Once a Tiger, always a Tiger.
That’s how it will be with defensive back Reuben Tiller and tight end Cody Nall of Ardmore, as the two signed letters of intent with East Central on Wednesday.
Another Ardmore Tiger, defensive lineman Henry Alexander, signed with Southeastern Oklahoma State on Wednesday. A signing ceremony for Alexander is expected at a later date.
ECU also landed offensive linemen Eric Gardner of Lone Grove and Kenneth Blake of Davis and former Sulphur quarterback Robert Thomas on the first day of football signings. In all, 37 signed with ECU.
Tiller and Nall are excited about the chance to play right away at the alma mater of their high school coach, Larry McBroom.
“When it came down to it, it came down to ECU and Southeastern (Oklahoma State),” the 6-foot-7, 248-pound Nall said. “I fell in love with the new coach (Tim McCarty), and I got a feel for the program.”
McCarty actually is fairly new, heading into his second season at East Central after a 0-11 season. Nall, Tiller and Gardner said getting to be part of a rebuilding process attracted them to the Ada school.
“They’re in the process of turning the team around, and I want to be a part of it,” Tiller said.
Tiller said he’ll play cornerback and possibly return kickoffs and punts for ECU. He had 48 tackles — 36 of them solo — and returned an interception for a touchdown this past fall. He also had three touchdowns on 17 receptions as a wide receiver.
Markell Walker of District 5A-2 rival Carl Albert and Carlos Nazario of Lawton were among ECU’s secondary signees.
“Reuben Tiller and Carlos Nazario are the same type of person as Markell in that they are very fast and have excellent coverage skills,” McCarty said in a press release Wednesday.
McCarty was high on Nall as a blocker and receiver. Nall pulled down 19 catches for 242 yards in helping Ardmore return to the state Class 5A playoffs.
“Cody’s frame allows us to have a big fella with soft hands, along with a great blocking body,” McCarty said.
Alexander had 35 solo tackles and 14 assists last season as an All-Ardmoreite Super Team defensive end. He was one of 33 signees for the Savage Storm, who were 7-4 last season.
McBroom said ECU did a good job of recruiting Tiller and Nall to his alma mater.
“God’s gonna give them a peace about where they’ll be the next four years,” McBroom said.
Gardner and Blake, both All-Ardmoreite Super Team linemen, were among eight on the offensive front who signed with ECU on Wednesday.
