2023 Meet the Croots: QB Ashok LeJeune - Perkins-Tryon HS (Perkins, OK)

[Jieret]

 

Ashok LeJeune stands at 6'1", but you would think he was a good four inches taller based on the confidence he exudes when you meet him. That isn't the only unusual things about him either. The quarterback isn't the usual student you'd find at Perkins-Tryon High School, a short drive south of Stillwater. His father met and wed his mother during an overseas posting in India, but decided to move the family to Oklahoma instead of back home to Louisiana.

LeJeune is very proud of his Indian-Cajun roots, even as he jokes about how his mother sometimes still wonders how she ended up living in a small Oklahoman town with a population less than one-tenth of one percent of Mumbai, her birthplace. "I don't flaunt my heritage, but I don't need to hide it either," LeJeune explained. "And no one here has a problem with it, especially once the helmet goes on."

 

"Okay, I did play Bhangra music in the locker room once," he laughed, "Too many confused looks, I didn't try that again!"

 

LeJeune's junior season was his first as the starter under center, and it was a coming out party. Running Perkins-Tryon's single-wing offense, LeJeune dashed and gashed defenders all season long, setting school records for total yardage while leading the Demons to a 10-3 overall record. Unfortunately they ran into eventual 3A champions Holland Hall, losing to the Lions 31-21 in the second round to end the season.

 

"It was the first time we [Perkins-Tryon] went to States since before I was born, and I think we've got some unfinished business there. We showed we can hang with anyone, and I want to give the school another banner or two to hang up before I graduate."

 

"I have a lot of goals for myself," said LeJeune. "Not only do I want to bring a championship to Perkins, I want to play in the NFL. I want to win the Super Bowl. I want to be a role model for others of Indian descent. There aren't many of us in the pros."

 

But the late great Casey Kasem used to tell us to keep both feet on the ground while reaching for the stars. LeJeune knows what he wants in college, even if he doesn't know where that college is yet. "I'm a playmaker, and I know what I can do right now. But I'm not ready for the pros right now, I need more to make it to the next level. I need a coach who lets me be me but helps me to be a better passer, helps me to get my mechanics down.

 

"Right now defenses worry about how I'm gonna run all over them. Imagine what I can do if I make them worry about throwing the ball all over the field also."