D.J. Welter is Dedicated to the Game and His Team
“Hard working, motivated, and ambitious” — all words LSU tight end Logan Stokes used to describe his teammate D.J. Welter. Coming off of a 13-game start in his junior season, as a senior in 2014, there were a lot of expectations for the 6′-1” middle linebacker. His five years of experience on this team is an essential piece to the puzzle in order to ensure this team’s camaraderie on and off the field.
As a veteran player on such a young squad, Welter recognizes his crucial role as a team leader.
“It’s huge!” Welter said. “The way the young guys go throughout the season, if you stay focused, the younger guys will see that and they’ll stay focused. A huge deal for keeping the team together is staying focused. It’s a long season and at times you’ll have ups and downs whether you are winning or losing, so you’ve just got to keep everyone together and keep everybody on the same page and keep our goals the same.”
Football has always been a big part of Welter’s life, growing up around sports in Crowley, La. It has taken a huge role in shaping his identity today and his love for the sport has only grown throughout his journey.
“I played Pee Wee football in the third grade and it was the local town team,” Welter explained. “We went undefeated that year and I think we only gave up one first down. That was kind of cool and everyone kind of hated us but we were stacked. We had a good time and that’s where I really first enjoyed playing football.”
Being a Top 50 recruit coming out of high school, Welter had a decision to make, stay and play for his home state or go off and play somewhere else. Some may say it is a tough decision but Welter always had LSU in his sights.
“It was close to home but it was always a dream,” Welter said. “As a little kid, coming to LSU games and being an LSU fan, having the opportunity to come here, I couldn’t pass it up. They needed some linebackers when I first came out so it was the perfect fit.”
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Welter’s decision was certainly the right one. The coaching staff at LSU has tremendously benefitted his playing ability and has prepared him for some of his highest accomplishments, but at the same time, they have taught him to overcome diversity.
“Being around Coach (John) Chavis has definitely taken my game to the next level and I thank him for that, for always being on me,” Welter said. “I wasn’t always doing my best at times, but he was always there for me to pick me back up.”
Any sport has its trials and tribulations, and LSU football is certainly no easy feat, but Welter’s perspective, strikingly refreshing, only ensured that he is right at home in Baton Rouge playing for the Tigers.
“(College football) is definitely not easy, but being around football my whole life, really having a love for it, a love for the game and a passion, it makes all the hard things a lot easier,” Welter explained. “Once you get in a routine and you stay in that routine, you can only get better. So it’s not easy but coming up here every day, I wouldn’t want to be doing anything else. It’s fun being around these guys every day.”
Anyone who meets Welter can automatically see his true passion for his school, his teammates, and the sport of football. His time at LSU and his influential former teammates have helped him grow as a leader and as an athlete. Welter’s awareness of this young team’s ability brought him to recognize their enthusiasm and will to achieve.
“Being here so long and being around veteran leaders since I walked in — Kelvin Sheppard, Kevin Minter, Ron Brooks, a lot of those guys have been really good mentors to me,” Welter said. “I’ve definitely learned from them. Being a leader in high school you just kind of learned to lead people and how to talk to people in certain situations. Having experience in leading people definitely helped, but this team is young and hungry. We are definitely going to get back on track and finish the season the way we want to.”
Welter said former teammate Kelvin Sheppard, an LSU linebacker from 2007-10, had an instrumental role in his success as a player.
“We had three or four freshmen and two sophomores when I came in, we hadn’t really played much, and Kelvin came in and told us ‘You’ve got to get in the playbook because that’s the only way you are going to see the field’ and you know we took that to heart,” Welter said. “That really is what gets you on the field. You have to know the playbook and know what you have to do to go out there and play fast.”
With the fast-paced life of an athlete, one can easily lose himself and his values among the constant obstacles an LSU football player must face. It is important to Welter to have time to look at the world around him and remember who he is.
“I did Big Buddy last spring and it was fun,” Welter said. “I got to go to an afterschool program and be with kids that were less fortunate, without a lot of things at their homes. It really brought me back down to earth. Being in college, you live your life just having to pay rent and buy your groceries every now and then; your parents still help you out. Being around them humbled me and brought me back to my roots. It reminded me that you won’t be given everything and not everyone is as fortunate as I am.”
Logan Stokes, also a senior, expressed nothing but praise towards Welter.
“He’s a great friend. He’ll do anything you ask of him,” Stokes said. “He would give you the shirt off his back if he could. He’s one of the team leaders and has been since I got here two years ago. D.J has always been a leader. On the defensive side of the ball he is one of the older guys so the younger guys really look up to him.”
As the end of the season approaches, Welter’s Saturday nights in Death Valley will surely conclude but his time here has been great and he will be missed. As a player, Welter has worked very hard and always does his best to make his coaches and team proud. With the team’s best interest at heart, Welter’s influence as a leader has shaped this 2014 Tiger team into a cohesive unit.