The Football Brainiacs

As you know Tramonda Moore just committed to the Sooners.  Tramonda originally was a John Marshall product straight outta’ OKC.  If you think back to the class of 2016 in Oklahoma, I don’t think there was a more (no pun intended) sought after recruit than TMOE.  He had offers from everybody, from powers like Alabama, Florida State, Auburn, Georgia and Miami, along with several others. Watching the process of his recruitment from afar, I got to know him a little bit.  Aside from him being a supremely talented player, there’s a lot to like about him as a person.

I know you Sooner fans won’t like to hear this, but K said it best…Once you get to know these kids a little bit as people and see how hard they work it’s difficult not to root for them if they’re wearing a helmet you don’t like.  Needless to say I was devastated when he signed with Oklahoma State.  Even though I wouldn’t wish being an OSU fan on my worst enemy, I still rooted for TMOE.  He’s such a great young man, that it’s hard not to.  Every time we talk it’s always “yes sir”, “no sir” to everything.  That’s rare today.  Working in management in my personal life, that’s something I look for when I hire people.  I always say hire character over skill, but if you can find character and skill you need to get that person.  In a nutshell that’s who Tramonda is.

Watching these situations play out over the years where a highly sought after recruit ends up going the Juco route, it’s rare that you see a guy comeback in one year.  TMOE will redshirt this year at Independence C.C., and will have three years left to play three when he gets into Norman.  He’ll be a December grad and is excited to get into Norman and  go through spring practice.  When we were talking about the depth chart at Oklahoma for the Sooners’ O-Line, you can tell he’s a competitor.  He said “I’m not worried about having to compete.  It just makes you better.”

It’s clear that one of his goals is to get to the NFL, and Tramonda has all of the tools to do that.  He goes 6’6″ 330, and fitting the mold of Olinemen that Coach Bedenbaugh has gone after, he has the power and strength to play inside along with the length and athleticism to play tackle.  When I asked him where he was going to play, he said that “I’m going to play both.  I’m comfortable playing either one.” Going back to what I said about his character, it’s clear that he just wants to get into Norman and play.  A lot of times somebody will get in a guy’s ear and tell em that they need to play a certain position to be successful, but that’s not the case here.  It’s exciting to think about 2018’s potential o line.  Guys like Ben Powers, Dru Samia, Cody Ford & Bobby Evans will still be around, and then you inject a guy like this and some of the young talented guys who BNB has brought into the fold, it makes for a nice stockpile of steamrollers.

I asked Tramonda if it means more to guys from Oklahoma to be a Sooner.  I know this has been discussed over the years and being from Oklahoma myself it was a dream for a lot of us.  He said, “Oh yeah, we have to put on and show why There’s Only One!”.  That was getting me fired up, so I asked him what excited him the most about being a Sooner?  “Playing for my state, representing Oklahoma one hundred percent”.

With Bob’s departure I asked him what the vibe was from a recruiting standpoint and what Coach Riley has been like so far? “Everybody is excited for the season.  The fans are all in.  The players are working hard, the coaches are working and recruiting hard.  Just Chasing that Natty!”.

I know he’s excited about reuniting with former John Marshall teammate, Sooner DB Justin Broiles.  The guys at John Marshall are a very tight knit group.  Guys like TMOE, Justin, Greg Brown, Devonte Lee & Nigel Brannon are guys that i’ve gotten to know a little bit through TFB, and you can see why Tramonda wanted to stay home.  Everyone in that group and many other guys have each other’s back.  You can sense that TMOE doesn’t want to let those guys down.

One of the guys that he really wants to show out for is Cleatis Davis Jr.  “Cleato” as the guys call him unfortunately passed away in 2015.  If you see any one of these guys’ twitter, the first thing you see is something about Cleatis. That’s what’s great about Tramonda and these John Marshall guys.  It’s not about them first.  It’s about their brother who can’t be there and their brothers who are still there.

“He was our brother,” Moore said, “he means the world to us.”  Seeing this guy and these other guys succeed means the world to me.  I’m proud of em and excited for em.

The “Minor Setback for a Major Comeback,” as Tramonda likes to say is in full swing.  I’m sure you all won’t be disappointed.  So go on and put on young man.  #LongLiveCleato.