ORLANDO, Fla. – As many of the OU players stepped off the plane when they arrived in Orlando, they walked into an unfamiliar atmosphere.
Instead of frigid December temperatures, the Florida heat and humidity had many local residents in shorts and t-shirts.
For linebacker Eric Striker, he was home.
The defensive captain of OU’s football team was raised in Sefner, Florida.
His hometown is roughly an hour away from where the Sooners will end their season.
Throughout the season, Striker has been a force to be reckoned with on the defensive side of the ball.
In 2014, Striker was responsible for 7.5 sacks for a loss of 36 yards and 14 tackles for a loss of 64 yards.
Unlike many of his teammates from Oklahoma and Texas, he has not played with his family in the stands.
“It will be good to get a win here, you know what I’m saying? I got a lot of people coming to see me, so it ought to be awesome. They really couldn’t make the trip to Oklahoma,” Striker said.
While he is enjoying the hometown crowd, other Sooners say they had a hard time leaving their families during the holidays.
“Yeah, it was the first time I’ve ever been away from my family at Christmas. It kinda doesn’t feel like Christmas, but it was good,” said Alex Ross, OU runningback.
Some of the Sooners were lucky enough to have their families travel to Florida to be with them during the bowl.
OU will need Ross and Striker to be at their best on Monday when they compete against Clemson in the Russell Athletic Bowl.
Kickoff is set for 4:30 p.m.
The game will be televised on ESPN.
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