Future is wide open for Ortman

The Penn lightweight football running back could rewrite the record book and be captain one day. "He's got a work ethic that's unbelievable. He never misses practice. He does extra running. He's always in the weight room." Sophomore lightweight football tailback Tim Ortman has exemplified the words of Penn lightweight football coach Bill Wagner since he began playing football in fifth grade. He started playing football because it was a family tradition and his favorite sport. In fact, Ortman followed his cousin Steve, who was a tailback for the Penn football team in the 1980s. Before coming to Penn, Ortman was always considerably smaller than the opposition. During his senior year of high school he was too small to play tailback, so he was moved to wide receiver. "Tim was always at a disadvantage size-wise," said Sue Ortman, Tim's mother. "When you're small you have to work harder, but Tim persevered." One way Ortman tried to overcome his diminutive stature was by using strength, so he began lifting weights. "He's powerful. He brings his own block with him, and that's in his shoulder and forearm," Wagner said. Ortman also used other tactics to excel at tailback. "I tried to increase my speed because the faster I am, the less I have to run into bigger players," Ortman said. "I also tried to outsmart them." Also a wrestler for Penn, Ortman never had these kinds of obstacles to overcome because wrestlers grapple in their own weight category. Originally, Ortman was recruited by Penn for wrestling team. That is how Wagner discovered Ortman. Wagner found out about him from an alumnus who heard he was applying to Penn as a wrestler, so he contacted Ortman. When Ortman found out about the lightweight football program, it helped his decision to come to Penn. "Penn was great, because I could wrestle for a Division I school and still play football," Ortman said. "It's nice because I finally get to play football against people my size." "I thought Tim was going to be really good coming in," Wagner said. "It turned out he was outstanding as a freshman." Ortman easily exceeded Wagner's expectations last year in his rookie season. He averaged five yards per carry and scored five touchdowns. Ortman was also the first player to score a touchdown against Navy's defense, as he bowled over two Midshipmen on the goal line to score. His hard work has continued to pay dividends this year. He's already amassed over 450 yards in his first three games. With three games remaining, he has a chance to break the Penn single-season rushing record held by Mark Dianno, who rushed the ball for 925 yards in 1989. Ortman has already done some record breaking this season. His 226 yards rushing against Princeton broke Tommy Morrin's record of 207 yards set in 1993. "Ortman is amongst the top four backs I've coached here," said Wagner. The other three are Dianno, Morrin and Steve Galetta, who holds the record for most career yards rushing in Penn lightweight football history. So what else might the future hold for Ortman? With continued hard work, Ortman could break most of Penn's lightweight rushing records. According to Wagner, he might even "rewrite the playbook." Additionally, Wagner says he expects Ortman to become more vocal over his remaining years, and could be a team captain by the time he graduates. "If we could win the league in the future, Tim's a potential ELFL (Eastern Lightweight Football League) MVP," Wagner said. With Ortman's excellent performances at tailback, he could bring the Penn lightweight football team back to the top. With Ortman's dedication, there is one thing that's definite: he will do everything possible to do so.

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