In late June, Brenden Schooler was eating dinner at his home in Mission Viejo, California, when his father entered the room and told him the news he had been waiting for.
“I was sitting in my kitchen eating sushi and my dad came in and said, ‘You got an offer,’” Schooler said. “There was an email saying, ‘Hey, you got cleared. You got into the school and we are going to send you a letter of intent’ […] We printed it out and sent it right back.”
Despite being named first-team all-state by MaxPreps and CIF Southern Section West Valley defensive MVP during his senior season, Schooler had no Division I offers until Oregon reached out to him.
In the second week of his freshman season, Schooler was named Oregon’s starting safety.
The Ducks reached out to Schooler late in the recruiting process, but head coach Mark Helfrich was confident in what he saw.
“He’s big, he can run, he can hit, he is physical […] that’s a rare combination for a high school kid,” Helfrich said.
The offer was exciting for Schooler and it was a huge relief for him and his family.
“I thought I was going to get more looks but I didn’t. It was disappointing,” Schooler said. “So when they came, I was like, ‘finally someone sees something in me.’ “
As a freshman, Schooler is playing a key position in Oregon’s defense, and has been playing well. He ranks No. 2 on the team in solo tackles with 19 and leads the team with two interceptions.
“I feel like I adjusted really well,” said Schooler. “I just needed to get used to the speed and the size of everyone, but after I did that, it all just started clicking for me.”
He stabilized a position that was in flux. Oregon’s starting corner Tyree Robinson was originally set to play safety, but the depth at corner was lacking, so he made the switch. That provided Schooler with an opening, and he worked his way to the starting position and gained the coaches’ trust.
“He won the job because he beat somebody out. That was simple,” said secondary coach John Neal. “I can’t ask him to do more than he has done. I have asked him to do more than any freshman I can remember.”
Schooler has a simple formula for his success: hard work. His strives to take no plays off and prove to the coaches that he deserves to be out there. He wants to pay attention to things on the practice field as well as in the meetings.
“I just come here everyday and I work my tail off,” said Schooler. “[I] do everything I can just to help myself be better and overall just help the team get that win.”
From overlooked in high school to starting for a Power Five football team, Schooler has quickly turned into a versatile, reliable safety.
He still has one more stage to develop in, according to Neal.
“He’s only, like, 12 years old, so we’re waiting for him to start shaving.”
Follow Jack Butler on Twitter @Butler917