Calcaterra readying for next step
After being named a member of the Preseason Big 12 Conference team, Grant Calcaterra enters the 2019 season with plenty of expectations on his shoulders.
He enters the season as Oklahoma’s second returning pass catcher behind CeeDee Lamb.
But after battling through injuries last season, he’s ready to improve on his 26 catches for 396 yards and 6 touchdowns from a year ago.
As for those bumps and bruises Calcaterra suffered a year ago, he’s not concerned about changing his game to avoid some of the hits he took last season.
“You know I got hit a lot,” laughed Calcaterra. “But you can't be afraid to go over the middle. That's just kind of how it is, especially in my position. That's how we make our money is going over the middle and sometimes you take shots.”
Calcaterra is a fluid tight end who flexes out quite a bit in Lincoln Riley’s offense. He says more time in the weight room wasn’t something that was going to make him avoid the injuries from a year ago.
“I think a lot a lot of the injuries I had were kind of unavoidable,” he said. “Nothing I can really do about it except just try to get better. Get better as fast as I can. Do everything I can to stay on the field.”
If you’re a quarterback at Oklahoma, or a quarterback hopeful, you wanted to make sure Calcaterra was there every time you went out to throw the ball around during the offseason.
So he might be one of the best players on the team to ask about how the work ethic of Jalen Hurts compared to that of Baker Mayfield and Kyler Murray over the past couple of offseasons.
“I thought summer went great. We had to be here a lot of hours of the day. We also did a lot of extra work in the afternoon. More work than I think we've done in previous summers,” Calcaterra said. “So I think everybody improved. I had a lot of goals that I wanted to meet and it was important that I got up every day and attacked those goals. So I think going into (camp), I think everybody's feeling pretty good.
Calcaterra said a lot of those goals were focused around the weight room and catching more passes from the jugs machine throughout the summer.
As for the quarterback battle that has raged through the offseason and into the start of fall camp? Again, Calcaterra has been through two quarterback regimes already. Both those seasons saw a lot of success.
“I'd say not much different honestly,” said Calcaterra of working with all the quarterbacks this offseason. “Last year there was a quarterback battle between Austin and Kyler. This year it was Jalen and Tanner and Spencer and those guys. Just like we did last year we're trying to find who our leader is and during camp we're going to figure that out and we're gonna go from there.”
The more Calcaterra is involved the better for Hurts or whoever ends up being the starting quarterback by the end of the season.
And even though he battled through a season of injuries, OU’s junior tight end finished strong with 2 touchdown receptions against Texas in Arlington.
“It was a great way to play the Big 12 Championship. I kind of wish we would have played a little bit better in the playoff,” said Calcaterra. “We kind of, as a team, still have that sour taste in our mouth. But yeah it was good to cap it off with some big plays in the Big 12 game.”
By the way, look out for Calcaterra on special teams this year. Right now he’s serving as the backup deep snapper on special teams.
Calcaterra on youngsters
When asked about what offensive players stood out to Calcaterra over the summer, he had one name in particular that he expects to make a big jump in 2019.
“I would say one guy that’s definitely stood out is Drake Stoops,” he said. “We do 7-on-7 and things like that and I see him improve a lot. He's been working hard and I think he should have a good year.”
Stoops remains the only family member a part of the OU football program on gamedays, but that’s partly what drives him according to Calcaterra.
“I think he gets treated the same as everybody else. If anything he's got a chip on his shoulder thinking he needs to prove himself because on the outside you might think that he's only here because of who his dad is, but he really wants to prove himself. He wants to make a name for himself,” said Calcaterra. “He makes some good plays. Just his route running has improved. His hands have improved. His knowledge of the defense has improved. I think he should be due for a pretty good year.”