On Any Given Saturday the family name Echoes throughout Oklahoma Memorial Stadium Bob Stoops R the sidelines at OU for 18 years rebuilding the program into a national Powerhouse a year after he retired his son Dr turned down other scholarship offers to walk on at the University that bears a statue of his dad from 10,000 ft you would think okay his dad's Bob stoop so obviously it's going to be easy going there but yeah when you really look at it and think about you having to come and improve yourself how how difficult was that I think that's one thing people um kind of get mixed up it's just like it's given to you you know your Bob Su sign it'll just be handed to you whether it's playing time whatever it may be you know but I mean I came in and I'm the one on the field with the helmet and shoulder pads on my dad is nowhere to be found you know and I'm the one putting in the work I'm sweating I'm bleeding I'm I'm going and competing I'm getting in fights whatever it may be like that's me out there as Drake fought to prove to everyone else that he belongs he was also proving it to himself the journey that he's had and um having at first the weight of that name and then realizing he he actually is that name and he deserves you know the recognition he's getting self-doubt is a very real thing like self-doubt um like early on am I good enough to play on this level will it will my dream ever really come true will I ever get to the level that I want to be playing at you know or have the success that I want to have in the toughest moments Drake leaned on his mom to keep him grounded there my freshman year at College I felt alone you know kind of isolated and walk on too on top of that so just I'd always just call her and just kind of get it all out there and she was always very supportive and and always very optimistic that's one thing I always admire about my mom is just her optimism and just always a bright light in in my life he'd be just like a any child might say to their mom you know just some some having some some doubts um like can I make it am I good enough and and I I said why do you do this you love you love football and you love you love your teammates you know and you just have to like refocus by his senior seat Drake established himself as a leader a go-to receiver and a fan favorite it means a lot to me and to have all their support and how they've embraced me and kind of let me make my own way and pave my my own way for myself and kind of step outside of my dad's Shadow a little bit and you know when they say Stoops they mean Drake stops and that means a lot I'm proud of the young man he is uh the teammate he's been uh the toughness and uh determination the work he's put in uh that's what matters that's what wins in life and uh I'm happy and you know feel fortunate that he's been able to have s the success on the field is to go with all of that I am most proud of just the perseverance and watching him work through the doubts and just work harder and and he said to me just the other day that he will always be happy that he chose to stay here this whole time and that that made me happy for him as the Stoops era at Oklahoma comes to an end on Thursday night Drake's NFL Journey is set to begin how weird is that everyone saying he's arrived and now all of a sudden you got to yourself all over again back to square one yeah n you never arve he just uh you know progress over Perfection and that's the perfect mind set to have it maybe the last time we'll see him wearing the OU on the side of his helmet but I'd be shocked if we don't see Drake stops on a football field again at the next level live from the Riverwalk Chris Williams okom Zone news9