Hartung biding his time
Nate Hartung has a new title these days: collegiate free agent.
The 2005 Butler graduate and former gargantuan center-nose guard served a three-year Mormon mission in New Zealand after graduation.
Now that Hartung's back, he's looking to embark upon a Division I college football career — and finding no schools at that level offering scholarships.
The 360-pound Hartung shined in the Big 33 all-star football game after his senior season, elevating his stock to Division I recruiters at the time.
But that shine apparently dimmed with time.
"Yeah, it's disappointing,"Hartung said. "I've heard a lot of reasons why schools won't offer me a scholarship. I haven't played in a while; it's because of my weight; I couldn't handle the workouts, the intense practices; I've got no speed — I've heard them all.
"I'm just anxious to get into camp somewhere and make everybody else sorry they didn't take me."
Hartung said he has been offered a scholarship by Division IISlippery Rock University, and Division I-ATennessee State has expressed interest in him.
But he wants to go higher.
"My goal has always been to play Division I college football, and I don't want to sell myself short,"he said.
Hartung has taken no "official" visits because he's not a high school senior facing any type of letter-of-intent deadline. He has frequented the campuses of Ohio State, Penn State, Utah and Brigham Young, however.
"The way I see it, I have no deadline,"Hartung said. "There's 119 Division I programs and whether I commit to one tomorrow or in July, I'm in the same situation. Walk on and prove myself.
"I'm sort of in limbo right now. I'm going to go to the school that's most beneficial to me socially and financially. Football is football. I'm going to have to pay to play it, so I'm walking into the best atmosphere I can."
Because he's a Mormon, Hartung can attend Brigham Young for $4,000 a semester. Utah would be a similar discount for him.
Both of those schools won bowl games last year. BYUis coming off consecutive Mountain West Conference titles and has the longest current winning streak among Division I teams at 10 games.
The Cougarsedged UCLA17-16 in the Las Vegas Bowl last season and return 10 of 11 starters on offense.
"You would think (BYU)would redshirt, see how strong and mature he is ... it's going to be hard for anybody to keep him off the field," saidformer Butler football coach Garry Cathell.
Utah was 9-4 last year, defeated Navy 35-32 in the Poinsettia Bowl and returns eight offensive starters. Brigham Young returns its starting center and nose guard. Utah returns neither.
"Those are both pretty solid football programs,"Hartung said. "I'm looking very closely at both of them."
Hartung has dropped 80 pounds since returning home from his mission. He now weighs 360 pounds, which is the lightest he's been since eighth grade. He works out daily and has put together a tape of his athleticism that's been sent to collegiate coaches.
"I've seen that tape,"Cathell said. "He does 15 sets of 315 pounds in the weight room, does 12 100-yard sprints with just 85 seconds rest in between ... He's in great shape."
