Tarell Basham, a sophomore defensive end, is making a name for himself on- and off-the-field.
In the past five years, Ohio football household names have cultivated around the likes of LaVon Brazill and Tyler Tettleton.
With an overhaul of the team’s starting lineup, the centerpieces are starting to change faces.
This year’s Bobcats feature many popular, skilled players such as Derrius Vick and Devin Bass, but the name that casual fans many now know is Tarell Basham.
Basham, a sophomore defensive end, brings fright to opponents and entertains on and off the field.
He was a part of a video Ohio Athletics made this summer where he tackled employees on the job, a mock of ESPN’s “Terry Tate: Office Linebacker” video. He said that’s how he acts all the time: free spirited.
Fellow defensive lineman, senior Antwan Crutcher, said Basham is personable on the field, but off the field he stays focused on the prize of winning a Mid-American Conference Championship.
“On the field, he’s real. Off the field, he’s in the film room, getting treatment for his body,” Crutcher said. “He’s a character; he likes to play and he does the work when it’s time.”
Junior defensive lineman Watson Tautuiaki said Basham’s ability to switch from joking to serious in a matter of seconds will help him continue to improve.
“He’s really high spirited, so he comes out here with a full head of steam, just trying to get through the day,” Tautuiaki said. “He’s trying to get better and better and that’s what everyone sees with Tarell.”
“When people are down, he kind of picks them up with his attitude and everything.”
Basham, a Rocky Mount, Virginia, native, was named to the Football Writers Association of America’s Freshman All-American Team last season despite starting just five games.
He enters this year after having been nominated on the Hendricks Award and College Football Performance Awards Defensive Lineman Trophy watch lists, but he doesn’t let nominations get to his head.
“(Lists) don’t affect me, it gives me no (extra) motivation,” he said with confidence. “I wouldn’t be on any of those lists if when I first got here I didn’t just come out and play football. Now that I’m here and on a few lists, a few preseason watch things, I’ll still do what I did last year, just come out and play football.”
Prior to starting his collegiate career, Basham played a year at Hargrave Military Academy as a postgraduate student-athlete. He recorded a perfect attendance in high school, but most importantly is the first member of his family to attend college.
Instead of that giving him extra motivation to be a star, he’s focused on potential and says he always gives 100 percent.
“There’s no more motivation this year than last year, I’m just motivated,” he said. “Come out here every day and play football. I love the guys that I play with and I love the game that I play.”
Defensive coordinator Jimmy Burrow said the reason Basham can continue to be great is because he knows what’s expected from him and the rest of the defense.
“You put a guy in a situation with his athletic ability that really understands the defense and understands his role in that defense, then he’s going to make more plays,” Burrow said.
Burrow added that Basham has the potential to be versatile like former Buffalo standout Khalil Mack, who became a star after moving from solely defensive end.
“He’s going to continue to get bigger and stronger, and even faster,” Burrow said. “He’s still young. There are times where you say, ‘I wish he knew that’ as far as a scheme, or maybe a play that he just didn’t play well enough. But I think that’s his biggest improvement, just his ability to recognize pass protections and plays and again.”
“You get better stopping the run with him and you’ve certainly got a complete player.”
A complete player is what teammates, coaches and fans look to see, and redshirt sophomore offensive lineman Troy Watson knows Basham’s game well, as he faces him in practice regularly. He agreed that having a player like Tarell on the team helps elevate everyone else’s game, especially the offensive line.
Watson provided an interesting comparison to describe Basham’s game.
“It’s kind of like how a rap artist freestyles,” Watson said. “He comes out, does his thing and kind of mixes varieties — different concoctions of moves.”
“It’s great to have a player like Tarell on our team. Obviously he’s a top-notch player and practicing against him every day gets us better,” he said.
@Alex_Busch91
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