How a ‘Freak’ Like OT Michael Fasusi Has Already Become a Leader at Oklahoma

The 6-foot-5, 302-pound Fasusi has gotten plenty of run this spring working with the No. 1 offense.

“It’s been going great, man,” Fasusi said this week. “Coming down to the competition, to the getting better at everything. Just developing has been amazing, having the right people around me to just get better, that’s all it’s really been this whole spring. I’m really grateful for it.”

In fact, Fasusi did so well this spring that he was the one at Tuesday’s open practice who broke down the team between the stretching and individual drills. His teammates circled around him and he shouted some inspirational hype to get them rolling into drills.

“First of all, it was really fun,” Fasusi said. “I didn’t really see that coming. It was good to have that opportunity. Coach came up to me and said, ‘Hey Mike, you’re breaking it up today, man. Bring some energy.’

“Alright, so in my head I’m practicing what to say, you feel me? But at the end of the day, I know I have to come out here and bring some energy to the guys. The way I view that is I just want to be somebody they can trust, and that’s how I see it. At the same time, yeah, I’m breaking it down, but I want them to see me on that field with that same intensity. That’s what it really means to me: I’m the guy that you guys can trust.”

It hasn’t taken Fasusi’s teammate long to figure out that part.

“We knew Day 1,” said defensive end Taylor Wein. “Just the way he was coming out, the energy he brings.”

Wein gives Fasusi a hard time about protecting new quarterback John Mateer, reminding him all the time that he’s protecting Mateer’s blindside and often times he’s the last line of defense against the Sooners’ QB taking a big hit.

“Fasusi’s very patient,” Wein said. “He’s a really good pass-setter. Really good in run block. He has a really high ceiling. He’s gonna be a dude one day. I think right now he’s stepping into a big role. He’s learning a lot. We’ll just see where that takes him. But the future is really bright.”

Fasusi said he frequently leans on Everett as a mentor, and Everett has certainly taken notice of Fasusi’s willingness to work and to learn.

“He’s come in here, he’s put on weight, he’s done what the coaches say,” Everett said. “He works really hard, so I’m excited for him. He’s just got to stay the course.”

Going against him every day in practice, Wein has noticed Fasusi’s own individual progress — as well as his imposing stature.

“He’s a freak of nature,” Wein echoed. “This dude is ginormous, long, this dude has a really high ceiling that we just knew from Day 1. All the potential he has and the talent he has, he continues stacking days on days. Getting better. Attacking his weaknesses. So we’re really looking forward to seeing what he brings this year and what he’s already brought.”

To hear Fasusi tell it, a lot of his progress has been mental. He said adjusting to the speed of the college game is the No. 1 thing, but he’s taken to the academic side of playing left tackle surprisingly well for a freshman.

“Really working on my footwork and learning about angles, how much that is important in the game,” he said. …. I’ve gotta say, my physicality, my footwork, my hand strikes, my mentality. A lot of it is development, all thanks to my coaches, all thanks to my work ethic, to my teammates and the guys I’m playing against.”

The learning side, he said, has few overwhelming at times. But he maintains a steady diet of watching his practice film, studying both the good and the bad, and he has kept an open line of communication with his coaches and his teammates.

“I’m still learning,” he said. “I’m not perfect at everything, but at the same time I’m making sure that they know I wanna be better at it and they’re really helping me with it. Same with my teammates, I go to them if I have any questions. That part hasn’t really been too crazy, because I have the right people that have been helping me.

“I myself, too, I know where I want to be. So putting my head in that film, working on my footwork, working on my hands, knowing what is important and just developing off of that.”

Head coach Brent Venables said in March, at the beginning of spring practice, that learning was something that actually seems to come easy for Fasusi.

“Mike’s doing great in football,” Venables said, “but he’s also, man he’s got A’s in all of his classes. I could go on and on about that too.”

Fasusi nodded when asked if it was harder than he thought it would be. Then he smiled.

“If it’s hard, it’s worth pursuing it; it’s worth getting better because of it,” he said. “I’m glad it’s hard because I want to get better because of it. If it’s easy, it’s not going to do the job.”