to Saturday's national championship game, the Bearkats earned their fourth Southland Conference championship since joining the league in 1987; defeated FBS program and Mountain West Conference member New Mexico, 48-45 in overtime, in Albuquerque; and also knocked off first-year program UT-San Antonio, 22-7, which is bound for the WAC in the future.
Since Oct. 1, the Bearkats - who are averaging 39 points and 421 total yards, with 267 coming on the ground and 154 coming through the air, per outing - have scored no fewer than 31 points in a game. In the playoffs, SHSU has defeated Stony Brook (34-27), Montana State (49-13) and Montana (31-28) to reach the national final - and have played in front of a national television audience.
"We always joked about being on ESPN and how everybody would be able to see if we messed up," Hopson said. "My first game wasn't my greatest game and I was worried about everybody watching me and pointing out my errors, but nobody's really paying attention to what's going on. They're just there for the show, and we give them a pretty good show."
Hopson, now in his third season as a starter for SHSU, is pleased with the role he's played in the Bearkats' success this season.
"As far as my performance, I feel like things have been going good," Hopson said. "It was a little rocky at the start, but we all have a great feeling for what's going on now. Everyone knows everyone's assignments pretty much, and everybody's clicking it seems."
Hopson also stated he was happy to be playing for a national championship so close to both his college and high school homes, and expects many family and friends to be in attendance.
"There's a lot of family that's going to be there to support me because they haven't been able to be at a lot of my games," Hopson said. "It's always good to know your family is going to be there to watch."
As for the game itself, Hopson believes if the Bearkats are able to dictate the action through their ground attack - which has been the key to Sam Houston State's success all season - a national championship trophy will be returning with the team to Huntsville.
"We just need to be consistent and do what we've done all year, and that's run the ball," Hopson. "If everybody does their thing, everything will fall into place and we'll come out on top."
As for what it would mean to be a national champion, Hopson said, "It'd be great not just for me, but everybody on the team. Everybody has worked so hard and our goal is actually here now. It'd be upsetting if we lost, but if we won everything would feel right."
