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The University of Utah Athletics
Camp Report Day 3: Burgess Finds Himself In Leadership Role
8/2/2019 7:10 PM | Football
SALT LAKE CITY – The University of Utah football program completed day three of 2019 fall camp today at the Eccles Football Center as week one gets ready to wrap up with the last practice tomorrow.Â
In the News: The preseason Coaches Poll was announced on August 1 with the Utes landing at No. 15. It is the highest preseason ranking by the Utes in the Coaches Poll in program history. The program's previous highest preseason rank in that poll was No. 18 in 2009.
Bill Riley caught up with junior defensive back Jaylon Johnson today after practice for the third episode of Football Camp Report.Â
Friday Features
Terrell Burgess: Becoming a LeaderÂ
Legendary coach Bear Bryant once said, "Show class, have pride, and display character. If you do, winning takes care of itself." Whether it is flying around the field at safety, helping in the community, or working toward his degree in Kinesiology, senior Terrell Burgess has put his character on full display since becoming a Ute.Â
Burgess, a native of San Marcos, Calif., grew up in a big family. He has three siblings, including a brother who was a two-time All-Big Sky wide receiver at Sacramento State. Although Burgess is the youngest, he felt he had already taken on a leadership role in his family, whether his siblings agreed with him or not.Â
"Out of the four of us, I would say I am the most polite even though they may disagree with me," Burgess said with a laugh. "I did learn from watching them though, but I think they also learned from me too."
Burgess developed a passion for helping others early on. His mother, Ingrid, ran a tight ship when he was younger, something he says helped him become the man he is today.Â
"My mom is, well I wouldn't say strict, but she also made sure that we helped in every way that we could."Â
It was when Burgess reached middle school that he realized he could make a real impact on people's lives. He got involved in an organization called "Shooting Stars" where he would play basketball with special needs children.Â
"I love giving back," Burgess said. "I volunteered for Shooting Stars all the way through my senior year of high school. It just showed me the impact you can make. You can tell being there really helped these kids. I want to be involved in helping out the younger generation."Â
That desire to serve his community didn't stop when he got to Salt Lake City. He recently was nominated for the 2019 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team, an annual award that is given to college football players for the impact they make off the field.Â
"Whether it is making sandwiches for the homeless or volunteering at elementary schools, I just like giving back," he said. "It feels good to me to make other people happy."Â
Burgess has been involved in multiple organizations since coming to Utah through local elementary schools. He has volunteered in Taylorsville for Dr. Seuss Day where he read Dr. Seuss books for hours to children, he has worked with Truman Elementary School's special needs class alongside Zack Moss and Demari Simpkins and he has also volunteered for "Math Night" at various schools in the city.Â
Through his community service, Burgess tries to instill the importance of being a good person and getting an education, something that became important to him in high school. After growing up dreaming of becoming a lawyer, his plans changed after an injury redirected his path.Â
"My senior year of high school I tore my labrum playing football and then I had to start going to physical therapy after surgery," he said. "Seeing what my physical therapist did, it kind of sparked my interest. I grew up wanting to be a lawyer, and then I got here. You realize while taking different classes what you might actually be interested in and I found an interest in Kinesiology."
Burgess enters the 2019 season with goals in mind, including graduating with his degree in December. With hype surrounding this year's team, Burgess is just focused on helping the team where he can.
"Everyone is focused and the young guys are trying to learn everything they can as we go along because everyone wants to play," he said. "All the seniors, we are just trying to make sure this year comes out the way we want it to. Last year we fell short, so we want to make sure that doesn't happen again."Â
Burgess has played in 31 career games for the Utes and will step into a bigger role this season as a senior. Even though he might not be the loudest player on the field, Burgess believes that the character he exudes on and off the gridiron will help him be the leader he wants to be in 2019.Â
"I am not going to sit here and say that I am perfect," Burgess said. "I've definitely messed up in my lifetime, but I try to lead by example. I am not the type of guy that is going to yell and be super vocal. I want to be the standard and set the standard and help lead everyone in that direction."Â
In the News: The preseason Coaches Poll was announced on August 1 with the Utes landing at No. 15. It is the highest preseason ranking by the Utes in the Coaches Poll in program history. The program's previous highest preseason rank in that poll was No. 18 in 2009.
