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+---- Thread: *Finnish Sisu (/showthread.php?tid=14779)
*Finnish Sisu - Murtsi - 08-08-2019
A cool breeze gently touched my hair while a swan couple was majestically gliding across the lake and the only sound you could hear was our legs splashing against the water below us. Now this may seem like the start of an erotic novel but fear not, this was just my interesting opportunity to better understand who Michigan State linebacker Maurice Virtanen really is.
Finns and those with Finnish roots or ancestry are common around Michigan and Minnesota, but to have one actually declare for the DSFL draft is another thing altogether. This is why I felt compelled to come all the way to Finland where Maurice Virtanen is relaxing at his parent’s summer cottage after an emotional season, which culminated in a Redbox Bowl victory and the Defensive MVP award. “Yeah this is a great place to get away from everything and just be with nature” is how he describes their summer cottage which is nestled in the middle of the “land of a million lakes” and where he used to come every summer while he lived in Finland.
Maurice’s father Darnell, used to be a professional basketball player and after his short and not so memorable stint with the Detroit Pistons, he decided to look at other options, and that’s when he decided to come over and play in Finland with Torpan Pojat. After his second season, he was enjoying the teams end of season party when a beautiful girl by the name of Maija caught his eye and the rest as they say is history. With the birth of their first baby boy (Maija already had two sons from a previous relationship) the couple decided that they would stay in Finland and take advantage of its free school systems and great living conditions to give their son the best opportunity possible.
Baker, Baker, Rainmaker. Without these words, Maurice might have never given football a second thought. “Basketball was always kind of my thing in elementary school, might have been my dad and his past or just that I was one of the tallest kids, who knows”. Then Bakermania hit Finland when the Browns won the Super Bowl 55, “I remember I was around 12 or 13 when one of my classmates in middle school talked about the rainmaker and some new QB on the up and coming Cleveland team and as my dad is from Cleveland, I had to ask more” After getting hooked into football, Maurice decided to attend sports focused Mäkelänrinteen High School where he joined the budding football team which had developed due to the huge growth in popularity of the sport in Finland. With his basketball background and freakish athleticism Maurice was the clear star on the team where he mainly played wide receiver but could comfortably play anywhere on the field. After seeing his talent and his physique, his head coach Seppo Räty knew he had real potential and even at his young age could duke it out with older guys. Maurice then tried out for the Helsinki Roosters who played in the Finnish professional league (Vaahteraliiga) and after impressing there was converted into a linebacker and really show his potential.
As we enjoy the warmth of the sauna, Maurice tells me how proud he is of his Finnish heritage, and what it has given to him. “Yeah growing up here and really getting immersed in the culture has been a blessing and taught me a lot and can probably be summed up by Sisu perkele!”. Sisu, this thing that we sometimes hear about in the news that helped Finland stave off the Russians can sometimes be confusing for us Americans. “It is difficult to describe to foreigners, mainly it’s about a can do attitude, perseverance against all odds and not giving up even though every part of your body is telling you to give up”. I can see where that would help against a Russian army that outnumbers you hundred-fold and how it can also help a talented athlete achieve their full potential. That was also one of the reasons why Maurice decided to accept a full scholarship offer from Michigan State. “I felt like going to the US and where the best players and best league is would give me the best possibility of fulfilling my potential in the sport”. It was by chance that a Michigan State scout was taking a round of Europe and seeing a game from each country, happened to be at the Velodrome where Maurice and the Roosters were playing and recognized his talent. The end result was a full scholarship offer which they haven’t regretted at all.
We open our next round of beers and look out at the sky where the sun still hasn’t set even though its half past ten in the evening, “Yeah this is one of the many things I’m going to miss when I go back, but I can’t wait to destroy my opponents”. I feel like this isn’t the last we will hear of young Maurice Virtanen.