Patterson's Griffin comes back from injury, signs with Kansas college

Patterson High School standout Kylan Griffin thought his dream of playing football was over.
After fracturing his fibula in the team’s fall scrimmage against South Lafourche, he thought things simply would end for him after the high school season.
While he missed time this season due to the injury, he received plenty of encouragement to pursue his dream from his mother, Tyesia Hawkins, and Patterson Head Coach Zach Lochard.
Wednesday, that dream became a reality as he signed with Sterling College, an NAIA school in Sterling, Kansas.
“With that opportunity coming up, it was just a blessing, honestly, because a lot of schools tend to look past people who ended up getting hurt because they feel like it’s a liability,” Griffin said.
However, he said Sterling College saw something in him that others didn’t.
“A lot of schools are going to regret it,” Griffin said.
Griffin learned about Sterling College through a connection to Lochard. Lochard said he was contacted by a former player he coached at Northern Colorado, Joe Kenney, who now is the defensive coordinator at Sterling College. When Kenney reached out to Lochard about any players he may have that could play at Sterling, Lochard told him about Griffin.
“That was a great connection,” Lochard said of his senior standout, who he said is fully healed from his injury. “We’ve done a lot of research, a lot of hard work.”
Lochard also knows Sterling College Athletic Director Scott Downing, who gave Lochard his first-ever job at Northern Colorado.
“Kylan is going to be lights out at that program,” Lochard said. “They got a big-time student athlete in their door. As soon as Kylan gets to campus, he’s going to raise the level of competition of everybody around him.
“He was our unquestioned leader of our team on the field, at practice, in the weight room,” Lochard added. “He leads by example, but he also is the team captain type of personality that can lead others vocally as well.”
In his senior season, Griffin played in five games and recorded 20 tackles (17 solo and three assists). He also had one fumble recovery.
He said the coaches anticipate he will play safety at Sterling.
While Hawkins said it would be hard to see her son leave for college, she said he was raised to prepare himself for a moment like this.
“I’m very proud I gave him the skills that he needs to survive once he’s not around me, and he’s showing that on and off the field and at home,” she said. “He even has a job after he gets out of school. I know he’s going to do well, because he was prepared for all this.”
Lochard also touted Griffin’s academics as he said his student-athlete has a 3.7 grade point average and “plenty high enough ACT score.”