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Former Westmoore product Derek Loccident was a budding star at UCO. Until a fateful night in 2018 changed everything.

Loccident lost his foot after he crawled under a stopped train that started moving.

A night he doesn’t like to talk about because it’s in the past.

“The first thing I told my mom was, I’m sorry.”

Now he playing football again. Something unimaginable 2 years ago, but the journey wasn’t easy.

Derek would spend the next month in the hospital. One of the first visitors he had was his head coach Nick Bobeck. A man he calls his father figure.

“I told him I loved him,” Bobeck said. “He told me it was his goal to play again and I was going to do everything I can in my power to make that happen.”

But Derek was facing a new way of life.
Not only were their physical challenges, but equally as tough days mentally.

“I was missing a limb,” Loccident said. “I failed a couple of classes, but I was able to get on the right track the semester after that.”

After numerous conversations with his support system, who Loccident calls a blessing from God, he took his first step towards football participating in the endeavor games.

Derek shined, winning the 100 meters, and impressive fashion, in just over 13 second, but his life changed forever that day again. It was the day he met 8 year old Eli Schultz.

Schultz, like Derek, is missing part of his left leg. Something he was born without.

But the two shared a bond without even knowing it. Each wears the number eight, plus they each had the same prothestician and surgeon.

And the feeling is mutual, just ask him who his favorite athlete is.

“Derrick,” says Eli. “And Lamar Jackson.”

That’s why it was so special Elijah and his family made the trip from their home in Missouri to watch Loccident play in his very first game since his accident.

“I’m not going to lie, I teared up,” Loccident said.

And while the hard work and sacrifice has been there since the accident, it’s given Derek a new perspective on life. A gift he’s sharing with the world.

“You don’t realize what you’re doing until it starts affecting other people. That’s when I realized what I’m doing is something, not a lot of other people get to do,” Loccident said.

Derek is on track to play his senior season and graduate next year with a degree in criminal justice. He says after football he hopes to become a paralympain.

“Happy that it gets to motivate people outside of my circle,” Loccident said. “It’s awesome.”