Oct. 12, 2007
It's game day at Mizzou. A seasoned Adam Spieker bends down and confidently grips the football in front of him. He looks up to read the defense and figure out exactly where he is going. He does this dozens of times per game and this routine has become as familiar as waking up each morning.
“[I'm focused] pretty much on my assignment most of the time and what I have to do,” Spieker said. “I mean, a lot of it is reaction since you practice so much during the week. It's not too much you just go out there and play.”
Spieker is in his fourth year playing center for the Missouri football team, starting all 36 of his career games. Among other things, he is on the watch list for All-Big 12 honors as well as the Rimington Award, which is given annually to the nation's top center. He has learned a lot in his time at MU and he believes that his knowledge of the game is his most valuable asset.
“I've gotten more experienced which helps,” Spieker said. “I'm about the same size as I was my freshman year. I haven't gotten that much bigger, maybe a little bit stronger, but I think the main thing is just knowledge of the game and experience.”
Being a four-year starter isn't easy. Spieker was handed the job as a redshirt freshman after former center A.J. Ricker graduated. A year before, as an incoming freshman, he had no idea of where his football career would go.
“I wasn't even thinking about it then,” he said. “I wasn't overwhelmed, but I had a lot of stuff going on and I was trying to get better and help out the team. [It took] a little bit of luck I think to get the job. I kind of fell into the position. I'm lucky because whenever I got here we had A.J. Ricker graduating. It's hard work too.”
Spieker has a lot to think about on the line. The Tigers run a shotgun spread offense in which he must long snap every play and still be able to block his assignment. The snap is crucial and if it is botched it can negatively affect the play. For this reason, it is Spieker's main focus.
“Snapping is always the first thing,” he said. “Everybody would notice if I was doing bad at that, so I try to work on that. Then there's blocking and trying to create time and room for our skill players to work as well.”
With a long list of accolades under his belt and the rest of his senior season to look forward to, Spieker has plenty of reasons to be proud. He is coming off a 2006 season in which he anchored an offensive line that paved the way for the eighth-ranked offense in the country. He was also an honorable mention All-Big 12 selection. With high expectations for this season, it wasn't hard to keep motivated.
“It's fun to do,” Spieker said. “It's fun to work hard. It's a team game and everybody's invested in it. The more people that invest, the more you want to work hard.”
Spieker has seen the program grow a lot in his time at Mizzou. He is happy with the fact that he has had a large role in the successes of the Tigers over the past few seasons.
“The main thing is we've got a lot more players invested,” Spieker said. “Everybody invests. Everybody is here all the time. Everybody cares more it seems like and they work harder.”
Coming out of high school as a highly rated recruit, Spieker received offers from many Division I schools including Nebraska, Kansas State and Oklahoma State to name a few. He chose Mizzou for various reasons.
“I kind of wanted to stay in state because it's important to stay close with my family and I really like the coaches here,” he said. Spieker has come a long way in five years. Playing for Mizzou is an experience that will stay with him for life.
“It has been a good experience playing football,” he said. “You get a lot of friendships that you'll have for the rest of your life. Getting a college education is really important, too. I'm proud that I've made it this far. A lot of people don't make it through college so its something I'm happy about. Also being able to say that I played four years, not too many people can say that.”
-- Ted Bryant