Olivet College’s Cramer and Givens play in D3 Senior Classic All-Star game

OLIVET, Mich. – Olivet College senior football players Jacob Cramer and Dominik Givens participated in the D3 Senior Classic All-Star Game Dec. 19 in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Sports Information Director Geoff Henson asked Cramer and Givens some questions about the game and their experience.

Henson: How did you find out about the all-star game?

Givens: We were invited to play in the D3 Senior Classic All Star game via mail sent by George Lawrence who is the owner and director of the program. George sent us the invitation in the middle of October so we could have time to decide if we wanted to go. It costs a lot of money to go but we were able to find ways to make it down there.

Henson: How excited were you to get an invitation to play in the game?

Givens: I want to thank God for the opportunity because I asked Him to allow me to finish my senior year with a great season and he did just that. This was my first time ever being invited or notified about playing in an All-Star game and I wasn't going to pass this opportunity and chance up. I wanted to go experience playing along and against the best of the best around the country in NCAA Division III.

Henson: Where and when did the game take place?

Givens: The game took place in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina and inside Doug Shaw Stadium. We had to report to the hotel they required us to stay in on December 17. We practiced twice on the Dec. 18 and the game took place the next day.

Henson: What position did you play during the game and how much playing time did you get?

Givens: During the game, I played the outside receiver position or you can also call it the "Z" positon. I played plenty of snaps playing every other series.

Cramer: I played left tackle and played around half of the game.

Henson: How did your team do?

Givens: My team lost but I was able to enjoy myself and my time there. It was a great experience for me and I'm so glad I took the effort to make it to the game. It was worth it.

Cramer: We lost but it was a good time and good competition.

Henson: What will you take from playing one final football game in your collegiate career?

Givens: What I will take from the game is to say that I enjoyed myself. As a child, I dreamed of playing football at a higher level than just high school. As of matter of fact, I was the first person in my entire family to play football at a collegiate level and I count that as a blessing. But I enjoyed playing with the teammates and coaches I've played with in the past four years. They are the best. We worked hard and grinded together as a team to accomplish our goals. We been through some ups and some downs and our hard work paid off as we finished this season with a 9-1 record and won the conference championships.

I ruptured my Achilles my sophomore year and I thought I was done playing football. But my coaches, my teammates, and the athletic trainers motivated me. They said "if anybody can make a comeback, it's you." Ever since I gave them all got and I worked hard to play again and I did. I am honored to say I did my time for this team and I made an impact to this team success. I've learned so many things from my coaches. They made things understandable for all of us which help me and my teammates gain knowledge in the game of football.

Cramer: I am very happy I went down to Myrtle Beach and played in the All-Star game. It was a great experience and one that I will remember for the rest of my life.

Henson: What was the experience like playing with other players from around the country?

Givens: The experience was great. It was awesome. I had the chance to meet guys from all over the country. Here at Olivet my teammates look at me as one of the biggest and strongest but when I went to the All-Star game, they made me look little. I had the chance to compete with the best of the best and it wasn't easy. Everybody was well trained, skilled, and talented. I had the chance to play with some All-Americans as well everyone else was All-Conference players.

But we had fun and we all shared our experience at our own college to each other and I heard some interesting stories as well. The location of the All-Star game was great. The weather was in the 70s, the Atlantic Ocean was nearby and the city was nice. I did a lot of sightseeing and if you want to go on vacation, you need to visit Myrtle Beach.

Cramer: I loved the competition from this game. I went up against probably the best defensive end I have ever faced. It was good to play with these players because it made you increase your performance because all of the players were very good football players. There were a lot of kids from the east coast but I thought Dom and I were some of the better football players on our team.

Henson: What did you take from your playing experience at Olivet to that game?

Givens: What I took from Olivet to the All-Star game was the fundamentals and techniques Coach Pifer, Coach Moose, Coach Wyman and Coach Rumsey taught me. They taught me how to block. Coming in as a freshman I didn't know how to block. I had the strength to do it but I didn't have the technique and footwork, but Coach Wyman did a phenomenal job teaching me everything I know which is why I was invited to the All Star game because I performed everything he taught me. They also taught me to be aggressive, how to block in space, how to use my hands, how to run routes and how to be a leader.

Even though I played tight end here at Olivet, George Lawrence asked me to play wide receiver at the All-Star game because they were short on some receivers. But I still took in all the teachings playing wide receiver and since I was bigger than the defensive backs, I was able to man handle them in the run game. The same way I was taught how to run routes, I was able to get open on all passing plays because of what my coaches taught me. They are the best and I'm thankful and honored to play under some good coaches like them. They gave me a good experience, they disciplined me when I did wrong, they corrected me if I had questions and they did all they could to make me the best that I could be and I thank them for that. Because of them, I was able to gain knowledge, mature, become a better player, and most importantly become a better man.

Cramer: I played very well. I thought my playing experience at Olivet College helped me be prepared for this game.