Barry Wesley Honored with Yates Student Leadership Award
Junior football player pays back growth he's experienced on campus
Mike Brohard
Not every student will take the chance to become involved.
Albert Bimper knows as much from personal experience. He witnessed it at Colorado State when he was a student-athlete in the early 2000s, a four-year starter for the football team on the offensive line. His return to campus – as the senior associate athletic director for diversity and inclusion – affords him a wider vantage point, and he says not much has changed since his return in 2013.
“It’s interesting in a negative way. There’s always going to be a few who take the opportunity and run with it,” Bimper said. “It’s a few who will put themselves out there and try to separate from the crowd. That’s how it works”
Take it a step further. Programs such as the John Mosley Student-Athlete Mentoring program are in place to help with time-management skills, promote academic success and provide a link the surrounding community with introductions to campus and city leaders. The networking can prove invaluable for those who take part.
A few stay behind and become mentors themselves. Students such as Barry Wesley.
Bimper is encouraged when he sees a student take the important initial step, but he’s intrigued by those who pay it forward.
“It’s good to see that Barry is brave enough to be one of the few, but he encourages others and gives them permission to be brave enough when they’re ready,” Bimper said. “He’s been smart about it. He’s not only seeking out opportunities, but he makes himself available. People latch on and want to help them.”
Wesley came to Colorado State because of the university. He wasn’t highly recruited as a football player out of Bear Creek High School, so he wanted to be smart about his next step. He had the desire to continue his football career, but he wanted to take the chance as a walk-on somewhere where, should the sport not work out, his academic career would.
Immediately, he felt Colorado State touched him in that regard. For him, it was somewhat an eerie feeling, in a good way.
“It’s the people, for sure. The people here, I don’t think you can find the same type of friendliness or welcoming feeling any other place in the country,” Wesley said. “When you watch ghost-hunting shows and they feel like something has touched their shoulder … That was it for me, but instead of feeling freaked out about it, it felt welcoming. It felt like the campus tapped me on the shoulder and told me this place is for you. Regardless of football, you’re going to come here.”
Early on, Wesley became involved with the Mosley program. That led him to become part of the President’s Muliticultural Student Advisory Committee (PMSAC). He has taken part in the Green and Global program for student-athletes, attended the Black Student-Athlete Summit for three successive years and has tied himself to the youth the community, be it through CSU initiatives or an internship with the Boys and Girls Club of Larimer County.
He did all of this while a walk-on to the football team. Those who have taken notice have watched him grow into a vital part of the campus’ student-leadership foundation, helping to expand ideas and carry forth understanding and positive change for their peers.
His work led to his selection as this year’s recipient of the Albert C. Yates Student Leadership Award, presented annually to a student who displays strong involvement through leadership and a commitment to upholding the university’s values, traditions and spirit.
Tom Ehlers has been entwined with the football program since he started as a player back in the 1980s. He’s been a member of the coaching staff, as well as the support staff, currently holding the title of director of Ram Life programs. He’s written many letters of recommendation to the selection committee over the years, but in presenting one for Wesley, he said none had ever come as easy.
“Barry is an engaged, thoughtful student,” Ehlers said as part of his recommendation. “We regularly receive emails from his instructors telling us about his preparation, participation, presentation, and perspiration! Barry is a psychology major, and he hopes to be a counselor.
“Barry would tell you there is no secret to his success. He lives by this simple statement: “Do the right thing; do it the right way, and treat people right while you’re doing it.” His parents have taught him to never give up. Barry’s father suffers from diabetes; he lost a leg to the disease during Barry’s second year at CSU. That has not stopped his mother and father from being at every game, scrimmage, and event. They are always there with a good word for Barry, his teammates, or the staff. It is easy to see why Barry is committed to doing the right thing – his parents have shown him that his entire life.”
Bimper remembers his initial introduction to Yates, who was the CSU president from 1990-2003. Bimper had no idea at the time who Yates was when he walked into the football team meeting, but he just knew. Yates carried such an aura, one Bimper referred to as “regal.”
“When he walked into a room, you knew somebody important had arrived, and not in a pompous kind of way, but someone who had earned respect,” Bimper said. “I think Barry carries that same attribute. When Barry shows up, people pay attention and listen and are curious about what he’s going to say or what he’s going to do. That’s a great atmosphere about yourself to have.”
Which wasn’t always the case, and it’s why Wesley has never questioned where he chose to continue is educational path.
Wesley has a presence, gifted to him by his 6-foot-6, 305-pound frame. That alone will attract attention when he enters a room. But it’s the way he carries himself. His arrival isn’t an announcement, by any means; he doesn’t use it to make himself known.
What sets him apart is the way he presents his thoughts, feelings and ideas. He’s a careful speaker, which makes him more powerful.
He will tell you it is a skill which was developed on campus, because he reached out and took the chance to be taught.
