EDWARD LIN/Daily Bruin Senior Staff Defensive end
Kenyon Coleman, who redshirted last season with a
knee injury, is expected to boost the Bruin defense.
By Joshua Mason
Daily Bruin Staff
Defensive ends usually don’t have the reputation for being
deep thinkers. They tend to be the snarling, tough-guy types, not
the ones reading the works of René Descartes or Sir Thomas
Hobbes in their spare time.
But then again, Kenyon Coleman isn’t exactly your average
defensive end.
At 6 feet, 6 inches and 280 pounds, Coleman fits the bill of
your run-of-the-mill future first-round NFL draftee. He’s
fast. He hits the weight room harder than any other Bruin. And
physically, he’s a giant.
“Kenyon’s a great physical specimen at the defensive
end position,” said Anthony Fletcher, a teammate on the
defensive line. “He’s got that tall, strong build, and
opposing teams would be crazy not to look out for him.”
What separates Coleman from the rest of the pack, however, is
his focus in life, one that oftentimes extends beyond the
double-teams he faces on the gridiron. A philosophy major, Coleman
made the choice last year to return for a fifth year at UCLA after
a knee injury knocked him out in the second game of last season
against University of Michigan.
“I’m definitely a believer that there is a reason
for everything,” Coleman said. “My having to redshirt
last season not only gives me the chance to come back again this
year and prove myself, but it also gives me the chance to
graduate.”
In an era when collegiate athletes are leaving earlier and
earlier, Coleman’s choice to stay has served as a meaningful
precedent for his teammates.
“For a lot of our players, their goal is to go to college
to get to the NFL,” defensive line coach Don Johnson said.
“Kenyon’s goal is to go to college to get a degree and
then go to the NFL. Him doing this really sets a good standard for
the younger players.”
While Coleman was a pre-season candidate for All-American honors
last season, the injury and UCLA’s defensive woes have
shifted attention from the redshirt senior’s tremendous raw
talents to concerns about his ability to play effectively at the
next level.
“I showed him the other day that there was something like
42 defensive lineman cut from NFL teams,” Johnson said.
“Most of them had Kenyon’s size, a lot of them had his
strength and many of the same characteristics. They just
weren’t complete football players. Kenyon’s goal this
season is to go beyond his God-given talent and become a student of
the game.”
It’s fitting that Coleman’s endeavors on the field
mimic his way of life off of it.
“Kenyon’s been around longer than anyone else on
that defensive line, and he knows that his actions set the tone for
others,” said senior linebacker Ryan Nece. “He’s
the spiritual leader of this team. He pushes the team by making
them understand what they’re really playing for.”
Coleman, like Nece and many of the senior defensive leaders, has
experienced some hard times: the fallen dream of a 1998 national
championship and three defensive coordinator changes over the
course of his time as a Bruin. He was part of the defense that
allowed a school record 368 points (2000), as well as the team that
allowed school records in total offensive yards and first downs
(1998).
“This is the year that I need to prove not only to myself
that I’m capable of playing and going on to that next level,
but also to my family, the fans and coaches,” Coleman said.
“As a unit, we all want to prove that this defense is better
than it has been made out to be in years past.”
While the Bruins are looking more and more like a national
powerhouse, it is the defense that will face the most scrutiny in
the coming weeks. If anything, Coleman should now have the chance
to prove why he’s worthy of being touted as a top-billed
defensive lineman.
“When he comes onto the field, the offense has to be
really cautious about where No. 99 lines up,” Nece said.
“Anytime an offense has to do that, Kenyon is basically
dictating how they are going to play the game. He changes things
with his presence alone.”
What becomes of the Bruin defense this season is still in the
stars, but one thing is certain: what Kenyon Coleman does now, both
on and off the field, will determine the mold of player he will be
in the professional ranks.
“In the NFL, they don’t want to teach you
anymore,” Johnson said. “Now is the time for him to
step up and become that complete individual, because there,
it’s all business.”