Before he was OSU's 'strongest' player, Justin Kirkland grew up surrounded by Utah fans
- Sep 19, 2024
Tyler Waldrep
OSU Sports WriterSTILLWATER — Oklahoma State defensive lineman Justin Kirkland’s phone has been a bit busier this week ahead of Saturday’s game against No. 12 Utah.
Which makes sense, considering he grew up about an hour north of the Utes in Roy, Utah.
“I got a couple buddies who are texting me this week,” Kirkland said. “Like, ‘hey, we’re not friends this week.’”
Kirkland initially played for Utah Tech in 2022 before joining the Cowboys ahead of 2023. Despite the jump in competition, Kirkland carved out a sizable role, playing at least 20-plus snaps right from the beginning. He finished 2023 as a starter during the final six games last season.
In 2023, Pro Football Focus graded him eighth among OSU defenders who played at least 200 snaps with a grade of 68.2. This fall, his marks are even higher, as he currently sits third with a score of 71.5.
“Last year (I) was kind of a deer in the headlights first couple games,” Kirkland said.
Kirkland feels more comfortable in year two, just don’t expect that to show up on the stat sheets, given his role as an interior defensive lineman.
The 6-3, 345-pound defender has only recorded three total tackles this season, but that doesn’t begin to describe his impact.
“He’s a load,” Oklahoma State center Joe Michalski said. “He’s a big dude. I mean, that’s probably the strongest person I’ve ever seen in my life.”
Kirkland can back it up in the weight room. In the preseason, he estimated his one-rep max for squat and bench was 650 and 508, respectively. However, Kirkland said he could probably bench 225, 51 times.
That would match the reported total set by Justin Ernest in 1999, although most credit Oregon State defensive tackle Stephen Paea as the official record holder with 49 reps at 225 in 2011.
The Utah native is excited to put that strength to good use against some familiar faces on Saturday.
“I think it’ll be a fun one,” Kirkland said.
Kirkland said he probably has better connections with players on the current BYU roster, but his family definitely leaned heavily in favor of Utah over BYU growing up, even though he never considered himself a fan of either growing up.
“I know a lot of those guys (at Utah), rooting for them when they’re not playing us stuff like that,” Kirkland said. “But I mean, this week, let’s give it to them.”
