Tony D'Amato
It's all about the inches
The two sides of Andrew Luck
Stephen Holder, stephen.holder@indystar.com
This was the rare glimpse past some of the carefully-constructed layers in Andrew Luck's mind.
Past the arcane facts about concrete.
Past the emotions expressed for family pictures he can't see on his flip phone.
Past the rare skills that make him one of the NFL's top young quarterbacks.
"I remember my rookie year, if I found myself in a situation that was weird, where I felt like all eyes were on me — the whole animal in a zoo sort of thing, like being stuck in an airport — it was awkward," Luck said. "I used to get emotionally hijacked about that and it would really bother me.
"But as I've gotten older, (I realize) it's part of the job description. The fish bowl thing, I wouldn't say I'm 100 percent good with it but I've reconciled it in my mind that it's part of the world we live in."
Luck would prefer to be the run-of-the-mill, Indian-food-eating, architecture-admiring, social-media-shunning 24-year-old intellectual that he is.
But there's another side, the uncompromising winner. He's a physical beast — Wolverine, teammate and backup Matt Hasselbeck calls him — obsessive in his pursuit of greatness no matter what comes with it.
Each side of Luck is fascinating when examined individually. Together, they form a man on his way to being the NFL's next great quarterback.
This is the story of how he merges and balances it all.
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This was the rare glimpse past some of the carefully-constructed layers in Andrew Luck's mind.
Past the arcane facts about concrete.
Past the emotions expressed for family pictures he can't see on his flip phone.
Past the rare skills that make him one of the NFL's top young quarterbacks.
"I remember my rookie year, if I found myself in a situation that was weird, where I felt like all eyes were on me — the whole animal in a zoo sort of thing, like being stuck in an airport — it was awkward," Luck said. "I used to get emotionally hijacked about that and it would really bother me.
"But as I've gotten older, (I realize) it's part of the job description. The fish bowl thing, I wouldn't say I'm 100 percent good with it but I've reconciled it in my mind that it's part of the world we live in."
Luck would prefer to be the run-of-the-mill, Indian-food-eating, architecture-admiring, social-media-shunning 24-year-old intellectual that he is.
But there's another side, the uncompromising winner. He's a physical beast — Wolverine, teammate and backup Matt Hasselbeck calls him — obsessive in his pursuit of greatness no matter what comes with it.
Each side of Luck is fascinating when examined individually. Together, they form a man on his way to being the NFL's next great quarterback.
This is the story of how he merges and balances it all.
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'HE HAS THAT NERDY SIDE'
Luck, in a white T-shirt and blue jeans, is sitting leisurely on the visiting bench at darkened Lucas Oil Stadium. The building is eerily quiet, much more than it will be in a few weeks when Luck returns to the field and brings the masses to their feet.
He was told the interview would include talk of his diverse interests, so tucked under his arm is a book he's recently read on South African anti-apartheid leader Nelson Mandela.
Reading ranks high on that list of interests because Luck's mind craves knowledge like his lungs long for air. There's a story about how Luck came to read this book, and it's emblematic of his ever-inquisitive nature.
"I got to spend a couple days a while back with a man who knew Mr. Mandela and was on the Truth and (Reconciliation) Commission after apartheid," Luck recounts. "So, he knew Mr. Mandela well. I got to talking to him about Mr. Mandela and I said, 'I've got to know more about this guy.' He was obviously so incredibly interesting and still is so impactful in our culture."
NFL quarterbacks are supposed to care mostly about film study. (And maybe making ridiculous TV commercials.) Luck won't settle for just that.
"Coach (Chuck) Pagano always tells us not to let football define our life," Luck said. "And I think it was (former offensive coordinator) Bruce Arians who told me once, 'Football is what you do. It's not who you are.' I've taken that to heart."
Quarterbacks have playbooks. Luck has lots of other books, too. Books about people, places, history, events and ... concrete? Yes, concrete.
Sure, he majored in architectural design at Stanford, but really?
