A pair of Bryan County football standouts recently had the honor of competing on the national stage among 70 participants from across the United States and Canada in the 4th Annual Native All-American Game at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis.
Durant senior Axel Thurman and Caddo senior Noah Dry were selected for the event that included participants from 48 tribal nations from 21 U.S. states as well as Canada. The All-American was hosted by the Native American Athletic Foundation with players working with former college and professional athletes and coaches. Players were divided between the Ta’tanka team that included Dry and Wa’ya team for which Thurman was a member.
Mike Andrews, who was a founding member of Native American Athletic, believes it is a unique opportunity for Native youth, many of whom live in a rural part of the country.
“They don’t get the same access to recruiting databases and scouts,” he said. “So, we really like to bring them into a city like Minneapolis and in a game like this and get some film. Hopefully there’s a college scout that’s looking for a top-notch student athlete who happens to be Native.”
Thurman, who is a multi-sport stalwart at Durant that led the Lions in tackles this fall, was extremely grateful for the opportunity to compete in the national event.
“It was an honor to represent Durant High School and the Choctaw Nation in Minneapolis,” he commented. “Although it was negative 12 degrees outside, it was an experience that I will never forget. The coaches were great with most of them having played in the NFL at some point in time. I was able to meet and make new friends from all over the United States.
“I learned lots of great things that I will carry on further into my football career and life. The game was action packed with lots of great players. It was a great week of playing and celebrating football, friendship and culture playing at the Minnesota Vikings’ stadium.”
Dry was also coming off a superb senior campaign in which he led Caddo in tackles and was thankful for the chance to compete with players from throughout the country.
“It was a great opportunity and there was so much great competition,” he stated. “It showed me that there are levels to the game of football. I had a bunch of opportunities to show my talents in front of some of the greatest coaches in the country.”
