Jeff Cali | The Ada News
Brad O’Steen was excited about what was in store for his Lone Grove football team in 2021.
O’Steen had guided the Longhorns to an 8-4 record before Class 3A powerhouse Kingfisher knocked them out of the second round of the playoff with a 51-41 shootout victory. And he expected Lone Grove to be even better this fall.
Then Chris Berus left Ada and O’Steen simply couldn’t turn down a chance to coach at a school with so much tradition that includes 19 state championships.
“This all happened really fast. I was not looking for a job,” O’Steen told The Ada News Thursday morning just minutes after the Ada Board of Education approved his hiring. “But this opportunity came up and the football coach in me was ready to go right now.”
O’Steen said very few football jobs could have lured him away from Lone Grove, where he spent three years turning that program around. The Longhorns went 2-8 during his first season but then bounced back to go 6-4 and 8-4.
“When you ask why Ada? It’s Ada. The tradition speaks for itself. You look down there and there are 19 state championships on the board,” he said.
“The big thing is this is Ada. I grew up in the 90s and was playing at Southeastern when Ada won five state championships,” he continued. “I don’t know why anyone in the world wouldn’t want to come here.”
Normally O’Steen would hit the ground running, but his sprint will be interrupted starting Saturday. The official Oklahoma Secondary School Activities Association Dead Period is June 24-July 4. That means players and coaches alike must stay away from all athletic facilities during this time.
“It’s late getting going and we have a lot of things to do so it’s going to be fast and furious,” O’Steen said “The bad thing about it is after Friday, we can’t be down there for nine days. That’s bad timing for me.”
O’Steen got his first look at the Cougars during their summer workout Thursday morning. He then met with Ada’s quarterbacks, running backs and wide receivers and watched them do their thing. He also got to meet members of the Ada High coaching staff.
“I’m excited about what I saw down there. I wanted to see the quarterbacks throw a little bit. I met with the coaches and wanted to get all of those guys on the same page pulling on the same rope,” he said. “That’s my biggest concern — trying to get everything done and get a plan of attack moving forward.”
O’Steen said his first meeting with players went well.
“The biggest message is this isn’t about me. It’s about Ada and those guys,” he said. “We want to create great young men and get them ready for life. As a team, our goal is to win a state championship every year. That’s what we play the game for.”
O’Steen said his players should be just as honored to be Cougars as he is to be the new head coach.
“I don’t know where else you’d want to play,” he said. “If you don’t play hard for Ada, something is wrong with you with all that tradition.”
O’Steen said he’s pondering the idea of entering Ada into a 7-on-7 camp after the dead period is over. His first significant time with the Cougars is a padded team camp tentatively scheduled for July 12-15. After the OSSAA dead period, he’ll have right at four weeks with his team until fall workouts begin in August.
“I look forward to getting to know the kids and getting them where they need to be,” he said. “We’ll be playing pretty quick. I’m very excited about the opportunity. I’m very blessed to be part of such a traditional powerhouse in Oklahoma football.”
O’Steen’s family includes his wife, Tammi, and daughters McKenzie (who is in her second year of college), Chesni (a senior in high school) and Bradi (a third-grader).
