Los Angeles, Calif – On the outside, he’s cool, collected and structured. At Rose Bowl media day, he gives a lengthy, detailed assessment of the areas in which he can improve between Thursday’s game and his senior year. He snaps his fingers as he rattles off one facet of his game after another. He notes the need to gain weight and articulately describes the proper spacing required between linebackers and defensive backs to successfully perform a cohesive zone coverage scheme.
But before he ends his self-analysis, Christian French breaks character. The Oregon outside linebacker grits his teeth, clasping his hands as if gravity had forced them together and reveals a direct line of sight to his core.
“I know I can be a monster,” Christian says with the upmost intent. “I just have to go out there and let it loose.”
This year, Christian has, on occasions, shown what the monster inside of him is capable of. He’s leading Oregon in sacks with 6.5 despite playing behind veterans Tyson Coleman and Tony Washington Jr. His father, Cherokee French, calls it “going into beast mode”, something he’s seen happen on the field with Christian more frequently than it ever has before.
“Everything I have to do is just letting loose,” Christian reiterates. “I have it in me. I just have to continue to get better.”
***
Christian’s first love was on the hardwood. Growing up taller than most kids his age, Christian’s early focus was fixated on becoming a better basketball player. After his freshman year at Kennedy high school, his raw, athletic skills prompted kids on the football team to urge Christian to pick up football.
“Come on Frenchy, you have to come out,” Christian recalls his classmates pleading.
He had played football once before, giving the sport a shot in sixth grade. It wasn’t a fit then. But as a sophomore in high school, Christian decided to give it another chance.
Then Kennedy head coach Tim Lewis knew the talent that Christian possessed on the basketball court. At 6-foot-5 and approximately 200 pounds, it didn’t take a whole lot to see that Christian was big. What Lewis didn’t see coming was the type of speed Christian had. The first thing Lewis had Christian do upon joining the football team was have his 40-yard dash timed. An assistant coach timed the first one at 4.38, according to Lewis.
“I was like there’s no way,” Lewis remembers.
Lewis had Christian run again, but this time, he would time it. The second sprint proved that Christian’s first run wasn’t a fluke. 4.40, it read.
Cherokee wasn’t sure at first how Christian’s skills would translate to football. After watching him take part in a series of drills at practice, Cherokee was convinced that his son had a future in football.
“It really kind of stuck in my head that if he dedicates himself, he could be really good at this,” Cherokee said.
Christian went on to start on varsity from his sophomore season through the duration of his high school career. Soon enough, word hit the Division I ranks that Kennedy high school had a blue-chip prospect in its midst.
Oregon tight ends and special teams coach Tom Osborne was one of many coaches to make the trip to Cedar Rapids. The difference was how invested Osborne was in Christian.
Lewis remembers the first time Osborne visited Kennedy high school. Before seeing Christian, Osborne sat down with Lewis for two hours and interrogated Christian’s high school coach. He asked Lewis every question imaginable as he filled up page upon page of his notebook with notes. He continued that trend over the course of four visits to Cedar Rapids.
“He was always writing stuff down and making sure Christian was doing the stuff that he needed to do in the classroom,” Lewis said about Osborne.
Lewis recalls one of the visits where Osborne planned to watch Christian practice. The problem was Christian was injured at the time. Lewis called up Osborne and told him he might want to push his trip back. Osborne insisted that he still make the trip.
In December of 2010, it had come time for Christian to make a decision. He set a date to decide between Oregon, Iowa and Notre Dame. The problem was, then Oregon head coach Chip Kelly and Osborne wanted to make a final visit to the French’s home before Christian committed. Kelly and Osborne urged the French family to push back the date and they complied with Oregon’s requests.
When they made the stop at the French household, Kelly and Osborne made a presentation that perfectly appealed to Christian and his parent’s liking.
Laid out was a graduation plan. It mapped out what classes Christian would take the upcoming summer all the way through his graduation. For Cherokee, who has always preached to his kids the importance of a good education, the presentation was impressive.
“We could see it right in front of us,” Cherokee said. “You could visualize the classes, the studying and the degree.”
For Christian, who plans on owning his own business someday, the visit hit home with what mattered most to him.
“Football is great, but at the end of the day, we’re student athletes and we have to have something to fall back on,” Christian said.
Still, 1,916 miles was a long way to go for a kid like Christian who cherished his family so much. People speculated if he could do well so far from the friendly confines of Cedar Rapids. Throughout the recruiting process, Cherokee told his son to pick a destination that felt like home. After the meeting, Christian gave his father the assurance that Oregon would be his home for the next four years.
“I’m thinking Oregon because it’s the best place for me to grow and become a man,” Cherokee remembers Christian telling him.
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Former Oregon defensive line coach Jerry Azzinaro gave Christian a choice. Christian spent his first season at Oregon redshirting, preparing to devote his career to playing tight end. Azzinaro offered Christian the same career path that current Miami Dolphins pass-rusher Dion Jordan had started a couple years before.
“Whenever you’re ready, come over to the defensive side,” Azzinaro told Christian.
Christian decided to follow in Jordan’s footsteps and switch to outside linebacker. He saw how well Jordan had adapted to his new position so he decided he wanted to try and emulate his teammate. Christian was constantly in Jordan’s ear asking questions, trying to figure out the most successful way to make the transition to defense. “I just try to follow in his footsteps,” Christian said.
In his first two active season with Oregon, Christian recorded 23 total tackles. Off the field, Christian was consistently making a positive influence on the entire program.
One time, Lewis called Osborne to see how Christian was doing in Eugene. Osborne told him that Christian had become a favorite amongst the people in the office of the Moshovsky Center due to his uplifting personality.
“He’s really one of those coach’s dreams,” Lewis said. “You always wanted him around because he has that type of personality.”
This year, Christian proved that he’s one of the best pass rushers on the team.
“He’s really developed a lot in the last two years,” Osborne said. “He’s one of those guys that has to feel confident before he cuts it loose.”
One of Christian’s 6.5 sacks really stuck out with his father. Cherokee was watching the third quarter of Oregon’s game against Cal earlier this year. While rushing the passer, Christian was pulled down by an offensive lineman. The old Christian, as Cherokee says, would’ve laid down and ended the play there.
“This Christian here got up and wouldn’t let it hold him back,” Cherokee said.
***
Four years ago, Christian remembers walking into the Rose Bowl and feeling the atmosphere. He was thrilled as he rode the emotional twists and turns of an intense 45-38 victory over Wisconsin. On the sideline, not playing, was bittersweet for Christian, though.
“Your eyes are wide open,” Christian says, flaunting his big, brown eyes for emphasis. “It’s nice the team is doing great, but you’re just watching. You get antsy and wish you could be a part of the action, but everybody’s going to have their time.”
This time around, Christian is expected to have more of an impact on an Oregon defense tasked with corralling former Heisman trophy winner Jameis Winston.
The road to this point wasn’t entirely what Christian saw while growing up in the Midwest. It wasn’t going to be football, it wasn’t going to be the west coast and it wasn’t going to be on defense. But he did plan on being successful. In order for him to be successful on Thursday, he might have to unleash his inner monster on one of the biggest stages in college football.
“I dreamed about this, but never I knew it would happen,” Christian said. “But I’m here.”
Follow Joseph Hoyt on Twitter @JoeJHoyt
