Creed Humphrey’s inspiring background translates to on/off-the-field success

The motivating background story of former Oklahoma center Creed Humphrey

Everyone is shaped by their own personal experiences and upbringing. For former Oklahoma center, Creed Humphrey, both his mother and father influenced not only the player on the gridiron but the character of the man off-the-field.

Humphrey’s father was a three-time All-American wrestler and Creed became a big name in the high school wrestling circuit that translated in his consistency at Oklahoma on the football field. He put up impressive bench press numbers as a freshman and the leverage created against opponents on the mat, paved the way for success in matchups at the line of scrimmage in angle pursuits/lane creation for rushers.

The Oklahoma native was a guest on NFL Network’s Good Morning Football, where Humphrey discussed his wrestling background.

” With my dad’s wrestling background, he had me and my older brother in the wrestling room as soon as we could walk. So, that was a big part of my childhood. Did it for a long time growing up and did it in high school too. Really, it’s just about understanding leverage and I think that is a big part of the wrestling sport. It kind of shows a lot in my game, understanding leverage and being able to move people and use their weight against them in a way to create lanes on the field.”

That leverage certainly paid off. Humphrey was elite in the trenches and did not allow a sack in two straight seasons at OU (2019-20). He anchored an offensive line that won the Joe Moore Award in 2018 and he was one of three finalists for the Rimington Trophy in 2019. The left-handed center was productive for three different starting quarterbacks in pass protection/run blocking during a three-year span: Kyler Murray, Jalen Hurts, and Spencer Rattler.

On top of Humphrey’s on-the-field blocking range, he exudes an off-the-field strength that his mother embodies. His mom was diagnosed with breast cancer a year ago, after watching his grandmother battle the same disease. Both are now cancer free and an everyday representation for Humphrey of a warrior. His perspective and fight mentality comes from his mother- who has never missed a game.

“Growing up though my childhood, my grandma, she had breast cancer twice throughout my childhood. My mom was the one that was always taking care of her. She ended up being a two-time cancer surviver. This past summer, my mom was diagnosed with breast cancer also. They were able to find it early and she was able to get a double mastectomy. She’s cancer free now. Just the toughness she has to be able to battle through that and still make every game this season; it’s a big inspiration to me. She’s such a tough person. I definitely believe I get my toughness from her.”  (Creed Humphrey on his mom via Good Morning Football)

As Humphrey enters the 2021 NFL draft and will soon call out signals at the pro level, he carries the vigor of his mother and father with each snap of the ball. Every player has a motivating factor when their cleats hit the turf and Humphrey’s is simple: family.