NORMAN — Jeremy Beal doesn’t do much to call attention to himself. Humility is something he’s always careful to maintain.
“I’m just a straight-to-the-point guy,” the Oklahoma defensive end said. “I don’t like to jibber and jabber.”
But on a team that has some characters, it is Beal’s character that is a driving force on the field and off. When he talks, everyone listens. There’s a level of respect he’s earned that few achieve.
“He knows his stuff and he’ll keep you going and other guys going, too,” defensive end Frank Alexander said. “Just playing with him has been a good experience for me. I know I’ve gotten better just because I have to push myself to get to where Jeremy’s at.”
Beal sets the bar pretty high. Over the previous two seasons, you can make an argument he’s been the Sooners’ most productive defensive player. Last season he finished with 11 sacks to push his career total to 20.5. With 11 more, he’ll match Cedric Jones’ career mark of 31.5.
Heading into this season, he’s the Sooners’ most likely choice for All-American honors. But Beal would never let on that it’s even a possibility.
“I still have to battle for spot every day to stay in the rotation,” he said.
Well, that may be an exaggeration.
Beal’s spot as one of OU’s defensive ends is as secure as his spot as one of the program’s locker room leaders.
Defensive end coach Bobby Jack Wright said Beal is the prototype for the kind of player he wants to coach.
“He wants to be perfect in everything,” Wright said. “That’s the great thing about him. It isn’t just football. He wants to be perfect at life. He wants to be a good student. He wants to be a good person. He wants to be a good teammate. You can’t put a tag on the importance of that. He’s a role model for our whole team.”
Beal takes that part very seriously. For the last two seasons, OU had a similar player in defensive tackle Gerald McCoy. He played and practiced with a passion that was infectious.
Beal isn’t the rah-rah type. But the power of his example is hard to equate. He assumes 1,000 eyes are on him at all times and won’t accept mistakes.
“He’s an awesome football player and he makes good decisions and good choices. He’s always in the right place,” Alexander said.
The right place for him could be one of the best defensive ends in the country by the end of the season. Beal’s been knocking at that door the last two seasons. He’s been a mainstay on all-Big 12 teams since 2008. Last year, he was named to some All-American teams.
He’s going to have the undivided attention of offensive line coaches this season.
“Special attention means you’re doing something right,” he said. “They’re going to scheme and we’re going to scheme. You do your best and that will take care of the rest.”
No one would expect anything less than Beal’s best. He’s consistently given it since he first stepped on the field in 2007. This season will be his last at OU, but could also be the one where the power of his play finally shines in the proper light.
Beal is the last person who would ever say it, but he has a chance to go down as one of the best defensive linemen in the program’s history.
What he does on the field may not be his lasting legacy.
“Jeremy is a really good football player,” Wright said. “But better than that, he’s a great locker room guy. He’s a great leader. He’s a great human being, great individual, great person. He’s a great role model to all those around him.”
