Growing into a star quarterback

BY MIKE BROWN World Sports Writer
Tuesday, July 03, 2012
7/03/12 at 5:35 AM

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Brayden Scott remembers his first pass in a varsity football game.

"I closed my eyes and threw it," he says with a chuckle.

That was three years ago, in his first game as Tahlequah Sequoyah's starting quarterback. The Indians faced fourth-and-5 in their 2009 opener at Fort Gibson.

Then a freshman, Scott sprinted left, and did more than close his eyes before releasing the ball. He also prayed.

"I said, 'God, please (let him) catch it,' " he says, and former teammate Sonny O'Field did catch it for a Sequoyah first down.

Later in the same game, Scott threw his first touchdown pass. The 6-foot-3, 200-pounder has come a long way since then. He's thrown for 5,260 career yards and 58 career touchdowns, leading Sequoyah to a 26-6 record over three seasons.

He said starting early helped him develop into one of the state's top Division I prospects heading into his senior season.

Rivals.com has him rated as a three-star prospect, No. 6 in Oklahoma regardless of position, and No. 25 nationally among pro-style quarterbacks.

He's also No. 1 in the All-World rankings of area quarterbacks.

"I think it helped me to go through that pressure as a freshman, learn what it's about and get that stuff out of the way," he said. "I've gotten bigger, stronger and faster every year, and I pretty well know the playbook, but I definitely think it's helped me be a better quarterback by starting my freshman year."

College recruiters must have agreed with those glowing assessments, because Scott collected 14 Division I offers before committing to the University of Memphis.

Memphis has only five wins over the past three seasons, but Scott is impressed with former Union High quarterback Justin Fuente, hired as the Tigers' new head coach after spending the past three seasons as TCU's co-offensive coordinator.

"To put it in a few words, Coach Fuente is my kind of guy," Scott said. "He said, 'I'm gonna get onto you when I need to and I'm gonna love you off the field.' To quote a famous line, he said, 'It's not personal, it's just business,' and that's the same way my dad coaches us in high school. (Fuente) coaches just like him, so that's good."

"Dad" is Sequoyah head coach Brent Scott, a former Bristow High standout who threw a few touchdown passes of his own. He was good enough to start two games at Oklahoma State as a redshirt freshman in 1991 before transferring to Northeastern A&M and then Louisiana-Monroe.

"He has all the intangibles," Brent Scott said of his son. "He can run and throws accurately and plays the game well, but the best thing about him is that he just wins. We've always got a chance with him in the game."

Playing football was written in Brayden's genes. His granddad, Bill Scott, played a year of pro football with the Los Angeles Rams, coached Bristow to three state titles and is Sequoyah's current offensive line coach.

"Growing up a coach's kid, (Brayden's) seen a lot of football," Brent Scott said.

Brayden has had a busy summer. He has participated in Elite 11 camps in Atlanta and Las Vegas, visited Nebraska, Florida State, Houston, Memphis and Iowa State, and is in Austin, Texas, playing for Team U.S.A. in the International Federation of American Football Under-19 world championships.

ALL-WORLD 2012: QUARTERBACKS

1. Brayden Scott, Tahlequah Sequoyah
2. Hunter Atyia, Union
3. Chas Stallard, Cleveland
4. Jaylen Lowe, Owasso
5. Austin Grauer, Lincoln Christian
6. Zach Jackson, Berryhill
7. Garrett Griffith, Webster
8. Kyle Alexander, Jenks
9. Ben Oberste, Sallisaw
10. Jake Ramos, Glenpool

WE WANT YOUR VOTE

The World is unveiling its rankings of the metro area’s top high school football players by position.

Make your voice heard in the All-World rankings by going to tulsaworld.com/allworld.

You can vote 10 times per email address per day. Voting ends at 5 p.m. Aug. 12.

Voting results will be announced in our annual high school football preview section Aug. 26.

Mike Brown 918-581-8390
mike.brown@tulsaworld.com

Associated Images:

Quarterback Brayden Scott is rated as one of the top athletes in Oklahoma and had received 14 Division I offers before committing to the University of Memphis. JAMES GIBBARD / Tulsa World

MATT BARNARD / Tulsa World file