TOPEKA — There’s a fine line between confidence and arrogance. For Callen Barta, he emphasizes confidence because that's when the Seaman graduate plays his best.
“Not arrogance,” Barta said with a point. “To play high, you have to carry yourself high. You can’t talk down on yourself every night saying that you are no good. You have to come out and play like you’re the best.”
Barta certainly isn’t bad at football. He’s one of the best in the state from this year’s graduation class.
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Barta graduated from Seaman following the first semester of the school year so he could join the program at Kansas State, where he will play safety. Barta played the position for a year with the Vikings and credited the Kansas State coaching staff for helping him learn the position at a high level while emphasizing the weight room.
Last summer, Barta committed to the University of Nebraska. Four months later, he made the switch to the Wildcats, a decision that he has not regretted.
“Right decision,” he said with a smile. “I love it down there.”
The move from high school to college has been quite a change. Learning the college studies route while having independence has been one of many new things Barta has encountered in the past few months.
“The spring semester was good, getting used to the college life with the other guys and really learning the defense,” Barta said. “It helped me a lot to get down there early and I don’t regret it at all.”
The 6-foot-1 secondary member's greatest weapon is his confidence and comfort in a system. In his last act as a Seaman player, Barta caught an interception and delivered key tackles on Saturday evening as a standout defensive player for the East team in the 51st Kansas Shrine Bowl.
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His ability has only grown through the years and it stemmed from his sophomore season at Seaman. The senior class was a massive influence on Barta.
“They really told me that I could be someone and with Coach Swafford coming in, giving me the opportunity to start my sophomore year really built my self-confidence up,” Barta said. “I worked with my older brother every day, he really boosted me.”
Barta still doesn’t know if he will redshirt this season or suit up, but he doesn’t mind either way. He is too focused on working hard to improve his skills while trying to make an impact where he can.
“Building self-confidence and independence means a lot in the transition from high school to college,” Barta said. “Knowing that I have teammates going through the same thing, means a lot.”
Liam Keating covers high school sports for The Topeka Capital-Journal. Send stats or information to him at Lkeating@gannett.com
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