"I am not making this up," says Hasselbeck, who has grown close to Luck. "It was a book on concrete. He was showing it to everyone on the road trip to Cincinnati. He was fascinated."
Said receiver Griff Whalen, a college teammate and friend: "He was on the bus like, 'Did you guys know that Cincinnati was the first (city) to use this or that kind of concrete?' Everyone was like, 'Yeah, whatever. Thanks for that.'
"He definitely has that nerdy side."
NOT A CELEBRITY
For a young man who is so varied, Luck can also be so simple.
Just consider his decision to largely eschew social media, making him the rare celebrity nowadays to exist off the social media grid. (By the way, Luck hates the word celebrity.)
To let Luck tell it, he knows who he is and he stays in his lane.
"Look at (punter) Pat McAfee and his personality," Luck said. "It's out there and it's funny and it's hilarious and it's perfect for him. I laugh all the time and love talking to him. But it wouldn't be right for me."
Luck might not technically be on Twitter, but he kind of is.
"My mom knows what I do every week because she sees it on Twitter," he joked. "She's much more tech savvy than I am. OK, actually, I shun some technology. I've just always been a bit more private."
Maybe he's not quite an introvert, but he's certainly no extrovert. You can see evidence of this in other areas, too. Ask yourself: When was the last time you saw an Andrew Luck commercial?
Tick.
Tick.
Tick.
When you're the first to perform so many amazing feats — throwing for more yards than any quarterback in his first two years, for instance — humility would seem hard to maintain.
Luck has no issues in this regard. At times, he might be too deferential.
"He's one of the most humble superstars that I've ever encountered," McAfee said. "Say there's a certain drink that he wants offered in the cafeteria. He'll say, 'Hey, wouldn't this be cool if we had this or that?' We say, 'Yes, it would be. Now, go make it happen! You're the guy that can make it happen.' It's like he doesn't even know it because he's such a humble guy who has no idea of the elite level of superstar that he is. That's what makes him so cool."
Stephen Holder, stephen.holder@indystar.com
This was the rare glimpse past some of the carefully-constructed layers in Andrew Luck's mind.
Past the arcane facts about concrete.
Past the emotions expressed for family pictures he can't see on his flip phone.
Past the rare skills that make him one of the NFL's top young quarterbacks.
"I remember my rookie year, if I found myself in a situation that was weird, where I felt like all eyes were on me — the whole animal in a zoo sort of thing, like being stuck in an airport — it was awkward," Luck said. "I used to get emotionally hijacked about that and it would really bother me.
"But as I've gotten older, (I realize) it's part of the job description. The fish bowl thing, I wouldn't say I'm 100 percent good with it but I've reconciled it in my mind that it's part of the world we live in."
Luck would prefer to be the run-of-the-mill, Indian-food-eating, architecture-admiring, social-media-shunning 24-year-old intellectual that he is.
But there's another side, the uncompromising winner. He's a physical beast — Wolverine, teammate and backup Matt Hasselbeck calls him — obsessive in his pursuit of greatness no matter what comes with it.
Each side of Luck is fascinating when examined individually. Together, they form a man on his way to being the NFL's next great quarterback.
This is the story of how he merges and balances it all.
Login
- more
This was the rare glimpse past some of the carefully-constructed layers in Andrew Luck's mind.
Past the arcane facts about concrete.
Past the emotions expressed for family pictures he can't see on his flip phone.
Past the rare skills that make him one of the NFL's top young quarterbacks.
"I remember my rookie year, if I found myself in a situation that was weird, where I felt like all eyes were on me — the whole animal in a zoo sort of thing, like being stuck in an airport — it was awkward," Luck said. "I used to get emotionally hijacked about that and it would really bother me.
"But as I've gotten older, (I realize) it's part of the job description. The fish bowl thing, I wouldn't say I'm 100 percent good with it but I've reconciled it in my mind that it's part of the world we live in."
