Someone posted this article on O-live and I thought it was worth posting here:
Sommer leaves Oregon State, signs with PSU
Wilsonville grad Carl Sommer left a rocky relationship with OSU, signs on to play at Portland State
http://www.wilsonvillenews.com/WVSSports2.shtml
One of the more prominent football players to ever don a Wilsonville uniform made a surprising decision late September.
Just one week prior to Oregon State grabbing national headlines with its upset win over then-No. 1 Southern California, 2006 Wilsonville High School graduate Carl Sommer made his own choice to leave the Beavers.
Sommer, a 6-4, 248-pound defensive end, who was highly recruited before playing his first and only season at Wilsonville during his senior year, will now end up at Portland State University to play under coach Jerry Glanville.
Oregon State granted Sommer his full release from his scholarship. After redshirting his freshman campaign, Sommer will have three years of eligibility with the Vikings after playing 10 plays this past season in games against Penn State and Hawaii.
Sommer said he left Oregon State due to conflicts with his position coach since the first day of fall camp last year.
“I met great people, had a real good experience with the school, with most of the coaches,” Sommer said. “Unfortunately, my position coach and I did not get along at all.”
Sommer said he will cherish the memories he experienced such as playing on a big stage on the Penn State campus in front of more than 100,000 people.
“There’s nothing you’re going to beat than going to Penn State,” he said. “It was amazing. The relationships I have with some of the coaches still and the players still, I’m never going to forget. They’re always going to be my friends.”
However, unresolved issues over the course of the 18 months while on the OSU campus with his position coach proved to weigh heavily on Sommer’s mind - to the point that the game was unenjoyable.
“It got to the point where it wasn’t fun for me anymore,” he said.
After being granted his full release, Sommer had several schools vying for his services, including Oregon, Washington, Colorado, Boise State and Portland State.
One caveat that swayed his decision was PSU would play Oregon State in next year’s season opener on Sept. 5 in Corvallis.
Combined with the lure of playing for a former NFL coach in Glanville, Sommer said he was persuaded.
“I really liked what Coach Glanville and what they had to offer,” Sommer said. “Knowing the fact that they had seven guys sign NFL contracts, more than Oregon and Oregon State - four of those guys are still playing. Coach Glanville coached in the NFL for 12, 15 years. The one thing I was shaky on was the campus but once I saw that, there wasn’t much (of a problem).”
Sommer said he remembers the first meeting Glanville during one of the Vikings’ practices.
“Coach Glanville’s first words to me were I’m glad you’re at practice, I don’t ever want to hear about your situation at Oregon State,” he said. “You’re a Viking and we’re done talking about that. I haven’t even committed yet but I was like all right.”
Sommer is also familiar with several of the current Viking players including 2007 Wilsonville High School graduate Jordan Beltz, and 2007 Lincoln High School graduate Connor Kavanaugh, which made his decision easier.
Portland State will see more national exposure to its program when the Vikings play Division I schools such as Indiana, Kentucky and Arizona State over the next few years.
As a senior at Wilsonville, Sommer was an all-state first-team defensive lineman and second-team tight end. He was named the Northwest Oregon Conference’s defensive player of the year under his father and Wilsonville head coach Doug Sommer.
Sommer said his goal is to be ready for spring camp and compete for a starting job along the defensive line with an anticipated matchup in PSU’s 2009 opener against Oregon State.
“I’m not guaranteeing anything,” Sommer said. “Obviously, I haven’t even stepped into pads on their field but my goal is to be starting and when I walk into Reser’s Stadium, I’m ready for it. I’m still good friends with them so I don’t think cheap shots are going to be involved but I just want to stare over at the sidelines and smile at them when I’m done. And hopefully, we’ll get the ‘W’ in that one.”
Sommer leaves Oregon State, signs with PSU
Wilsonville grad Carl Sommer left a rocky relationship with OSU, signs on to play at Portland State
http://www.wilsonvillenews.com/WVSSports2.shtml
One of the more prominent football players to ever don a Wilsonville uniform made a surprising decision late September.
Just one week prior to Oregon State grabbing national headlines with its upset win over then-No. 1 Southern California, 2006 Wilsonville High School graduate Carl Sommer made his own choice to leave the Beavers.
Sommer, a 6-4, 248-pound defensive end, who was highly recruited before playing his first and only season at Wilsonville during his senior year, will now end up at Portland State University to play under coach Jerry Glanville.
Oregon State granted Sommer his full release from his scholarship. After redshirting his freshman campaign, Sommer will have three years of eligibility with the Vikings after playing 10 plays this past season in games against Penn State and Hawaii.
Sommer said he left Oregon State due to conflicts with his position coach since the first day of fall camp last year.
“I met great people, had a real good experience with the school, with most of the coaches,” Sommer said. “Unfortunately, my position coach and I did not get along at all.”
Sommer said he will cherish the memories he experienced such as playing on a big stage on the Penn State campus in front of more than 100,000 people.
“There’s nothing you’re going to beat than going to Penn State,” he said. “It was amazing. The relationships I have with some of the coaches still and the players still, I’m never going to forget. They’re always going to be my friends.”
However, unresolved issues over the course of the 18 months while on the OSU campus with his position coach proved to weigh heavily on Sommer’s mind - to the point that the game was unenjoyable.
“It got to the point where it wasn’t fun for me anymore,” he said.
After being granted his full release, Sommer had several schools vying for his services, including Oregon, Washington, Colorado, Boise State and Portland State.
One caveat that swayed his decision was PSU would play Oregon State in next year’s season opener on Sept. 5 in Corvallis.
Combined with the lure of playing for a former NFL coach in Glanville, Sommer said he was persuaded.
“I really liked what Coach Glanville and what they had to offer,” Sommer said. “Knowing the fact that they had seven guys sign NFL contracts, more than Oregon and Oregon State - four of those guys are still playing. Coach Glanville coached in the NFL for 12, 15 years. The one thing I was shaky on was the campus but once I saw that, there wasn’t much (of a problem).”
Sommer said he remembers the first meeting Glanville during one of the Vikings’ practices.
“Coach Glanville’s first words to me were I’m glad you’re at practice, I don’t ever want to hear about your situation at Oregon State,” he said. “You’re a Viking and we’re done talking about that. I haven’t even committed yet but I was like all right.”
Sommer is also familiar with several of the current Viking players including 2007 Wilsonville High School graduate Jordan Beltz, and 2007 Lincoln High School graduate Connor Kavanaugh, which made his decision easier.
Portland State will see more national exposure to its program when the Vikings play Division I schools such as Indiana, Kentucky and Arizona State over the next few years.
As a senior at Wilsonville, Sommer was an all-state first-team defensive lineman and second-team tight end. He was named the Northwest Oregon Conference’s defensive player of the year under his father and Wilsonville head coach Doug Sommer.
Sommer said his goal is to be ready for spring camp and compete for a starting job along the defensive line with an anticipated matchup in PSU’s 2009 opener against Oregon State.
“I’m not guaranteeing anything,” Sommer said. “Obviously, I haven’t even stepped into pads on their field but my goal is to be starting and when I walk into Reser’s Stadium, I’m ready for it. I’m still good friends with them so I don’t think cheap shots are going to be involved but I just want to stare over at the sidelines and smile at them when I’m done. And hopefully, we’ll get the ‘W’ in that one.”
