by By Dan Ninham (Oneida)
Curtis Osceola, Jr. is a 6-0, 160 lb., junior guard on the Oklahoma City University basketball team. The OCU Stars lost their Sooner Athletic Conference (SAC) first game versus John Brown University (AR) 85-60 on March 3, 2020. They finished their season with a 15-16 record.
Curtis attended Anadarko High School, Anadarko, OK. He is a member of the Seminole Tribe of Florida and Wichita tribes. His Indian name is Ahfachkee meaning ‘happy’ given to him by his late grandma Maggie Osceola
Curtis’ mom is Tara Tartsah-Clark, of Anadarko, OK and his dad is Curtis Osceola, Sr., of Hollywood, Florida.
“I was part of two teams so far to go back-to-back to the national tournament and win the SAC conference tournament and regular season,” said Curtis.
“Coach Vinay Patal taught me what the definition of a student-athlete and how much this degree would mean to me and my family,” said Curtis. “He was one of them coaches that would coach the heck out of you and even get you mad at him but at the end of the day he loved all his players like they were his own. He always pushed us to do better in the classroom. My family made sure I’m always doing good in the classroom and that I always got my grades right because one day I’ll be done with the game of basketball and when I look back on the memories of college I know that degree will be up there along with the basketball.”
Vinay Patal, head men’s basketball coach at Northwest Oklahoma State University, and former coach at Oklahoma State University, said: “I recruited and coached Curtis for two years at Oklahoma City University. The best thing I can say about Curtis is that he shows up and goes 100% every chance he gets to practice or play. You never question effort with Curtis and that becomes contagious for others when they see how hard he works. He has used his work ethic to improve as a player and he truly has earned the playing time he is getting as a junior. As a player and person he is a team first guy and would do anything to help his teammates. I am very proud about the player and man that Curtis is growing into.”
“Jon Ellis is a basketball trainer and former OCU player,” said Curtis. “He always pushed me to my limits and made me go past them. He helped me on my journey as a freshman and a sophomore and he developed me into the player I am today. He has a way to compete and always wanted to win no matter what and that rubbed off on me. He was a leader of the team on and off the court and always knew what to do and say to keep us going.”
College athletes have a game plan to encourage others to do the right things right. “I would say learn how to be good at time management,” said Curtis. “When you go to college timing is everything and when you’re on the road give some time to do school work. Give your all in both the classroom and in your sport because it goes by fast and learn how to do the little things like going to class early and staying late. The same goes for out of the classroom.”
Photo Credit: Hugh Scott
