UNI walk-on center Chase Arends taking advantage of opportunity to start

CEDAR FALLS - Before last Saturday's 21-0 win over Youngstown State, Northern Iowa center Chase Arends' last start in a football game was his senior year at Dike-New Hartford in 2018.

A third-year sophomore for the Panthers, Arends was among a makeshift group of three new offensive linemen inserted into the starting lineup for last week's win as a result of COVID-19 protocols.

Adding to the drama was the short amount of time Arends, Matthew Vanderslice and Tristan Roper had to prepare themselves for their new reality as first-teamers.

'Thursday, the tests came back and our starters got pulled right off the bus going to practice,” Arends said.

As a walk-on, Arends knew there would be a steep hill to climb to ever become a starter at UNI, but says he always loved the school and the idea of being close to home. When he visited, it felt like he was walking into a room with a bunch of his brothers.

So, when the time finally came to make his debut last Saturday as a starter, the nerves were there but his brothers were there, too, to back him up.

'Yeah, (I) was extremely nervous,” Arends said. 'You're never quite prepared for the first play. It was amazing. It was just a feeling that I never thought was going to happen. You're just in total disbelief that you actually made it and you're actually about to start this game and play in it. My dad got to drive down and watch me play again. It's great to be able to play this game again. I missed it a lot.”

The Missouri Valley Football Conference's health and safety protocols make it likely that Arends will get his second career start at 4 p.m. Saturday (ESPN+) when UNI hosts No. 14 Illinois State (0-1), and he says there were plenty of teaching moments to improve from his first start.

'I've just got to be confident in myself and stay calm,” Arends said. 'When I get out there, I get nervous and I start making calls that don't really need to be made. I just need to let the players around me do their job and everything will be OK.”

There's also blunt advice from offensive line coach Ryan Clanton for Arends to fall back on.

'You came to UNI to play football, not watch football. You've been waiting for this opportunity and it's finally here. You've got to take advantage of it,” said Arends of Clanton's message last week.