Kansas State expects bright future for linebacker Da’Quan Patton

Hearing his name in the same sentence as Arthur Brown was quite the honor for Kansas State linebacker Da’Quan Patton earlier this week.

At least it was once he was told Brown was one of the best linebackers to ever play for the Wildcats.

“Really?” Patton said. “That’s great.”

K-State special-teams coordinator Sean Snyder made the comparison Tuesday between Patton, a promising junior-college transfer who is new to the program, and Brown, a current NFL defender who was named Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year in 2012.

“He has got some flashes of that,” Snyder said. “If you remember back in the day of Percell Gaskins, he is probably a bit more of a Percell type. He is in between those two guys.”

High praise for a newcomer that ended up at K-State for the start of spring practices only after his plans to enroll at California fell through when the Bears surprisingly fired Sonny Dykes weeks before national signing day.

“Things didn’t go as planned at Cal and they gave me an opportunity here,” Patton said. “It was pretty fast. They hopped on board and we got things rolling. Things just linked together.”

Patton is still adjusting to K-State football and its history. Though he has family in Topeka, the Flint Hills are a drastic change from the Bay Area and Trinity Valley Community College in Athens, Texas, where he was a second-team All-American and a highly rated junior college recruit.

He doesn’t say much, even around teammates. And it may take for a while for him to feel at home and learn the Wildcats’ playbook.

But one thing is for sure: Teammates say he passes the eye test.

“He’s a quiet guy and very humble for someone as talented as he is,” linebacker Sam Sizelove said. “Once he puts that helmet on, the beast comes out.”

A single glance at Patton is all it takes to understand why K-State remained in contact with the junior linebacker, especially after he expressed his desire to enroll elsewhere from Cal. Patton appears physically ready to tackle anyone in the Big 12. The 6-foot-2, 215-pounder is a lean defender who sports more muscle than most of his teammates.

“He’s a physical specimen,” sophomore running back Alex Barnes said. “Height, weight, speed, strength … He blew somebody up coming through the middle (the other day). It was pretty impressive to see that coming to fruition for him. He’s a talent, that’s for sure.”

Patton’s big hit was the talk of K-State’s media session earlier this week. Every player in attendance mentioned it.

“That showed his explosiveness,” sophomore quarterback Alex Delton said. “The kid has a high motor. He’s raw, but you can tell he’s going to be a good player for us.”　　　

Patton seems to be putting his body to good use at spring practices. He hasn’t always known where to line up, and he admits learning K-State’s schemes will be his biggest challenge before his debut season.

Still, he has found ways to make plays.

“I would say I am flying around each day,” Patton said. “I might not know everything right now, but I am flying around, showing that I want to be out there.”

K-State’s top three linebackers last season (Elijah Lee, Charmeachealle Moore, Will Davis) have all moved on, leaving ample playing time for newcomers including Patton.

Senior Trent Tanking seems to have the inside track on one of those starting spots, but the others are up for grabs.

If Patton keeps delivering bit hits, he might claim one and draw more comparisons to Brown.

“Da’Quan Patton is probably one of the most athletic linebackers that I have ever seen,” Sizelove said. “He brings a hammer when he hits people. He is a great guy and teammate and I see a bright future for him.”

This story was originally published April 13, 2017 at 10:02 AM with the headline "Kansas State expects bright future for linebacker Da’Quan Patton."