Missouri Tiger Football: Faith, Focus & Football

Earning a spot on the Missouri Tiger Football team in the SEC is just the beginning of the goals Jadon Frick has set for himself.

"My ultimate goal is to succeed and you know, help others around me succeed. Being a leader is a part of that. Understanding why I'm here, keeping my head on straight, keep diving into the Word and keep moving forward," said Frick.

However, this isn't a newfound mindset but exactly how he went about his high school career in order to become a college athlete.

Starting high school football his sophomore year in an unfamiliar position (nose guard) and on varsity, Frick learned quickly how to handle adversity.

"It was one of the hardest things I've had to do physically and mentally. I was undersized at the time and going against great competition. I played 8A Florida football, so the guys we played were big all the time, and good. That was a big obstacle for me to overcome, but I just kept going."

With college football in mind, he knew that his performance would be based on the work he put into his individual game not only on the field, but off of it which is why he consistently prioritized his faith, his focus and football.

"I worked at the things I was good at and tried to perfect those things. I focused on watching more film to understand tendencies, so [from this] I knew I was faster than most of the interior D lineman, but I'm smaller so I had to be better with my hands and quicker off the ball," said Frick.

Although his role wasn't flashy or in the spotlight, this initiative translated to the field when it came time to make something happen.

Possessing not only size, skill and speed but the right attitude, Frick consistently outworked opposing players by overpowering centers into quarterbacks to disrupt offensive play and took on double teams to occupy blockers and make space for linebacker opportunity.

While this was certainly due to size and training, it's also was because Frick plays with the intent of viewing the field in a manner that keeps him one step ahead of the guy across from him.

Because of this, he's able to excel in making pivotal plays to shift the dynamic and tone of the game. This is displayed clearly in a game during his senior season where the opposing team, Tiber Creek High School is setting up for a screen pass- a short pass to a running back (Time frame 2:41).

The offense is telling their lineman to let the defense, like Frick and his other front line teammates go rush the quarterback while the offensive lineman go deep to block, giving the running back space and time to catch the ball and has blockers in front.

As a defender, this is a tough play to read before it comes to fruition; however, watch how all the blockers for the opposing team let the guy their covering go and immediately run up the field to find someone to block. It works on everyone, but Frick.

Sensing it in real time and in the fly, he stops mid-rush to turn and look for the running back who would be catching the ball and instantly redirects to shut it down.

In football, each position is defined by a unique set of responsibilities and physical requirements that ensure an individual serves a direct purpose to make up a functioning and successful team.

Not only does Frick stand out as a player who can dominate in his individual role on the field, but he also offers versatility by anticipating and leading his team to the demise of offensive strategies, which is what we see here.

Additionally, much like this first play that highlights his size:

This one that highlights his speed: (Time frame 00:28)

And this one that shows his consistency in reading the field: (Time frame 2:27)

Because talent can only take you so far, hard work and discipline is what bridges the gap between a dream and reality; but for Frick, faith has just as much of say in it.

"The Bible tells us that if we have faith the size of a mustard seed we can move a mountain, and I know that same faith is residing in me today. So I fall back on that when I'm faced with a difficult challenge, I just know I can overcome it."

This is the mentality that helped him persevere through the adversity of striving for college recognition and set him up to now manage the uprooting of his life to move across the country to be a student athlete at the college level.

"Once I faced adversity one time, I knew that every time I faced it I would persevere. So its helped me get through all these years, the ups and downs, the bad games and the good games... my faith has stuck with me."

However, being a PWO comes with the undeniable demand of hard work and fighting your way up the ladder from the bottom of the depth chart.

But coming from humble beginnings, Frick is no stranger to putting his head down and working.

"You just got to do it every single day, day in and day out and all that just for the chance to play. You know, there's multiple people in your position group so you might be doing all the work and still not see the field; but you got to keep doing it every day."

And the opportunity that Frick currently has is in no way guaranteed, but dependent on how consistently he can outwork the competition. Part of this understanding comes from the faith not only his dad, Josh has had in him:

"My dad kept believing in me, kept pouring in his belief in me and his faith that I could do it because as a sophomore I was moved to a whole different position. I was, you know, thinking about what to do, I was mad about it but my dad kept my head on straight, he understood the ultimate goal."

But his mom, Rossemary who has yet to miss a single football game of Fricks.

But he's nowhere near from done.

He's training to compete against not only some of the nations top athletes as an incoming freshman, but himself in order to get better every day by incorporating the same three things that has fueled his mindset for the last 3 years: faith, focus and his love for football.

"It's about the continuous day to day grind. I'm trying to be better every single day, trying to be the best me that I can be. If there's a choice in front of me and it leads me to not getting better that day, I want to decide to move myself away from that choice."