Ikaika Alama-Francis: "Sometimes it got to a point where
it was like,'Whoa.' Every time I was really thinking about
things, what to do, whatnot to do and getting all that attention."Ikaika Alama-Francis' first two years with the Lions were a littleintense, to say the least. The defensive end was the first defensivelineman drafted by coach Rod Marinelli, a defensive-line specialist.
Sure enough, the easygoing Hawaiian soon became a pet project of Marinelli's.
Theexcruciating details Marinelli preached to Alama-Francis in privatesessions during practice and for extended periods after practice wereenough to practically make him feel like the coach's son on a LittleLeague team.
"Oh,definitely there's a lot of pressure when a coach is always on you,"Alama-Francis said. "You always have to be on your toes. Sometimes itgot to a point where it was like, 'Whoa.' Every time I was reallythinking about things, what to do, what not to do and getting all thatattention.
"Itwas good because he's one of the best D-line coaches out there. I wasvery blessed to be coached by him and (former defensive line coach) JoeCullen. But things are different now. Everybody's trying to learn thesethings, and it's all squared up with teaching."
Now,Alama-Francis has started with a clean slate with the new coachingstaff. With a new "get bigger and get stronger" edict for the team,Alama-Francis has gone from 275 pounds to 290 pounds and even jokedthat he's getting taller.
"Well, I'm wearing thicker cleats this year," he said. "I've gained about half an inch."
Alama-Francishas been lining up inside at times during practice, but he said thereis no permanent role determination. It's just part of the processcoaches go through to see where every player fits best.
"Everybody'scoming along real well," he said. "They wanted a bigger defense, theywanted bigger guys, and we're trying to do that. We're coming togetheras a defense. I think we're doing really well. We're learning what thecoaches are teaching us. I know it's a little bit different from lastyear, but it's the same thing: Get up the field, penetrate as a D-lineand then the rest just falls into place."
