Meet the Bartlesville football staff: Bruins secondary responds well to Sonji Keitku

On balance, the Bartlesville High defense earned some solid marks last season while grappling through a Grade-A schedule, including the toughest Class 6A-II district in the state.

Although some of the scores might not reflect that premise, one has to consider how often the Bruins had to defend a short field or had to play big chunks of time with worn legs and lungs in a losing battle of time of possession.

One aspect of the defensive game the Bruins could point to with special pride is they didn't get burned often in the vertical passing game. In addition, Bartlesville recorded multiple pick-sixes last year, which is a credit to the entire pass coverage performance.

That's where Sonji Keitku comes in.

The former Oklahoma State University football letterman is in his fourth year working with the defensive secondary, specifically the cornerbacks.

"He's energetic," veteran Bruin defensive coordinator Travis Burkhalter said. "The kids respond really well to his coaching and teaching."

Going into this season's training camp, Keitku's main unit of cornerbacks is formidable with senior Jett Scully, juniors Damien Niko and Haydn Taylor and sophomore Ivan Griffith.

"All have a nice body build," said Ketiku.

According to last year's roster, Scully stood 6-foot-2, Niko measured 6-foot, Taylor came in at 5-10 and Griffith filled out at 5-7. Some of them, especially the younger ones, might have added an inch or more during the offseason. Niko is slated to be a third-starter on the varsity, Scully returns after missing his junior season due to injury and Taylor got some valuable varsity training last season. Griffin is new to 6A varsity football.

The essential trait of a cornerback?

"You've got to have a short-term memory," Ketiku said. "You've got to cover fast receivers when you have no idea where they're going. It's about developing discipline and training your eyes. You have to do run support. … You've got two jobs in one."

SPEED TO BURN

Ketiku earned his varsity stripes in the early 2000s at Tulsa Edison High School.

He started varsity as a freshman and intercepted five passes his senior year, two of them for touchdowns. He also left a blazing impact in Class 4A track. He won all his 400m regular season races as a sophomore and senior, and he finished second at state in the 400m in his sophomore, junior and senior campaigns.

Ketiku started his college football career at Buena Vista (Iowa), where he made three interceptions as a freshman. In addition, he earned a berth in the college nationals in the 400m and 4x400m relay.

Injuries plagued Ketiku in college. According to his Oklahoma State roster biography, he missed his sophomore season (Bella Vista) with injury, took a redshirt year in 2004 at Oklahoma State, didn't play in 2005 and finished up his college career in 2006 by earning a letter.

He does a good job of imparting the techniques he learned in college to the Bruin player, Burkhalter said.

Ketiku praised OSU coach Mike Gundy for helping train him to be successful in life.

"Once I made it through the process (college football) … I know how to handle myself in tough situations and how to handle challenges," he said.

Adding to the burden of playing college football, Ketiku studied pre-med and business administration. He went on to obtain an MBA, opting to work in the business side of medicine.

COACHING STYLE

"He's very particular," Burkhalter said. "He likes to have his guys ready week in and week out. He always makes sure he checks out the passing scheme of the opponent to that our guys know what they're going to see."

Ketiku also focuses hard on instructing proper footwork, Burkhalter said, adding: "He just does a tremendous job for our young men. He takes a lot of my plate."

HAPPY TO BE ON THE STAFF

Former head coach Jason Sport invited Ketiku to be a lay assistant coach for the Bruins.

Wright opted to keep him on the staff, a move that displayed dividends last season.

"Harry came in and changed the culture," Ketiku said. "We supported that. We fed off each other … and made sure the players understand we are here to win."

Ketiku is completely committed to the Bruins' acronym of keys to succeed: EAT (Effort, Attitude and Toughness).

"We're building a founding and a winning tradition," he said, adding starting strong and finishing strong are vital.

Ketiku also wants to boost Bartlesville.

"I'm here for the community," he said. "I'm here for my players. I want to help build something around Bartlesville."

This article originally appeared on Bartlesville Examiner-Enterprise: Bartlesville cornerbacks coach Sonji Keitku brings passion to job