Aussie Ben Key looks to become Missouri’s wrecking ball on defensive line
Missouri defensive tackle Ben Key came to the gridiron late. An Australian, Key didn’t play organized American football until his senior year in high school, so forgive him if he’s still catching up on the game’s nuances.
Asked about his responsibilities playing on the interior of the defensive line, Key responded, “I just gotta wreck (stuff) in the middle,” he said.
OK, simplifying things works, too, and it speaks to Key’s motivation for playing football. His first position was on the offensive line, but he found the work complex for someone new to the sport.
Also, Key grew up in Cranbourne West, a suburb of Melbourne, playing rugby. Transferring those contact skills worked better on the defensive side.
The switch came after high school. In Australia, Key attended an academy that prepared players to attend U.S. high schools for football. He spent one year on offense at Cathedral High in Los Angeles. At East Los Angeles College, he moved to defense.
“I just wanted to hit someone, so I felt like the D-line was the best position for me,” Key said. “In high school, I played left guard, and it was just too much thinking for me, to be honest. When I went to junior college, I was like, yeah, I need to play defensive line. You just gotta go and make plays.”
It wasn’t a straight shot from junior college to Columbia. Key committed to Mississippi State but withdrew the pledge when head coach Joe Moorhead was fired. Missouri was the next choice.
In the transition, Key missed most of last year’s spring practice and adjusting to the speed and strength of major college football explains his playing time. He appeared in two games and logged six snaps for the Tigers last season.
The 6-3, 285-pound redshirt junior seeks a bigger role in 2021 as spring football practice winds down, and he’s taken some first-team reps in scrimmages. Mizzou’s spring game is Saturday.
“I had to pick up my technique a lot, and the physicality of it, too,” Key said. “The SEC is a different type of build, so I had to kind of get used to that. But last year I learned a lot, and this year I’ve managed to pick up from there,”
Key said the first American football game he watched was the Steelers’ victory over the Cardinals in January 2009. The interest grew from there. While he was playing, Key was developing skills that later would help him develop as a football player.
Rugby technique as a useful skill set for football gained popularity a few years ago. After the Seattle Seahawks won the Super Bowl for the 2013 season, coach Pete Carroll narrated a video in which he explained his team’s approach to tackling, especially as it avoid head contact.
“That was one of things I learned from rugby that I brought over to football,” Key said. “And stamina too. In rugby, we do a lot of running. I was ready for this. In football, you run every 10 or 20 seconds. But rugby is like 40 minutes straight running and hitting.”
And wrecking things. That applies to both sports.
Spring game details
Mizzou’s spring game is at 1 p.m. Saturday in Memorial Stadium; the event is free but tickets are required and can be obtained online at MUTigers.com/SpringGame. Parking is free in all surface lots. Face coverings are required and while restrooms and concession stands will be open, tailgating is prohibited.
All entry into the stadium will be through Gate 1 starting at noon. If available, day of game tickets can be purchased at that gate.