Orio's a true student of game
Quarterback's option play was to postpone medical school for another season with NU
While most quarterbacks are spending their preseason studying the playbook, Northeastern's Anthony Orio has been thinking about medical schools in Boston and Philadelphia, schools like Harvard, Tufts, Penn, and Temple.
Orio graduated this past semester summa cum laude with a bachelor's degree in biochemistry and a 3.85 grade-point average.
He freely acknowledges that there is a difference between football smarts and book smarts.
"There's a lot of things that do carry over: study habits - if you have good study habits in the classroom, they'll carry over to the field," Orio said. "But I think there is a difference between having football savvy and school savvy."
His coach, Rocky Hager, welcomes back his four-year starter's savvy.
"He has it all down pat," Hager said. "He can tell all 10 other players on the field where to align. He's smart. He's really smart. I don't have another word for it."
Orio wanted to be smart in his decision to return and he made sure it was calculated.
At first, Orio was concerned football might preclude medical school. But team physician Glen Ross told him that if he were admitted, he would be able to defer medical school for a year.
Orio's return is good for NU, Hager said, mainly because of his composure - a characteristic that defines Orio. In fact, Hager doesn't recall the last time Orio committed a delay-of-game penalty.
"He may have had one his redshirt freshman year, but I honestly can't remember," Hager said.
"I've always watched football games my whole entire life and I could never understand how someone could get a delay-of-game penalty," Orio said. "To me, it's such a simple thing. It's not like they're trying to trick you. It's not like the clock is blind and you can't see it."
Orio's composure will be needed as the offense tries to cope with the loss of running back Maurice Murray, who graduated with 3,806 career rushing yards.
Replacing the straight-ahead style of Murray is Alex Broomfield, a scat-back sort who recorded 253 rushing yards and 267 receiving yards last season.
"The difference between Maurice taking a 3-yard gain and sometimes making it a 7 or 8, Alex might make the 5-yard gain a 55-yard gain," Hager said.
Orio has roomed with both Murray and Broomfield and said while Murray was productive, Broomfield is more versatile.
"I think Alex brings more to the table," Orio said. "You wouldn't see Mo lined up in the slot running a seam route. Alex has that capability."
Orio's composure will also help with the schedule, which begins with games at Ball State, Georgia Southern, and Syracuse. Hager said his team won't roll over against the Cardinals tonight.
"We aren't going to go to Muncie [Ind.] with that attitude that we're going there just to play for a payday," he said. "We're going to go there to win."
His quarterback echoed that, but the environment at Division 1 stadiums is nothing compared with that of Orio's future workplace: the operating room.
"Probably a little more hectic than a fourth quarter of an NCAA football game," Orio said, laughing.
Even with a full-on blitz on fourth down?
"Yeah," he said. "It's not life and death." 