LU lineman applies the lessons he's learned

The first time Josh Weaver had earned a starting job on Liberty’s offensive line, Eddie Pinigis transferred in from Virginia two weeks before the 2006 season started. Weaver was a redshirt freshman, Pinigis a junior with starting experience against schools like Florida State.

It was pretty easy to tell how that battle was going to go. Pinigis didn’t transfer in to sit behind a freshman.

Then, as a sophomore, Weaver was next in line to take over at left tackle when Stephen Sene graduated. But Sene was granted an extra year of eligibility from the NCAA, and once again, Weaver was dropped into the rotation of reserve offensive linemen.

Some players might have gone into the tank at that point, but there wasn’t a lot of pout in Weaver, who chose to look at the situation in a different way. Without having Pinigis around, Weaver may have never learned some the pass protection techniques that have helped him out as a starter. Rather than saying, ‘hey, this guy stole my job!,’ Weaver befriended Pinigis, watched and learned.

“Obviously, you want to be mad,” Weaver said. “But after a day of practice watching Eddie, it was definitely his spot. He’s a good player, a great athlete. There was no way I could be mad at being behind Eddie.

“As a redshirt freshman, I thought it was a great opportunity to learn from a good tackle like Eddie, who had been in a Division I (FBS) program. It was a good opportunity.”

There’s no doubt, looking at Weaver’s skill level today, that waiting wasn’t an altogether bad thing for Weaver. He started at right tackle beside friend Bryan Mosier last season before moving to left tackle for the first four games this year, where, strangely enough, he was again united with Mosier.

“When he came back to the left side, I was like, ‘I always knew you’d find me again,’” Mosier joked.

Blaine McCorkle was the offensive line coach under Ken Karcher during Weaver’s freshman season before leaving for Chattanooga after Karcher’s dismissal in 2005. Now in his third stint at Liberty, McCorkle has been able to watch the 6-foot-4, 285-pound Weaver develop through the years.

“Physically, his body has changed,” McCorkle said. “He’s progressed in five years like an offensive lineman should progress. His intellect (is his strength). He knows the game well, he sees the field really well. He communicates with the other linemen really well. And just this year, technically, he’s gotten a lot better. He puts himself in much better positions than he has in the past, and it’s really helped his game.”

It’s helped too that Weaver, Mosier and Mario Cosby, all of whom redshirted during Liberty’s 1-10 season in 2005, have developed deep bonds, which have paid off in on-field chemistry.

Every Thursday, the offensive linemen gets together at one of several local buffets — “There’s only five of them that we’ve found,” Mosier said — for “Lineman Thursday,” where the group eats (a lot), jokes and bonds.

“You can blame us when they up the price at the Chinese buffet,” Mosier said. “And when The Olive Garden shuts its all-you-can-eat pasta down, it’s usually a couple of weeks after we’ve been there.”

The camaraderie definitely helps on the field come Saturday, Weaver said.

“A game like JMU, where you go into the fourth quarter and it’s 10-10, you’ve got to be able to trust in each other and what we do to finish the game,” Weaver said. “Just becoming good friends, that chemistry carries over. It allows you to trust the guy next to you.”

One thing is certain. Rocco has trust in Weaver, who switched to the left side because of Justin Vargas’ shoulder injury. Weaver handled himself the right way in 2006, learned from the situation and is now a team captain as a senior.

“He has earned his role on this football team through hard work in the weight room, and dedication and being unselfish,” Rocco said. “He’s made himself into a really good football player.”