Luck would prefer to be the run-of-the-mill, Indian-food-eating, architecture-admiring, social-media-shunning 24-year-old intellectual that he is.
But there's another side, the uncompromising winner. He's a physical beast — Wolverine, teammate and backup Matt Hasselbeck calls him — obsessive in his pursuit of greatness no matter what comes with it.
Each side of Luck is fascinating when examined individually. Together, they form a man on his way to being the NFL's next great quarterback.
This is the story of how he merges and balances it all.
Share MediaShow Caption
'HE HAS THAT NERDY SIDE'
Luck, in a white T-shirt and blue jeans, is sitting leisurely on the visiting bench at darkened Lucas Oil Stadium. The building is eerily quiet, much more than it will be in a few weeks when Luck returns to the field and brings the masses to their feet.
He was told the interview would include talk of his diverse interests, so tucked under his arm is a book he's recently read on South African anti-apartheid leader Nelson Mandela.
Reading ranks high on that list of interests because Luck's mind craves knowledge like his lungs long for air. There's a story about how Luck came to read this book, and it's emblematic of his ever-inquisitive nature.
"I got to spend a couple days a while back with a man who knew Mr. Mandela and was on the Truth and (Reconciliation) Commission after apartheid," Luck recounts. "So, he knew Mr. Mandela well. I got to talking to him about Mr. Mandela and I said, 'I've got to know more about this guy.' He was obviously so incredibly interesting and still is so impactful in our culture."
NFL quarterbacks are supposed to care mostly about film study. (And maybe making ridiculous TV commercials.) Luck won't settle for just that.
"Coach (Chuck) Pagano always tells us not to let football define our life," Luck said. "And I think it was (former offensive coordinator) Bruce Arians who told me once, 'Football is what you do. It's not who you are.' I've taken that to heart."
Quarterbacks have playbooks. Luck has lots of other books, too. Books about people, places, history, events and ... concrete? Yes, concrete.
Sure, he majored in architectural design at Stanford, but really?
"I am not making this up," says Hasselbeck, who has grown close to Luck. "It was a book on concrete. He was showing it to everyone on the road trip to Cincinnati. He was fascinated."
Said receiver Griff Whalen, a college teammate and friend: "He was on the bus like, 'Did you guys know that Cincinnati was the first (city) to use this or that kind of concrete?' Everyone was like, 'Yeah, whatever. Thanks for that.'
"He definitely has that nerdy side."
NOT A CELEBRITY
For a young man who is so varied, Luck can also be so simple.
Just consider his decision to largely eschew social media, making him the rare celebrity nowadays to exist off the social media grid. (By the way, Luck hates the word celebrity.)
To let Luck tell it, he knows who he is and he stays in his lane.
"Look at (punter) Pat McAfee and his personality," Luck said. "It's out there and it's funny and it's hilarious and it's perfect for him. I laugh all the time and love talking to him. But it wouldn't be right for me."
Luck might not technically be on Twitter, but he kind of is.
"My mom knows what I do every week because she sees it on Twitter," he joked. "She's much more tech savvy than I am. OK, actually, I shun some technology. I've just always been a bit more private."
Maybe he's not quite an introvert, but he's certainly no extrovert. You can see evidence of this in other areas, too. Ask yourself: When was the last time you saw an Andrew Luck commercial?
Tick.
Tick.
Tick.
When you're the first to perform so many amazing feats — throwing for more yards than any quarterback in his first two years, for instance — humility would seem hard to maintain.
Luck has no issues in this regard. At times, he might be too deferential.
"He's one of the most humble superstars that I've ever encountered," McAfee said. "Say there's a certain drink that he wants offered in the cafeteria. He'll say, 'Hey, wouldn't this be cool if we had this or that?' We say, 'Yes, it would be. Now, go make it happen! You're the guy that can make it happen.' It's like he doesn't even know it because he's such a humble guy who has no idea of the elite level of superstar that he is. That's what makes him so cool."
ova there bish 
I'd rather watch the cum dry on my hands