“Honestly, I’m thinking about my first time at Mosley or PMSAC, and I see reflections of my first years, being there and not saying anything, kind of just listening,” Wesley said. “It translates to football, too, a young guy trying to soak in all the information they’re throwing at you. Now, going into my senior year, that leadership role I have, I speak out more. On the football field, I help guide young guys in the right direction. My personal growth has really expanded in terms of not being afraid to speak my mind and not being afraid to use my voice. Others hopefully value it and take what I have to say and interpret it in their own way and help them make changes for themselves.”
When you watch ghost-hunting shows and they feel like something has touched their shoulder … That was it for me, but instead of feeling freaked out about it, it felt welcoming. It felt like the campus tapped me on the shoulder and told me this place is for you. Regardless of football, you’re going to come here.Barry Wesley, Football Player and Albert C. Yates Student Leadership Award Winner
As a young coach on a new staff, Louie Addazio dove into getting to know the players he would be instructing, the offensive line. Tape can tell a coach certain things, and with Wesley, it presented a story of perseverance. The walk-on grew into a player who has started all 24 games of his college career, and he’s played each of the five line positions in a game, including center in a pinch at the end of his redshirt freshman season.
It was meeting the young man which told Addazio so much more, such as he would rely upon Wesley in so many ways in the coming years.
Then he watched him interact with his teammates, on the field and in meeting rooms. On a football field, there is constant chatter. Some of it is idle banter, some of it trash talk. However, not everybody is granted the respect of full attention when the conversation turns serious. What Addazio noticed was when Wesley spoke, ears were open, eyes were fixed.
“I think as soon as we kinda hit the ground running here and getting to be around him day in and day out, you could just tell what an intelligent, caring guy he was,” Addazio said. “He’s really thoughtful, and the way he carried himself and acted, he had a presence about him and you could tell he’s very thorough in how he thinks things through.
“I think it’s great how involved he is and how much pride he takes in it. The examples he sets for the younger guys, that you can have multiple passions. I’m more than very impressed by that. He talks about how much he wants to be involved and he cares. He wants to leave a legacy and give back. That’s what really struck me. College kids, they’re more worried about themselves. Barry is not like that. Barry is more concerned about others.”
The coronavirus pandemic has moved more than a few people off center of their normal routines. In the classroom or the organizations Wesley is involved with, remote contact has become the norm. Class structure isn’t the same, so the habits which are part of the fabric are frayed.
As he has worked his way toward preparing for finals, checking his email has taken a back seat. It’s why he found out about the award via his mom, who found out from a friend of hers. The wonders of social media.
He was humbled to hear he was nominated to begin with, even more so to find out he was selected for the honor. He refers to a saying about while being in the spotlight, nobody sees the hard work performed in the shadows.
Which has been his life as a Ram, be it on the football field or just a random –albeit large -- student walking across campus. Like an offensive linemen, he’d rather others reap the rewards of his sweat equity, but he’s grateful, nonetheless.
Still, his work and growth are far from over. Wesley will look internally to parts of his life he would still like to change, and with his gained knowledge and experiences, lives he wants to influence. That is focused mainly on the younger set. When he was still at Bear Creek, his head coach encouraged players to head to the youth fields on Saturday mornings and give back, be it with encouragement or help. Wesley took it to heart then, and the belief was carried to campus.
His work with the Boys and Girls Club further inspired him, and if there is an opening in his schedule, he will visit a local school to read stories. Or become involved with a youth camp or activity on campus.
At practice, if youngsters are there, Wesley dawdles, speaking to all of them who request his attention. Pulling off sweaty pads and unraveling the tape on his body just has to wait. His time at Colorado State has not given him a precise plan, but there is a direction.
“I think I have a better general idea of what I want to do after my football career, and that’s work with youth. After my experience with the Boys and Girls Club, it changed my mindset completely,” he said. “Being a psychology major and understanding how the mind works and how development when you’re younger is so important, that’s something I definitely want to do.
“It’s the pureness, the naivety. When you get older, you see the bad and the ugly and evil in people. In kids, it’s not there. They want to have fun and hang out with their friends, put a puzzle together or go play basketball. It’s so pure and rewarding to see that.”
Just as it has been for those on campus to see Wesley first become involved, then stay around long enough to give back to the next generation of students. He learned to use his voice, but more importantly, to make sure he has something of value to add to the growing list of conversations. Pointing out problems is an empty task without offering solutions.
Bimper has seen him in action with Mosley and PMSAC, as well as a leader on the Green and Global trip to Jamaica a few summers back. The development Ehlers has seen in the young man over the course of three seasons, Addazio picked up on almost immediately, recognizing the value such a personality can have on a team and its desired success.
Giving back the gifts he received has become second nature to Wesley.
“Absolutely. I’ve learned a lot, not only about myself, but about other people and really how the interactions with people and the events happening around the world affect everybody, that that changes how you feel about humanity and life,” Wesley said. “I’m at a loss of words at trying to give back, because it’s given me so much.”
He has taken it upon himself to offer the tap on the shoulder.