Siloam lineman 'a cut above' rest

LITTLE ROCK — Deric England thought he was something special when he reported to Siloam Springs practice as a sophomore two years ago.

He quickly learned otherwise, thanks to some tough love from his teammates.

England learned his lessons quickly and has since developed into a dominant defensive lineman. Last year, as a junior, he had 14 sacks and helped the Panthers advance to the quarterfinals of the Class 5A state playoffs.

"The seniors really picked on me, and that really humbled me," England said. "When I went in there, I had the biggest head you could imagine. I was cocky, and no one liked me much."

England said the most memorable lesson came from offensive lineman Wrangler Gottsponer, who was a year ahead of England. England said the coaches had the two players square off heads-up one day at practice, and the experienced Gottsponer wore him out.

"The thing about Wrangler is he plays with a big mean streak," said England, who has since become good friends with Gottsponer. "He had a killer attitude about him. He just sat there and hit me and hit me and hit me.

"That was humbling, all that hitting. I had to rethink how I was doing things."

Just about everyone likes England now except for maybe opposing coaches who have to figure out how to keep him from destroying their offensive game plans.

"He's very, very hard to move, and he chases the ball extremely well," Greenwood Coach Rick Jones said. "Siloam has had a run of kids like that, but I think this guy is a cut above the guys they've had because of his athleticism."

Siloam Springs Coach Bryan Ross said England, 6-2, 260 pounds, always stood out as a big, athletic kid but didn't strikehim as a college prospect or future star because of a lazy attitude.

"I never thought he'd make it," said Ross, who has been at Siloam Springs for five years. "I've told him this. He was a big kid but kind of lazy, kind of rebellious. He was frustrating because you could see the potentialthere."

England started playing football in seventh grade when he could manage to be a standout without working too hard at it simply because he was bigger and stronger than the other kids his age.

"All I thought about was getting the tackle and getting my name called on the intercom," England said. "That was good enough for me."

That's no longer the case. He said he now realizes football requires teamwork and personal sacrifice.

That knowledge will come in handy this year because England figures to be the focal point of opponents' blocking schemes. If teams want to double- or tripleteam him, England said so be it.

"If they want to do that, that's fine with me," England said. "We have 10 other guys on the field who can make plays. We have guys on defense who are dangerous."

England has matured to the point where Ross sat him down in the off-season to tell him to get ready because the Panthers might need him to play on the offensive line, too. England is ready whenever and wherever Ross needs him.

"I'll play wherever the team needs me," England said. "It's fun. Everything about football is fun."

England participated in several football camps this summer and has attracted attention from most of the state schools. Ross said Arkansas offensive line coach Mike Summers spoke with England, but no school has offered him a scholarship.

England said he wants to play college football and knows a lot of eyes will be on him this year.

"They're all going to give me some sort of look," England said. "They're all telling me they're watching me."

They won't be the only ones.