SECOND TO NONE : A Storied Athlete, Oscar Wilson’s Greatest Challenges Are Off the Field

It seems everyone has a favorite story about Oscar Wilson, Santa Ana High School’s gifted lineman who is a unique package of power, speed and strength.

Teammate Jesse Rosas remembers watching Wilson dunk a basketball as a sixth-grader at Spurgeon Intermediate School and saying, “There’s no way this guy is in the sixth grade.”

Assistant coach Bill Haley remembers Wilson reporting for freshman football practice at Santa Ana and telling him, “I want to be a tackle.”

Wilson showed he could tackle. He hit three opponents so hard, they were out for the season with injuries.

“It was like watching the bulls run at Pamplona,” one coach said. “Opposing linemen were afraid to block him. Defensive backs wouldn’t dare try to tackle him in the open field.”

Jim Reames, Foothill basketball coach, says Wilson’s most impressive display came as a sophomore in the Southern Section basketball playoffs.

Santa Ana played host to Simi Valley in the semifinals. With Simi Valley comfortably ahead in the final minute, Wilson stole a pass and drove for what many believed would be a sure-fire dunk.

Instead, Wilson stopped at the free-throw line, tossed the ball to the backboard, and in one motion, grabbed the rebound and slammed the ball through the hoop.

“He completed the act with authority,” Reames said. “That play showed me this guy is really talented.”

And there was Wilson’s way of ending a frustrating evening against the nation’s top-ranked prep football team, Loyola, in a 27-0 loss last year.

Loyola had been running the ball away from Wilson all night. Finally, Wilson grabbed an opposing blocker, almost lifting him off the ground, and pushed him aside. Once in Loyola’s backfield, he tackled the quarterback and running back at the same time.

“In 13 years of coaching, I’ve never seen a more awesome display of strength,” said Steve Grady, Loyola coach.

The stories are endless. Wilson, 6-foot-3 and 235 pounds, has been a man playing with boys since the sixth grade.

Although Wilson has had few rivals on an athletic field, he has struggled most of his life to catch up to his peers in the classroom.

Wilson couldn’t read or write when he entered the third grade at Jackson Elementary School in Santa Ana.

“I didn’t listen to anybody . . . teachers, my parents, anybody,” Wilson said. “All I wanted to do was play sports. I missed out on a lot of things, and ended up playing catch-up in the classroom for the next five years.”

Wilson was placed in a special education program under Gail King-Burney at Jackson Elementary from the third to fifth grades.

“He was a mean, tough little guy who was very resistant to anything you tried to teach him,” King-Burney said. “He had very low skills, so we had to go back to the basics. It was very difficult because of his attitude.

“I tried to build on his self-esteem. He had the ability, but he lacked the desire to achieve.”

Wilson made slow but steady progress under King-Burney to the point where she said, “He was ready for the sixth grade.” Wilson entered Spurgeon Intermediate School, and later was reunited with King-Burney, at Spurgeon, in the seventh grade.

“He had regressed because the level of caring dropped,” King-Burney said. “It was easier dealing with him the second time around because he knew exactly who I was and what was expected of him.

“I think Oscar gained the confidence to do his schoolwork in the seventh grade. He went through hell and back. But I think he’s going to make it in the college world.”

Wilson has completed his core classes of mathematics, foreign language, lab science, etc., at Santa Ana High. Along the way, he has made some lasting impressions on his teachers and classmates.

Ann Hays, who taught Wilson in her Spanish II class last year, describes him as a “gentle giant” and remembers persuading one of her students to join a group-learning team with Wilson.

“I placed her in the same group with Oscar and later she asked if she could change groups,” Hays said. “She said she was afraid of him. I asked her why, and she said, ‘Because he’s so big.’

“I knew things would work out because Oscar is essentially a pussy cat. Three days later, the girl told me, ‘Mrs. Hays, you were right. He’s terrific.’ She ended up tutoring Oscar for the rest of year.”

Wilson’s goal is to earn a Division I college scholarship. The next hurdle is passing the Scholastic Aptitude Test. He failed to score the minimum requirement of 700 points on his first try.

“The test is hard, but I’ve got to pass it,” Wilson said. “It’s another challenge, and I like challenges. I’ve got a lot of people counting on me who have helped me get this far. I’m not going to let them down.”