TIFTON — Upcoming Tift County High School football players have been learning more about expectations recently.

Blue Devils head coach Noel Dean has been speaking with players at Eighth Street Middle and Northeast Middle.

Jan. 26’s session was mainly about role models — “Who we want to be like,” said Dean.

“Have you ever heard the term, ‘You are who young hang around?’ You become who you hang around?’,” he said. Dean talked about peer pressure. “If you’re around folks who do that, you eventually folks who do that,” he said of bad influences.

Dean gave an example from his own life. He wanted to teach, but at that time almost all of the available positions involved teaching chemistry. Referring to himself as a “big dumb jock,” Dean said his method was to start hanging around chemistry majors. He began getting the hang of it and realized “They were cool dudes; they just didn’t play football.”

“Which is OK,” he said. “Not everybody can play football. It’s a really special sport.”

Each player in attendance was asked to write down three role models and reasons explaining why. Dean called upon a few to explain their choices.

Mothers and fathers were popular choices, but several athletes made the cut as well. Rashod Bateman was a frequent mention, with others writing down J.J. Watt and Tim Tebow.

“Great person to pick,” Dean said of Bateman. He had earlier remembered Bateman talking to Tift County youth a year ago. In that conversation, Dean said, Bateman talked about how he surrounded himself with people that fit his goals of those who excelled academically and treated others with respect.

The Watt fan said, “He pushes his teammates to be better.” Dean added to that, about the money Watt had donated to Houston for hurricane relief. He praised Tebow’s sportsmanship.

Everyone in attendance was given a slice a pizza to open the meeting. Extra slices were offered to those brave enough to talk.

The talks are part of the Tift County football “Trident True” program, focusing on mind, body, heart and soul. Core tenets involve academics, strength, commitment and character.

Dean also chatted colleges, how high school players should keep more than sports in mind.

“You may want to go somewhere where you feel like you’re a good fit academically,” he said. “Something you want to learn, something you want to investigate in college.” They will have more time to think about that, Dean said, once they are in high school.

Several schools have been in contact with Tift coaches, he said, looking for Blue Devils who can achieve. Duke, Mississippi State, Georgia State, Georgia Southern and Georgia Tech are among these, said Dean.

“Those are different schools who have come through looking for Tift boys that are academically eligible, Tift boys who are athletically able to play at those levels.”