School: Sandburg, 1998.
Position: Right guard.
College: Northwestern.
Roehl was a first-team Tribune All-State selection while playing offensive tackle his senior year for a Sandburg team that was 8-3 and reached the second round of the state playoffs. He was also a 1998 Tribune Scholar-Athlete. Roehl attended Notre Dame his freshman year but did not play. He transferred to Northwestern in 1999 and was named honorable-mention All-Big Ten in 2001. The 6-foot-4-inch, 305-pounder, along with center Austin King, anchors Northwestern’s offensive line.
What is your mind-set coming off last year’s 4-7 record?
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“We don’t want that to happen again. We knew we’d be young and inexperienced this year, so [the veterans] worked really hard this off-season.”
What are your memories of high school football?
“It was a pure form of football. It was a great experience. [High school coach] Mike Navarro was like a second father to me. And I wouldn’t be where I am today without my offensive line coach, Scott Helton. He taught me a lot of the technical things, and I owe a lot to him.”
What’s it like down in the trenches in the Big Ten?
“It’s a war. It’s less than scrupulous. There’s a lot of eye-gouging and cheap shots that happen when you’re in a pile.”
At what point in your life did you realize you were going to be an offensive lineman?
“It was pretty much on the first day of high school. I wanted to be a fullback, but the coaches told me, `Go with the offensive linemen.'”