By: Chris Terlop '12

BEREA, OHIO -- Senior placekicker Dave Cantu (Lorain/ Amherst Marion Steele) has taken full advantage of everything Baldwin-Wallace College has had to offer on and off the football field. 

On the football field, Cantu has already earned two varsity letters as the kickoff specialist and is now the starting placekicker for the Yellow Jackets this season.  Off the football field, Cantu is involved in a very successful internship with the Cleveland Indians and has utilized the skills that he has learned with the Tribe's video production department to make Yellow Jacket football more exciting.

What Cantu has done is to produce inspirational video for teammates and fans of Yellow Jacket football. A number of his hilight tapes, season-ending highlights and preseason videos can be seen on B-W's Athletics Web site on its Facebook pages and on U-Tube.

Last season the Brown and Gold finished 7-3 for its best record since Cantu has been on campus.  It gave him an example of what is needed to compete for an OAC championship.

"I believe one of the key reasons to our success last season was great senior leadership. Having great leaders and captains set the tone not only in the way we as a team approached Saturday's, but the way we approached practice each and every day. As a senior this year, and along with my fellow senior players, we have that same mentality."  said Cantu.  

B-W faces the highest expectations yet and both players and coaches know that they have the talent to meet their goals and are not backing down.

"We as a team know what we are capable of and what we will accomplish. There is too much talent on this team to settle for a mediocre season and that is something that is just completely out of the picture. We have a winning mentality and we will not settle for anything but great game play week in and week out. It's going to take a lot of hard work from all of us, but we are physically and mentally prepared for the challenge." said Cantu.

To date, Cantu and his fellow senior student-athletes have the Yellow Jackets off to a 2-0 start following a 23-0 season-opening win at The College of Wooster on September 1 and last Saturday's 35-20 victory in their OAC-opener against Heidelberg University on Family & Community Night in Berea.

With the loss of graduated Academic All-OAC kicker Brad Pollack and punter Kareem Ibrahim, Cantu will be asked to pick up the slack as the most senior member left for special teams. He has taken that challenge head-on.  

"My mindset is that I want to walk away saying I had the best individual season for a B-W kicker in the history of the program. While the goal may be high, I am definitely up for the challenge. I will not stop working until I achieve that goal. I want my teammates and coaches to know they can count on me for every kick, no matter where the ball is placed on the field. I am confident in my ability to succeed."  said Cantu.

Tenth-year Yellow Jacket Head Coach John Snell knows that in a tough conference like the OAC, where most games are decided by less than a touchdown, field goals and extra point kicks are a big part of winning.

"Dave has a very strong leg and is capable of making some big kicks for us down the line.  I know that, as do our players.  I think everyone here is real excited to see what damage he can do this season," said Snell. 

"Dave is the kind of kid we love to have at Baldwin-Wallace," continued Snell. "He is dedicated on the field and is even more dedicated in the classroom.  We want to postion our student-athletes to graduate with a plan to succeed, and Dave is a perfect example of that."

One can make the argument that Cantu has been even more successful off the field than on.  He is a broadcasting/ mass communications major and in his third season of interning with the Cleveland Indians.  Through hard work and a little luck Cantu has went from running around in a hot dog costume to editing the videos that fans see on SportsTime Ohio and on the Jumbo-tron at Progressive Field.

"My roll this year was moved up to editing atmosphere videos to pump the crowd up, something I enjoy doing very much," said Cantu. "Personally, I believe there isn't a better feeling than waking up and working at a place and for an organization you love. I look forward going to Progressive Field day in and day out.

"The Indians have given me a great opportunity to learn and do something I love -- make video," said Cantu.  "You just can't beat it."

Cantu then took the two things that he loved, Yellow Jacket football and video editing and made a total of six "hype" videos during the past three seasons.  These videos got a great response from the student body, alumni, fans, friends and his teammates when he released them on Facebook and Youtube.  

"I was trying to get the players jacked up about the games and also trying to create excitement on campus about the team," said Cantu. "I think it has worked pretty well so far."

Cantu works on the videos weekly trying to make the next one better than the last, which can be time consuming.

"What started out as a little idea has turned into a weekly project and tradition," said Cantu. "While it is time consuming with my college schedule, I love what I do and enjoy even more the reaction from my friends and fellow teammates." In addition, a number of the Yellow Jacket faithful have posted some very favorable comments regarding his work on Facebook and U-Tube.

Cantu will graduate at the end of this season and wants to continue juggling football and editing videos.  He plans to try out for the Cleveland Gladiators, the Arena Football team in Cleveland, while staying with the Indians and expanding his role there. 

"Given the opportunity to play Arena Football would be great," said Cantu. "Playing a form of professional football is a goal of hundreds of thousands of youngsters every year. I will give it a shot and see what happens.

"But, if I can't make it on the professional ranks, I still have my job with the Indians and there are many, many more possibilities," continued Cantu. "Who knows, one day I might be making videos for NFL Films or for ESPN College Gameday."

Now that's shooting for the stars.