Martin poised for big year at I.C. West

IOWA CITY - Having players with immense amounts of talent always offers a wonderful problem for coaches.

Of course, it's an undoubted positive to have quality athletes, but there's most often a desire to use that talent and intelligence on every possible play. For the Iowa City West football team, the player emerging into that status is junior wide receiver Oliver Martin. The 6-foot-2 speedster had 61 catches for 759 yards and five touchdowns last season, and seems poised to improve on those numbers for the Trojans in 2015.

Coach Garrett Hartwig loves what he sees out of Martin - in more ways than one.

'The best thing about Oliver is he never demands anything. He doesn't have an ego in any way and he works incredibly hard on the field and off,” Hartwig said at practice Tuesday. 'With a guy like Oliver, he's unselfish enough to know he requires so much attention from the defense that we can use him in situations to get balls in the hands of our other guys.

'We've got a lot of guys we'd like to get touches to, and Oliver is at the forefront of that list. His work ethic, his ability certainly stand out and I'm happy to have him. He's a great kid and works incredibly hard. He does what it takes to win.”

Martin certainly doesn't appear to see anything special about his approach to the game - that work ethic and drive to keep getting better seems to be second nature.

A question about how he handles the attention of opposing teams and his hard work prompted little more than a shoulder shrug and a half smile. His understated personality comes across when he speaks, but the fast, uber-talented player comes through when he pulls on his helmet. He also feels much more comfortable now than he did his first two years of high school.

'I'm not as stressed out about it as you might think. I've put in a lot of work in the off-season,” Martin said. 'Before, I was one of the younger guys on the field and now I'm an upper classman. It's a more relaxed feel now. I'm having more fun with it this year than I did last year. I had more stress and weight on my shoulders last year.

'Last year, that's kind of how it was (a chip on my shoulder) because I was a sophomore and I was smaller. I feel like I did well last year, but I feel like I can do better this year because I've improved my size and speed. It'll be a good year.”

That good year could lead to ever more attention on the recruiting trail. Even before Iowa City West has taken a snap for Martin's junior season, he's been invited to camps and Junior Days for multiple power conference schools, including Notre Dame, Northwestern and the Big Ten school across town.

Martin recently was invited to attend an Iowa football practice, and got a tour of the new facility with a few classmates. It was more than just lip service to a local high schooler, though, as Martin attended Iowa's Junior Day earlier in the summer (ditto for Notre Dame) and has had talks with recruiting coordinator Reese Morgan and wide receivers coach Bobby Kennedy about official visits. He's also garnered interest for baseball, going on an official visit at Illinois.

All the attention could have a negative effect - especially if it was to go to his head. Martin said he doesn't 'think it affects me that much. I just want to do (well) and kind of relax because I'm out here with my friends competing.”

From Harwig's perspective, he's seen no change in Martin's approach to the game, which has been exceedingly positive and refreshing. And if the Trojans are to get a Week 1 win against Cedar Rapids Kennedy on Thursday night at Kingston Stadium - much less improve on a 7-5 record and state quarterfinal berth - that must continue.

'No (I've not seen a change), and that's a credit to how hard he's always worked,” Hartwig said. 'With Oliver, I've never had to get after him to work. To Oliver's credit, he's always shown up with a diligent work ethic. So when attention starts to get paid towards him, he doesn't have to change because that's who he is. He's a hard worker and a kid that demands perfection from himself.”

West and Kennedy kick off at 7:15 p.m.

l Comments: (319) 368-8884; jeremiah.davis@thegazette.com