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Tomich passing on his martial arts knowledge
LJS
Come to think of it, there was nothing very fancy about Jared Tomich, the two-time Nebraska first-team All-America defensive end.
He basically bulldozed his way into backfields in the mid-1990s.
"In college, I was just a big bull-rush guy," Tomich says. "Just a pusher."
When the 6-foot-2, 260-pound Tomich joined the NFL's New Orleans Saints in 1997 as a second-round draft pick (No. 39 overall), he quickly realized being only a "bull-rush guy" wasn't going to cut it. He needed to find an edge of some sort, quickly.
He found it in martial arts.
"It changed my game," says Tomich, a native of St. John, Ind., who spent six seasons in the NFL before being released by Kansas City in the 2003 preseason. "Martial arts let me have a little longer career than I think I might have had otherwise."
Tomich is now using his martial arts experience — he has a second-degree black belt in karate — to help improve other football players, including those at his alma mater.
Tuesday and Wednesday, Tomich and his longtime martial arts instructor, Michael Storms, will be in Lincoln to teach Nebraska players the benefits of what he calls "combat football." It'll basically be a two-day seminar.
Combat football. Perfect.
Husker strength coach James Dobson is intrigued by the idea.
"Football's a game of hands," Dobson says. "Especially when you're talking about linemen and linebackers and even DBs and receivers. You're always trying to get people off of you. In martial arts, that's what the experts are great at doing. That's what really sparked my interest."
Nebraska isn't the only football team using martial arts. Tomich and Storms have been making twice weekly trips to Florida during this offseason to work with the NFL Miami Dolphins, essentially as consultants.
Tomich says the key is applying martial arts to sports-specific moves.
"It improves your hands and feet," he says. "Martial arts really teaches you to work the two in unison and be as efficient as possible. In today's age, you have to do whatever you possibly can."
Says Dobson: "I wouldn't be surprised if in a few years, you'll have these (martial arts) guys all over the place."
Tomich, who in 1995 led Nebraska's national championship team with 10 sacks, sought out Storms in 1997 as a Saints rookie.
"The NFL, it's just a completely different game (than college)," Tomich says. "I still remember, as a rookie, going into one of my first practices. I remember the first time I tried to bull-rush a 340-pound offensive lineman. He just kind of displaced my weight, and for the most part just threw me on my butt."
Tomich eventually started bringing Evan Marcus, then a Saints assistant strength coach, to his martial arts workouts with Storms. Marcus is now the Dolphins' head strength coach.
Tomich, who spent four seasons in New Orleans and two in Green Bay, now describes himself as a karate "junkie." In this case, "junkie" is a good thing. To be sure, martial arts gave Tomich that all-important edge.
LJS
Come to think of it, there was nothing very fancy about Jared Tomich, the two-time Nebraska first-team All-America defensive end.
He basically bulldozed his way into backfields in the mid-1990s.
"In college, I was just a big bull-rush guy," Tomich says. "Just a pusher."
When the 6-foot-2, 260-pound Tomich joined the NFL's New Orleans Saints in 1997 as a second-round draft pick (No. 39 overall), he quickly realized being only a "bull-rush guy" wasn't going to cut it. He needed to find an edge of some sort, quickly.
He found it in martial arts.
"It changed my game," says Tomich, a native of St. John, Ind., who spent six seasons in the NFL before being released by Kansas City in the 2003 preseason. "Martial arts let me have a little longer career than I think I might have had otherwise."
Tomich is now using his martial arts experience — he has a second-degree black belt in karate — to help improve other football players, including those at his alma mater.
Tuesday and Wednesday, Tomich and his longtime martial arts instructor, Michael Storms, will be in Lincoln to teach Nebraska players the benefits of what he calls "combat football." It'll basically be a two-day seminar.
Combat football. Perfect.
Husker strength coach James Dobson is intrigued by the idea.
"Football's a game of hands," Dobson says. "Especially when you're talking about linemen and linebackers and even DBs and receivers. You're always trying to get people off of you. In martial arts, that's what the experts are great at doing. That's what really sparked my interest."
Nebraska isn't the only football team using martial arts. Tomich and Storms have been making twice weekly trips to Florida during this offseason to work with the NFL Miami Dolphins, essentially as consultants.
Tomich says the key is applying martial arts to sports-specific moves.
"It improves your hands and feet," he says. "Martial arts really teaches you to work the two in unison and be as efficient as possible. In today's age, you have to do whatever you possibly can."
Says Dobson: "I wouldn't be surprised if in a few years, you'll have these (martial arts) guys all over the place."
Tomich, who in 1995 led Nebraska's national championship team with 10 sacks, sought out Storms in 1997 as a Saints rookie.
"The NFL, it's just a completely different game (than college)," Tomich says. "I still remember, as a rookie, going into one of my first practices. I remember the first time I tried to bull-rush a 340-pound offensive lineman. He just kind of displaced my weight, and for the most part just threw me on my butt."
Tomich eventually started bringing Evan Marcus, then a Saints assistant strength coach, to his martial arts workouts with Storms. Marcus is now the Dolphins' head strength coach.
Tomich, who spent four seasons in New Orleans and two in Green Bay, now describes himself as a karate "junkie." In this case, "junkie" is a good thing. To be sure, martial arts gave Tomich that all-important edge.
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