ADA — Despite playing only one season there, Jeremy Shockey has earned a spot in Northeastern A&M; football lore.

Following a loss during a 1999 game while playing with the Golden Norsemen, Shockey became so upset that he reached down and pulled up a plug of grass and dirt from Robertson Field.

He proceeded to munch on it like it was a snack.

“I asked him ‘what in the world are you doing?’” said Miami High School biology teacher Mike Barlow, who was NEO’s athletic trainer at the time. “He said, ‘I hate the taste of a loss in my mouth.’ I knew right then that he had what it took to make it at the next level and beyond.”

Shockey did just that, going from NEO to the National Football League.

He will be playing for the New Orleans Saints against the Indianapolis Colts today in Super Bowl XLIV in the other Miami in Shockey’s past — the one in Florida.

The Golden Norsemen were the only school that offered Shockey a scholarship.

“He had a good career and won a lot of ballgames,” said Gary McBroom, who was Shockey’s coach at Ada High. “He was one of those guys, as Jeremy went, we went. We knew he would be successful. He just needed time to mature and for him to find his niche where he needed to be.”

As a senior wide receiver, Shockey caught 50 passes for 1,108 yards and five touchdowns. He also returned four punts for touchdowns and was named an Oklahoma all-stater.

Shockey also doubled over at outside linebacker for the Cougars.

“He was not really fast enough to be a wide receiver or big enough to be a tight end,” said McBroom, now coaching in Richardson, Texas.

“He was not really nationally recruited because of not fitting anywhere from a prototype thing. He went up there (to Miami) and the one year he was there, he blossomed, put on 50 pounds and became a monster of a tight end.”

Shockey criticized McBroom in a 2003 Sports Illustrated story for his lack of help in getting a scholarship.

“He was scared to take the test,” McBroom said. “Finally when he took it in June, he qualified. Every time the test would come up, he had a different reason why he couldn’t take it. We knew and talked to him that the junior-college route would be the best thing for him.”

“Shockey is one of the strongest competitors we ever had in my years at NEO,” said former Norse head coach Dale Patterson, who compiled a 60-26 record from 1996 to 2003. “The kid wanted to win, wanted to compete and wanted the ball in his hands. He never overdid it. The things he’s done in the pros is, to me, out of character for him. He dressed nice at NEO and his hair was short. He was just a competitor who loved to play the game and wanted to excel.”

Shockey was NEO’s second-leading scorer in 1999 behind another future NFL player, running back Josh Scobey.

Shockey caught 32 passes for 484 yards and seven touchdowns. He also snagged a pair of conversion passes.

“When we signed him, he was about 195 and played for us at 210 or 215,” Patterson said. “We wondered ‘could he block at 215 in that league?’ He did because he was a fighter and a scrapper. He could catch the ball.”

“Jeremy was a great kid,” Barlow said. “He was always ‘yes sir’ and ‘no sir’ to me in the training room. He was in the training room a lot with a wrist injury from high school. Each day he would be in there joking and laughing with everyone from all the sports. He was passionate about winning and absolutely hated to lose.”

Barlow remembers a time during spring drills when offensive linemen had to run a quarter mile together and make a certain time — or they would be punished and would have to run another timed quarter mile.

“Jeremy finished first, and as the rest of the group was crossing the line, it was obvious that one of the linemen wouldn’t finish in time,” Barlow said. “Jeremy sprinted across the field and met the kid halfway and paced him in towards the finish line. All the while Jeremy was encouraging the player to finish strong. He was truly a Norseman — willing to sacrifice for the team.”

Shockey figured big in NEO’s plans in 2000, but opted to take a late scholarship offer from the Miami Hurricanes after then assistant coach Larry Coker had seen him in the spring scrimmage.

Shockey made a name for himself with the ‘Canes as a sophomore when he caught what proved to be the game-winning TD pass with 46 seconds remaining in a 27-24 victory over No. 1-ranked Florida State.Miami won the national championship in 2001, Shockey’s junior year. He led the Hurricane with 45 catches for 604 yards and eight touchdowns.

Shockey declared himself eligible for the 2002 NFL Draft and was selected 14th in the first round by the New York Giants.

He thrived in the NFL, earning rookie of the year honors and was named to the Pro Bowl in four of his first five seasons.

The Giants played in Super Bowl XLII, but Shockey could only watch from the press box after a broken leg sidelined him for the entire 2007 season.

He declined to participate in an assortment of post-victory celebrations.

Shockey was traded to the Saints on July 21, 2008, in exchange for second and fifth-round picks in the 2009 NFL Draft.

A sports hernia slowed Shockey’s first season with the Saints. He had 50 receptions for a career-low 483 yards and no touchdowns — another career low.

Shockey caught 48 passes for 569 yards and three touchdowns during the regular season, missing two of the final three games with a toe injury. He didn’t play in the finale against Carolina.

In the Saints’ two post season games, he’s had four catches for 45 yards and one score.

Shockey’s 469 career receptions and 5,280 yards are fourth best among active NFL tight ends.

He’s also caught a pass in 108 straight games, second only to Atlanta’s Tony Gonzalez with 148.

Shockey’s career reception total is currently 10th all-time for NFL tight ends. He’s 17th in receiving yardage and is tied for 39th in receiving TDs.

“In between the lines, he is cocky, arrogant, boastful and intense,” Barlow said. “I can guarantee there is no one on the field in Miami (today) that wants to win more than he does. Off the field he is a nice guy, regardless of what the East Coast media has portrayed in the past.”

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Editor’s Note: Jim Ellis is the sports editor for the Miami News-Record