On Oct. 12, 1995, football recruit Ronald Beckham was a leading number one high school defensive end in the nation and country. From a true freshman to a starting varsity senior, every college in the nation had already contacted Beckham wanting to give him offers. Ronald Beckham was not just any defensive end in the country, he was THE number one defensive end in the country.
A massive unit who stood at six feet, seven inches and carried around 270-pound body, Beckham was pure solid muscle but moved so fluently and quickly. You may think he is slow until you see him run the 40-yard dash. Most defensive linemen are not running the same speed as their running backs are, but Beckham was one out of many to do so. Strength was one of the least worries Beckham had to worry about.
Setting the bench high school powerlifting record at 575-pounds and a squat record at 955 pounds. Beckham helped lead his team to a high school state championship game in which they came out successful. Leading the team with 15 solo tackles, five quarterback hurries, four sacks and five tackles for loss, these were one of the best stats since the mid ’80s people were saying.
Beckham started to feel overwhelmed and stressed out after the season had ended because he knew the signing date was getting closer as each day passed. Advice coming from his parents gave him a little more hope that he had made the right move. On a table just in front of Beckham and his family were hats of the top five schools he wanted to attend. Everyone gets quiet and gives their attention to Beckham.
Ronald Beckham was a football player that I considered as myself. When I was in high school I began to fall in love with the game of football. As I became more passionate with the sport my body, physique and technique also grew which helped me tower over classmates and some opponents. I also had a hard time trying to figure where I wanted my future home to be, but with all the great opportunities thrown in my corner I chose to go to El Paso. No matter what you go through in life whatever you want to be is possible.
