About 21 years ago, Louis Sherrod looked at his son, Derek, and noticed something very different from other children.
“He was an average-sized baby, but his chest was so big,” Louis said. “It was like he had already been doing pushups or something.”
Louis had a good feeling Derek would become an athlete, but like most parents his realistic goal was to see his son use sports to get a college education.
Louis” feeling was so strong he gave Derek the nickname ”C-man” because he thought his life would be consumed by sports — at the expense of school work.
“I thought I”d have to get used to Cs and Ds on his grade card,” Louis said. “I was proven right, in a sense, because he”s so dedicated to his craft. But thankfully I was proven wrong, too, because he”s a great student.”
Derek, who just completed his senior season at left tackle for the Mississippi State football team, turned out to be the model student-athlete. He was an All-American as a senior and was awarded one of 16 National Football Foundation Scholar-Athlete Awards, which provides an $18,000 postgraduate scholarship for combined athletic, academic, and leadership abilities.
On Thursday, Derek hopes to top off an ultra-successful college career by being selected in the first round of the 2011 NFL draft.
“For me, it”s overwhelming and surprising, even though Derek was athletic as a kid,” Louis said. “I pretty much knew he”d play in the NFL after (brother) Dezmond did, but to be as good as he is — not to be too boastful — that was just surprising. He really loves his work. He puts himself into all his work, no matter what it is.”
Derek”s sport of choice as a child wasn”t football, it was soccer, which he played for three years.
Derek”s first taste of America”s most popular sport didn”t spark much interest when he was 10 years old. He quit the game after a brief stint with a local youth team in Caledonia.
Unlike many parents who prefer to have their kids finish what they start, Derek”s mother, Harriet, let Derek leave the team. She laughs when she thinks back to the $200 she spent on equipment, which she initially thought would be a lost investment.
Harriet had a hunch Derek would find his way back to the game, which he did in eighth grade.
“By that time his brother was playing, and if his brother played or did anything he is going to do the same thing,” Harriet said. “Whatever award Dezmond wins, Derek wants to win it. Whatever movie Dezmond sees, Derek wants to see. They love each other and really encourage each other toward goals.”
After a prep All-America career at Caledonia High School, Derek had his pick of schools at the next level. Instead of accepting a scholarship from Notre Dame, Miami, or Florida — all schools Harriet said Derek really liked — Derek chose to join coach Sylvester Croom”s rebuilding project at Mississippi State.
With Dezmond entering his senior season at MSU, the chances of Derek going anywhere besides Starkville were slim. Derek never played high school ball with Dezmond, who is four years older.
At MSU, Derek had the chance to line up next Dezmond, who was a tight end.
“It just happened to work out like that because I redshirted my freshman year,” Dezmond said. “There wasn”t a guarantee he”d play his freshman year. Luckily, he was able to play a lot behind J.D. Hamilton. I remember the first game we played together was against Tulane. I still remember the feeling when we first lined up next to each other — it was a run play, and it wasn”t a good play for the Tulane guy in front of us.”
Dezmond went on to win a Super Bowl ring with the Pittsburgh Steelers in his first season in the NFL. He spent last season with the Las Vegas Locomotives of the United Football League.
Dezmond”s road to professional football was different than Derek”s. He entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent and was primarily a practice squad player.
After having his younger brother look up to him for a lifetime”s worth of examples and advice, Dezmond looks forward to Derek inspiring the next wave of student-athletes.
Derek”s calm demeanor, dedication to his craft, and constant efforts to embody the word ”student-athlete” are valuable to kids who read headlines of college and NFL players running into legal trouble or failing to finish school, Dezmond said.
“I”ve won locker room awards and academic awards, but he”s done that and so much more on the field,” Dezmond said. “Derek is what you want in a pro football player because he”s smart and he works hard. People look up to him.”
While Dezmond had the luxury of playing with Derek for a year at MSU, those who played with him at Caledonia High School consider themselves extremely fortunate.
Derek spearheaded a playoff berth as a senior and was a two-way starter. As good as Derek was as an offensive tackle, former teammate Jake Wright thinks Derek was a better defensive tackle.
“There would be some plays where he would literally drive an offensive guard back into the quarterback or running back and make the tackles with a guard trying to block him,” said Wright, who played defensive end alongside Derek. “The way he utilized his long arms on defense was a sight to behold. Derek made mine and everyone”s job around me so much easier. It would take two or sometimes three offensive linemen to keep him in check, so you can imagine what holes that opens up for you as a defender. Sometimes I would be waiting for contact to come from a pulling guard or something and quickly realize Derek has blown up the whole play in the backfield. All I would have is one-on-one with the quarterback or running back, so you talk about licking your chops.”
On Sunday, the Sherrods held a block party in their North Columbus neighborhood to celebrate the draft. The excitement from friends and neighbors was overwhelming to Louis, who up until that moment didn”t fully understand the impact Derek”s accomplishments have had on the community.
“I can only imagine if he was a big-time running back, receiver, or quarterback,” Louis said. “But he”s a guy in the trenches that a lot of people don”t recognize him. But to see everyone congratulating him and Dezmond, it was really special.”
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