By Jay Heater
CONTRA COSTA TIMES
The face was larger than life. It was the face of Cal tailback Marshawn Lynch, as painted by teammate Daymeion Hughes, almost bursting from a helmet that usually conceals a player's personality and passion. Unlike baseball or basketball, where the athletes can be easily studied, football is a faceless game where players are hidden from view by protective equipment. Players such as Hughes, a cornerback, and linebacker Greg Van Hoesen, who both will start today against Washington at Husky Stadium in Seattle, are known as No. 13 and No. 55. They are recognized by their body frame and athletic ability, and not much more. "I know that Greg comes across as a total meathead," said senior defensive end Tosh Lupoi. "When you look at him, you see a guy who does extra squats before going to bed. You don't think about a guy who has awesome drawing talent." Hughes and Van Hoesen are art majors whose respective talents have captured the interest of their teammates.
"I know of Greg's talent," Lupoi said. "Guys keep asking him, 'Come on over and paint my wall.' He used to be a hidden jewel, but everyone knows about him now." Everybody knows about Hughes as well. Lynch knows about the shoes that Hughes painted -- a tribute to rappers past and present -- with leather dye for teammate Bernard Hicks. Now Lynch and Robert Jordan are standing in line waiting for their own specialty shoes, athletic shoes that will be painted in honor of deceased rapper Mac Dre. "I'm about to kick my shoe thing off really hard," Hughes said. "I'm not really into abstract art. I don't deal with the fantasy world. Because I don't have a vivid imagination, I deal with realism. I'm into product design." Standing nearby while Hughes was talking about his artistic endeavors, Van Hoesen was holding a small sculpture of a muscular figure rising from a sandy base. An outstretched arm pointed up at the sky. The figure's face, looking skyward, was in complete anguish. "It seems like the harder you fight sometimes, the more you sink into quicksand," Van Hoesen said. "Sometimes you can feel so powerful on the football field, but you still are struggling."
The detail on Van Hoesen's sculpture is impressive.
"I've seen Greg's sculptures," said Cal offensive tackle Ryan O'Callaghan. "He's pretty talented. But that's not really a surprise to me. You have to remember that (former Cal offensive line coach) Ed White was an artist. And when you have 100 guys on a team, you figure that one guy can draw." Cal coach Jeff Tedford said he knows that his players have hidden talents. "With (Hughes), I understand him being an artist, but I was surprised to hear that about Van Hoesen. I don't know ... just the way he looks out there." While Van Hoesen and Hughes have the grit to fit into the violent world of football, they also fit nicely into the artistic world. "Art gives me some balance," Van Hoesen said. "Football is so physically exhausting. With art, you just let it flow." Said Hughes: "I see art as the opposite of football. It's my time to relax and get away from the field. It's therapy for me. And the classes I take here challenge my creative ability." Both Hughes and Van Hoesen said they aren't anything special among their teammates. "Sid Slater (a Cal senior linebacker last season) was amazing on the guitar," Van Hoesen said. "A lot of people on the team can sing." Hughes rattled off Worrell Williams, Wale Forrester and Justin Forsett as players who can entertain teammates with their voices.
Lupoi, who says he draws at an "an advanced fourth-grade level," said Cal fans would be surprised to find out about many of the players' hidden talents. "Anyone you have with extra talent is a positive thing," Lupoi said. "And talents here at Cal are celebrated. You are not just dealing with football players." Well, in most cases anyway. O'Callaghan was asked about his hidden talent. "I can't do anything but play football," he said.
CAL REPORT
• ESSENTIALS: Cal at Washington, Husky Stadium, Seattle
• KICKOFF: 12:30 p.m.
• TV/RADIO: Chs. 7, 10; 810-AM
• RECORDS: Cal 1-0 after a 41-3 home win over Sacramento State on Saturday; Washington 0-1 after a 20-17 loss to Air Force on Saturday at Qwest Field in Seattle
• INJURIES: Cal -- QB Nate Longshore (broken leg), WR Noah Smith (broken leg), OG Brian De La Puente (ankle) are out; LB Worrell Williams (ankle) is questionable. Washington -- OT Joe Toledo (ankle) and DE Brandon Ala (knee) are out; S C.J. Wallace (eye) is questionable.
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