Bill Riley caught up with junior defensive back Jaylon Johnson today after practice for the third episode of Football Camp Report.Â
Friday Features
Terrell Burgess: Becoming a LeaderÂ
Legendary coach Bear Bryant once said, "Show class, have pride, and display character. If you do, winning takes care of itself." Whether it is flying around the field at safety, helping in the community, or working toward his degree in Kinesiology, senior Terrell Burgess has put his character on full display since becoming a Ute.Â
Burgess, a native of San Marcos, Calif., grew up in a big family. He has three siblings, including a brother who was a two-time All-Big Sky wide receiver at Sacramento State. Although Burgess is the youngest, he felt he had already taken on a leadership role in his family, whether his siblings agreed with him or not.Â
"Out of the four of us, I would say I am the most polite even though they may disagree with me," Burgess said with a laugh. "I did learn from watching them though, but I think they also learned from me too."
Burgess developed a passion for helping others early on. His mother, Ingrid, ran a tight ship when he was younger, something he says helped him become the man he is today.Â
"My mom is, well I wouldn't say strict, but she also made sure that we helped in every way that we could."Â
It was when Burgess reached middle school that he realized he could make a real impact on people's lives. He got involved in an organization called "Shooting Stars" where he would play basketball with special needs children.Â
"I love giving back," Burgess said. "I volunteered for Shooting Stars all the way through my senior year of high school. It just showed me the impact you can make. You can tell being there really helped these kids. I want to be involved in helping out the younger generation."Â
That desire to serve his community didn't stop when he got to Salt Lake City. He recently was nominated for the 2019 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team, an annual award that is given to college football players for the impact they make off the field.Â
"Whether it is making sandwiches for the homeless or volunteering at elementary schools, I just like giving back," he said. "It feels good to me to make other people happy."Â
Burgess has been involved in multiple organizations since coming to Utah through local elementary schools. He has volunteered in Taylorsville for Dr. Seuss Day where he read Dr. Seuss books for hours to children, he has worked with Truman Elementary School's special needs class alongside Zack Moss and Demari Simpkins and he has also volunteered for "Math Night" at various schools in the city.Â
Through his community service, Burgess tries to instill the importance of being a good person and getting an education, something that became important to him in high school. After growing up dreaming of becoming a lawyer, his plans changed after an injury redirected his path.Â
"My senior year of high school I tore my labrum playing football and then I had to start going to physical therapy after surgery," he said. "Seeing what my physical therapist did, it kind of sparked my interest. I grew up wanting to be a lawyer, and then I got here. You realize while taking different classes what you might actually be interested in and I found an interest in Kinesiology."
Burgess enters the 2019 season with goals in mind, including graduating with his degree in December. With hype surrounding this year's team, Burgess is just focused on helping the team where he can.
"Everyone is focused and the young guys are trying to learn everything they can as we go along because everyone wants to play," he said. "All the seniors, we are just trying to make sure this year comes out the way we want it to. Last year we fell short, so we want to make sure that doesn't happen again."Â
Burgess has played in 31 career games for the Utes and will step into a bigger role this season as a senior. Even though he might not be the loudest player on the field, Burgess believes that the character he exudes on and off the gridiron will help him be the leader he wants to be in 2019.Â
"I am not going to sit here and say that I am perfect," Burgess said. "I've definitely messed up in my lifetime, but I try to lead by example. I am not the type of guy that is going to yell and be super vocal. I want to be the standard and set the standard and help lead everyone in that direction."Â
Players Mentioned
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DB
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RB
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WR
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