March 27, 2012
="" alt="Twitter Logo" border="0" class="imported"> ="" alt="Facebook Logo" border="0" class="imported"> UCF Athletics Social Media Directory
By John Denton, Knights Insider
UCFAthletics.com
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - At 6-foot-5 and 245 pounds with just 12 percent body fat, Ray Shipman has prototypical linebacker size to go along with the athleticism that a former Division I basketball player would possess. In so many ways, he seems to ooze dazzling potential out of his every pore.
But there's that one particular word - potential - that Shipman is tired of hearing as he heads into his senior season at UCF. Fans and analysts have forever tagged Shipman with the ``potential'' label, whether it was when he was a forward on the University of Florida basketball team or now that he's a blossoming linebacker for UCF. Shipman's mission now is to turn his massive potential into production next season for the Knights.
``The big thing for me has always been potential, but potential can be a very haunting word sometimes,'' a very introspective Shipman said. ``With me, I don't want people saying that I have potential. I want to be a guy who produces and not just somebody with potential.''
No UCF player has made bigger strides this offseason than Shipman, the converted basketball player and promising linebacker. He routinely continues to show up in the middle of piles as a run-stopper for the Knights and he's increasingly becoming more of a factor in pass coverage with quick and rangy frame. And UCF head coach George O'Leary is impressed with how Shipman has picked up the schemes and he's reacting more than thinking now as a linebacker.
``I think he's had a really good spring. Of all the linebackers I think he's showed up the most. He's doing things right consistently,'' O'Leary said. ``He's an athlete. We should have gotten more out of him last year, I thought. I think right now he's back and I can see the difference and the sense of urgency in the kid. He's playing a lot more consistent and doing what the position calls for.''
Shipman showed tremendous promise last season in his first full season of football since his freshman year of high school, ranking seventh on the Knights in tackles despite being limited to just nine games because of a hamstring pull. Shipman had huge performances against UAB (11 tackles, 1 tackle for loss, 1 interception) and UTEP (seven tackles and 2 pass break-ups), giving coaches at UCF hopes that Shipman was growing into his enormous promise as a football player.
It took Shipman a while to grow out of being classified as a basketball player trying to make the conversion to football because of his vast exploits on the hardwood. He was Florida's ``Mr. Basketball'' in 2008, was a three-time all-state pick and led Pace High School in Miramar to two state titles.
But even as he was playing basketball at Florida, Shipman kept one eye on football, feeling he could be a big hit there if he ever devoted himself fully to the sport. That opportunity came in 2010 when he transferred to UCF, redshirted during the Knights' Liberty Bowl season and got a big taste of football last season. Now, heading into his senior year, Shipman said his dalliances with basketball are a thing of the past and he's totally focused on becoming a football star at UCF.
``I'm a football player now, so there's no more making of that `transition from basketball' stuff. Right now, I don't know what basketball is,'' Shipman joked. ``If I don't know what's going on out here then I shouldn't even be playing football. Everything is pretty much night and day now for me because I have a season under my belt and I know the schemes. Now, instead of being hesitant out there I know where I'm going and I can just react and make plays.''
Shipman went to work on his body this offseason in an attempt to get bigger and stronger. He gained 10 pounds of muscle without a change in his 12 percent body fat index. His bench press rose to 385 pounds and his squat lift went up by 130 pounds to 550 pounds. He's noticeably bigger through the chest and said he can feel a difference with the improved strength when he drives tailbacks backward.
The hope is that Shipman can be both a physical force and a playmaker in pass coverage. He has the agility and range to cover tight ends and backs on pass routes, and he hopes to get his hands on more footballs this season. He had three break-ups to go with his one interception. He expects those numbers to go up dramatically next season.
``I got my hands on a couple of balls last year and I should have intercepted them. This year, it's about working on my hand-eye coordination and I want to turn those deflections into interceptions,'' he said. ``I feel like if I was a step quicker or my hands were a little better I could have had a couple more picks last year. That's why I've done so much work now on my lateral movement and strength to get myself in better position.''
If Shipman can be a run-stopper for the Knights and a playmaker in the passing game he will finally be able to shed the ``potential'' label and be a star for the Knights. NFL scouts will undoubtedly be watching Shipman this season because of his off-the-charts potential, so it's up to him to deliver the production to match the enormous expectations.
``It's always been my dream to play professional football, even when I was playing basketball at Florida. I used to tell my friends that I could play in the NFL and they would look at me like I was crazy,'' Shipman said. ``It's great now to have this opportunity at UCF and now it's up to me to make my dreams come true.
``(Playing in the NFL) is in the back of my head, but my main focus right now is being the best player that I can be at UCF,'' he continued. ``I'm trying to not get caught up in the NFL stuff because there are some players who were distracted by it and it hurt them. It motivates me to be as good as I can be next season.''
John Denton's Knights Insider appears on UCFAthletics.com several times a week. E-mail John at jdenton@athletics.ucf.edu.