Oklahoma State University Athletics
Patience Pays Off For Gent
September 21, 2010 | Cowboy Football
Sept. 21, 2010
By Stefan Nolet
OSU Media Relations
Heading into the 2010 season, much of the talk surrounding the Oklahoma State football team focused on how the Cowboys would fare after the departure of one of the most productive senior classes in school history.
On offense, the Pokes lost quarterback Zac Robinson, who holds numerous OSU records, including the career record for total offense. The Cowboys also lost five offensive linemen, including first round NFL draft pick Russell Okung.
Throw in receiver Dez Bryant, who left early for the NFL, and the Cowboys lost a lot of offensive weapons.
The defense lost some key contributors as well in players like Perrish Cox, Andre Sexton and last season's leading tackler, Donald Booker.
Another player on the OSU defense that was a staple for four seasons but was often overlooked was Patrick Lavine. All Lavine did was rack up 291 tackles, eight interceptions and five sacks in his career.
Replacing a player of Lavine's caliber would not be an easy task.
Enter Justin Gent.
Gent arrived at OSU as part of the same recruiting class as Lavine, except while Lavine was playing as a true freshman, Gent was redshirting during his first year at OSU.
In his first three seasons, Gent played as a backup, slowly gaining more of the coaches' trust with each season. In his freshman season, Gent played sparingly in seven games and recorded nine tackles.
After the 2007 season, OSU lost a pair of linebackers in Jeremy Nethon and Chris Collins.
Minus two linebackers from the previous season, Gent had a larger role going into his sophomore season, but he still remained a backup. OSU linebackers coach Glenn Spencer said the biggest reason why Gent never got to be a starter until this season stemmed from a lack of focus at times.
"When I took him over last year, a lot of his issues that kept him off the field were just the focus and the strain," Spencer said.
"When it was time for him to make a play, sometimes he wouldn't finish."
Even though he was a backup player, Gent still managed to be a contributor on defense during the past two seasons, recording 56 tackles during that time.
After the departure of Lavine, Gent became the most likely candidate for the starting job. Once Gent ended up on the first team, Spencer noticed that Gent began working much harder in practice to prepare himself for his senior season.
"He's practicing so much faster than he used to practice," Spencer said. "And I think that comes from confidence and a lot of it comes from, `Hey, I've got to be accountable to these guys, and it's on me now. I can't just sit back and let Pat Lavine do it or let Donald Booker do it, it's on me now.' So I think he put pressure on himself to get better."
Gent said he is just happy to have the opportunity to be starter for the Cowboys after waiting patiently the past four seasons.
"I've wanted to start since I've been here, and I've finally gotten the opportunity and the chance," Gent said. "I'm just excited. I'm happy I get to play and go out with Orie Lemon and these other guys."
During the past three seasons, Gent learned a lot from all of the Cowboy linebackers. Guys like Sexton, Lemon and Booker all helped Gent in his drive to become a starter.
"It helped a lot seeing those guys play and getting the experience. I picked up a lot of stuff from them," Gent said. "I always talked to Pat and the other guys in front of me, picked up things they did and watched what they did and tried to pick up what worked for them."
But Lavine, in particular, helped Gent out the most. Knowing Gent would be the one to take over his position, Lavine took Gent under his wing and helped him to become the best player he possibly could.
Lavine's simplest piece of advice was, "Play your assignment," Gent said. "Don't try to do more than your assignment, and you'll end up in the right place. That's what Patrick Lavine told me, and it's worked so far."
Gent seemed comfortable in his role in the Cowboys' home opening rout of Washington State. He led the team in tackles with seven before leaving the game in the third quarter with the victory well in hand. Gent flew around and was constantly around the ball, aggressively attacking the ball carrier.
He said he was surprised at how calm he was before his first start.
"I wasn't as nervous as I thought I was going to be," Gent said. "Because I've been here going on my fifth year, I`ve done it tons of times. It's kind of the same old thing.
"I was nervous before I went out, but it went away when we started playing football."
Other than Lemon, Gent is the most experienced man among the linebackers, and it's now his job to be a mentor to his successor: LeRon Furr.
"Pat would sit by Justin in the meeting room, and they would talk while we watched film about what was going on, just like Furr is listening to Justin now," Spencer said. "The goal is to get Furr some reps and get some younger guys some reps, just like we did for Justin when he was younger.
"(Gent is) knowledgeable of the game now, so he can share it with those young guys, which helps me out a lot."
