• Lofton, English and Eldridge share

a common bond

Curtis Lofton, Auston English and Brody Eldridge all grew up hundreds of miles apart. But the trio shares something in common besides being teammates at Oklahoma.

All three are from small towns. But all three have found enormous success at college football’s highest level.

“We’re kind of representing all the little schools,” said Lofton, who many believe is the best linebacker in the Big 12 Conference. “It’s great.”

English, a defensive end, entered Saturday leading the Big 12 in sacks with 81?2. He will likely join Lofton in receiving All-Big 12 honors at the end of the season. Eldridge, a sophomore, has gained a reputation for being one of the best blocking tight end/fullbacks in the college ranks.

OU has had a national recruiting base since the days of Chuck Fairbanks. Players from Oklahoma and Texas always made up the brunt of the roster, but Sooner coaches also would find their way into living rooms in Florida, California, just about anywhere a great high school player played, on the recruiting trail.

The national reputation made it possible to land the cream of the crop.

Lofton, English and Eldridge were among that group. But they came from places where stop lights were sparse.

Lofton is from Kingfisher (population 4,497). English played his high school football in the Texas Panhandle town of Canadian (population 2,223). Eldridge was a standout at Prairie View High School in La Cygne, Kan. (population 1,123).

To them, coming to Norman was a bigger adjustment than getting acclimated to the speed of the game.

“It’s completely different,” Eldridge said. “We’ve never been around this many fans. The game speed is different, but the biggest thing is we’ve never been around this many people.”

As far as college football players go, the Sooner trio is in a small minority. The overwhelming majority of players come from high school’s largest classes. OU’s roster is stocked with players from cities or suburban sprawls.

One reason rosters tend to be that way is because that’s where the majority of the talent comes from. But another reason is it’s easier to evaluate players when they’re going up against other college-level players.

Most of the high school games Lofton, English and Eldridge played weren’t that way. Besides showing they had sufficient height, weight and speed, they had to show something else when coaches were deciding whether or not to offer them scholarships.

“When you look at the smaller class individual you ask if he’s being dominant in his league,” said OU secondary coach Bobby Jack Wright, who recruited English and Eldridge. “You ask yourself if he was playing 5A or 6A football would he be the equivalent of those individuals or would he be even better. If he’s not tearing it up in Class A or 2A, then he’s definitely not going to tear it up in 6A. And he’s not going to tear it here.”

Lofton, English and Eldridge answered that question very easily.

OU defensive coordinator Brent Venables remembers watching film of Lofton when he was a junior in high school. Lofton did more than show he was the best player on the field.

“He jumped right off,” Venables said. “He’s big, strong, athletic, great tackler in space. The thing that jumped out at me was how hard he played.

“He was the starting tailback or fullback. Then he’d go over on defense and smash some people. He’d be the first guy down there on the punt team, about 10 yards faster than everybody else. I’m not exaggerating, it was like that. You just asked yourself, ‘Is this guy for real?’”

Wright relayed similar stories about watching English and Eldridge when they were in high school.

“I guarantee if those guys had been playing in 6A, they would have been a starter. They just happen to grow up in that town and go to that school,” Wright said. “If they had grown up in an Oklahoma City, a Tulsa, a Dallas, a Houston, they would have excelled there, too.”

For decades, kids in small towns have wondered what they could do against the big boys if they were given the shot. Lofton, English and Eldridge all did.

“When you’re growing up, you always dream of doing these kinds of things,” English said. “When you’re able to have success, it’s like a dream coming true.”

John Shinn

366-3536

jshinn@normantranscript.com