Sooners defensive tackle Da’Jon Terry returns this weekend to the place where his college football journey started.
[autotag]Da’Jon Terry[/autotag] was a late bloomer to the recruiting scene. In fact, he didn’t play football until his senior year of high school. That season, he received six offers.
Those offers were from Jackson State Tigers, Colorado Buffaloes, Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils, South Alabama Jaguars, North Alabama Lions, and the [autotag]Kansas Jayhawks[/autotag]. Ultimately, Terry decided to commit to the Jayhawks. He spent two seasons in Lawrence, racking up 16 tackles, two tackles for loss, and two sacks before transferring to Tennessee.
He’s now made his home in Norman, Okla., playing for the Sooners. But on Saturday, he’ll return to the place where his football journey began.
He shared with reporters about his time as a Jayhawk.
“I feel like I’ve came a long way,” Terry said. “With my fundamentals and just knowledge of the game because when I went to Kansas, I had only played one year of high school football. So, I really didn’t know that much about football. Through my years, I’ve learned a lot.”
When he committed to the Sooners out of the transfer portal, he provided Todd Bates something he didn’t have at the time, a defensive tackle over 300 pounds. And that size has made a big difference in the middle of the Sooners defense. Though he may not always be the one making the play, you can see his impact on Oklahoma’s efforts in short-yardage situations. On the goal line against Texas, Terry was lined up over the center and giving the Longhorns center everything he could handle. Terry has learned a lot and has become one of the better defensive linemen for the Sooners.
On first down, Terry worked the A-gap to the right of the center before crossing the Texas player’s face to take away the left A-gap, which is where running back Jonathan Brooks was headed. Then on second down, as Texas tried to work off tackle to the right, Terry beat his block and took away any cutback lane to the middle that Brooks might have considered after Dasan McCullough set the edge. On that play, you could see him pulling on a Longhorns blocker that was attempting to push Brooks into the end zone.
He has 11 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, and one sack on the season. But he’s a guy who eats up blocks, allowing the linebackers to flow to the ball to make the play.
A year ago, the Oklahoma Sooners couldn’t hold up against interior offensive lines in the running game. In 2023, Da’Jon Terry has been a big part of the Sooners defensive transformation.
As they get set to take on a Kansas Jayhawks team that features one of the best rushing attacks in the nation, Terry will have to bring his A-game for the Sooners to keep their undefeated season alive.
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