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Pitt's Ejuan Price shows the power of positive thinking
For decades motivational speakers and life coaches alike have preached the power of positive thinking. They just might be on to something.
When Pitt’s injury-plagued star defensive end Ejuan Price applied for a sixth-year of eligibility he never once worried that his request would be denied. Why? Because Panthers’ head coach Pat Narduzzi was sure he would get it.
That’s why on Feb. 5 when it was announced that his request for an extra year was granted, the All-ACC first-team defensive end never blinked an eye.
“Honestly, I put a lot of trust in the coaches. They told me with my medical history it’s almost a sure thing,” Price said. “So when I got it, it wasn’t much of a surprise because they told me I would get it.”
If anyone deserved an extra year of football it was Price. After participating in 13 games as a true freshman in 2011, Price sat out the following year with a torn pectoral muscle, missed half of the 2013 season with a back injury and was sidelined for all of 2014 with a chest muscle injury.
With that in mind, Price didn’t exactly have to take a leap of faith when Narduzzi promised he would get another year. That jump came at the beginning of the 2015 season, when the Panthers’ first-year coach told Price that he was capable of playing with the same fast and furious style that he did when he was a four-star recruit coming out of Woodland High School in Pennsylvania.
“Coach Narduzzi is a confident guy and he kind of revamped my career. He reassured me that this year I was going to be playing fast and I was going to be playing free and I just believed him,” Price said. “Like, he was so confident about it. Why would I not believe him? He put that in me and I just ran with it.”
Boy, did he. The six-foot, 250-pound linebacker-turned-defensive end erupted for 48 tackles and 18 tackles for a loss. Price’s 11.5 sacks were one shy of Clemson’s soon-to-be-first-round NFL Draft pick, Shaq Lawson, and ranked third in the ACC.
The pinnacle of Price’s 2015 season came on Nov. 21 when he racked up five sacks during the Panthers’ 45-35 victory over Louisville.
For Price, who was named an All-ACC first-teamer by the media and coaches, the joy of playing a season from start to finish was overwhelming.
“It was great. Don’t undercut that, it was great,” Price said. “I had a lot of fun this year. … I feel like it’s been a long time coming. (Making the All-ACC team) has always been one of my goals. I was really proud of myself and I’m proud of the people that worked with me and stood by me all this time. The ones who stuck with me and never gave up on me.”
Narduzzi not only resuscitated Price’s football career, but helped him remove the doubt that had been built up in the back of his mind during those dark hours when he privately wondered if he would ever get back on the football field.
“I feel like Coach Narduzzi (and his staff) kind of brought life back to me. I had been hurt so much that I got kind of down on myself these past years. I was just trying to figure out where I stand in this whole process,” Price said. “So when they came in they just kind of rejuvenated me and built my confidence back up and it showed on the field.
“… (The coaching staff) just kept reassuring me that nothing was going to happen and that everything was going to be alright. It might have been just words or a mental thing. I don’t know. It just stuck with me.”
Narduzzi’s confidence didn’t just rub off on Price, but the whole team. In 2015, the first-year coach led Pitt to an 8-5 (6-2) record as the Panthers remained in contention for an ACC Coastal Division crown for a majority of the season.
Price feels Pitt can do even better in 2016, especially if the team applies the proper positive mental approach.
“Another year to bring the guys along will do magic,” Price said. “Everybody will have a better understanding of their roles and what positions they play in the defense and offense. Another year under the belt will be a positive thing.
“I just think if we take it week-to-week and we work like we know how to work that we can do whatever we want to do. As long as we put our minds to it and put the work in we can accomplish our goals.”
