FOXBORO -- When it comes to rookie linebacker Dont’a Hightower, there’s the temptation to throw as much at him as quickly as possible.

After all, we’re talking about a young man with a peerless resume -- the 6-foot-3 inch, 270-pound linebacker from Alabama was the centerpiece of one of the best college defenses in a generation. He was a finalist for the Chuck Bednarik, Butkus and Lombardi Awards, as well as a consensus All-American and a unanimous All-SEC first-team selection in 2011. Hightower started 42 of 44 games at Alabama and registered 234 total tackles.

However, it was his versatility that likely played a large role in the Patriots decision to take him with the 25th overall pick. While with the Crimson Tide, he played inside and outside linebacker, as well as defensive end. Combine that with his background with Alabama coach Nick Saban -- a former Belichick lieutenant who runs a defense that bears some similarities to what the Patriots do -- and you would think that if anyone was going to get thrown into the deep end of the pool as soon as possible, it’s going to be Hightower.

But Belichick confessed Friday that even though Hightower might be able to pick everything up sooner rather than later, it's a delicate process when it comes to testing the limits of that versatility.

“If you wait too long to move him or to try something else, then you’re too far behind and it’s harder to work out,” Belichick said when asked about Hightower’s versatility. “If you throw it all in there at once, sometimes that can be overwhelming and then you don’t get one thing right. It’s a good question. You try to find that balance.

“You take it at a pace that you think the player can handle. And sometimes you’re right, sometimes you’re wrong. And you have to adjust it one way or the other. Until you work with a guy and you’re trying to do something like that with him, you have to try to figure it out on the run sometimes and that can be challenging.”

Through the first two training camp practices, Hightower has been put in multiple positions as the Patriots not only try and get a sense of his ability to play at the next level, but also his comfort level at different spots at this stage of his nascent NFL career.

Like a true rookie, Hightower expressed an interest in doing anything he can to get on the field as soon as possible, and said he hopes his positional versatility can play a role in that regard.

“I hope so,” Hightower said after Friday’s practice. “I definitely feel like I can help out somewhere along the line, so I’m going to do what I can. Whatever they ask me to do. Whether it’s kicking or holding the snap, or whatever, I’m going to do what I can to get on the field.”

Much has been made of the comparisons between the Saban and Belichick systems, and the fact that Hightower’s background with Saban will help him when it comes to picking things up in New England. When asked about the comparisons on Friday, Hightower shrugged.

“Defense is defense. Everybody has different philosophies. Right now, I’m doing what I can,” he said. “I’m trying to be a sponge around some of the older guys and just trying to learn what I can from them, even little techniques.

“I’m doing what I can. There are some differences, some are the same. There are different perspectives. Right now, I’m doing what I can to learn.”

One thing that has been a help for Hightower has been the fact that the Alabama product has been able to learn from a few other former SEC linebackers who are close to him in age, including Brandon Spikes and Jerod Mayo. Hightower said Friday Mayo has always been a model for him, even before he reached Foxboro.

“I watched Mayo in college, and I watched him when he got here,” Hightower said of the former Tennessee linebacker, who is four years older. “I feel like most linebackers have the mentality that they want to come in and make a big impact. So me talking to him and asking how he did things as a rookie, that’s going to help me out. I definitely want to do what I can on defense or special teams or whatever in trying to contribute to this team.”

One thing that’s impressed Mayo is Hightower’s work in the classroom and film room.

“Fortunately, the guys that have come in are football guys,” Mayo said. “They know the game. Dont’a came in and wanted to watch some film. We watched film together. He understands everything I’m trying to say. So that’s the fortunate thing about that, having guys like that who are true football guys.”

“He’s a smart kid, and he definitely understands football and football concepts – that comes pretty quickly to him so that’s good,” Belichick said of Hightower. “He might not know exactly what every part of his assignment is. He just spatially knows where he’s playing, who is next to him, can figure out kind of how he’s supposed to fit things. It just instinctually comes to him so that can cover up for maybe not knowing exactly precisely what the exact assignment is but just being able to figure it out.”