ABOUT DON

Don Key was an all-star player for the Pasadena High School Eagles. In 1978, he was voted Most Valuable lineman in Pasadena ISD, earned First Team All-District honors and was also selected as First Team All-Greater Houston. In addition, he was a Blue Chipper, Team Captain, Eagles MVP and he played in the Texas North/South All-Star Game as well as the Oil Bowl.

One of his favorite memories in football happened senior year during a PHS vs. Rayburn game. He recalls everyone being certain that Rayburn would handily beat the Eagles, but PHS toppled the Texans. Throughout the game, just as Rayburn would make its move, a PHS Eagle would rise to the occasion. It was a nail biter until the end, but the Mighty Eagles prevailed “due to great teamwork and fight,” Don said.

Considered by many as one of the state’s top high school linemen, Don had the opportunity to attend numerous colleges. The coaches from Oklahoma University, for instance, made a home visit to convince his mother to let Don play. “She said it was too far away,” he remembers. Don explained to his recruiting coach, Rex Norris, that his mother was opposed to OU but Oklahoma did not take “no” for an answer as Don was too promising of a prospect. A week later, Coach Barry Switzer (a legend in college football) came to town to visit with his mother in hopes of convincing her to let him play for the Sooners. “I heard Coach Switzer say to my mom, ‘Carolyn, if Don comes to Oklahoma, he is no longer just your son but he will be our son too. If he works hard and does the right things, we will help him get an education whether or not he ever starts for the Sooners.’” That sealed the deal in Carolyn’s heart and Key signed with the University of Oklahoma and quickly became a standout during Coach Barry Switzer’s era. While Don was at OU, the Sooners were conference champions in 1978, 1979 and 1980 and Orange Bowl champions in 1979, 1980 and 1981.

A potential All-American, Don was a three-year starter, earning All-Big Eight honors until an injury and a cancer diagnosis cut his football career short. Key still remembers that painful moment. “I went from game ball ‘best of best’ on Sunday to ‘you will never play again’ on Wednesday, and that was quite a challenge to my heart and mind.” There was a silver lining in the injury to the kidney as it led doctors to the exact point in Don’s body where cancer was growing undetected. Following the injury, in 1982 Coach Switzer established the Don Key Award, which is considered the highest honor an OU football player can receive. It is awarded to the player who best exemplifies the many superior qualities of its namesake, both on the field and in the classroom. In addition, Sooner benefactors established the Don Key Scholarship which is awarded to a student athlete pursuing a higher education.

“I greatly cherish these things in my heart, but I also cherish that Coach Switzer honored his commitment to my mother, Carolyn, in that I was not able to complete my tenure as an athlete, yet Switzer and the University of Oklahoma assured me I was able to continue my education and earn a college degree,” Don said. “That’s something that lives on in my life and continues to reward me — long after football. This is a message he likes to share with student athletes every chance he gets — your sport will end sooner than you want and most likely without ever leading you to a revenue stream. Your education on the other hand will carry far past your playing days and if you truly apply yourself, will likely lead to a better and sustained revenue source than you might have otherwise experienced had you focused on sports first and education second. It is important to remember you are referred to as a ‘student athlete’ and in that order you find your best potential for long term success.”

Don earned a degree in business at OU in 1983. He has worked as a landman in the oil and gas industry throughout the entirety of his career. He was named Landman of the Year in 1999 and served as President of the American Association of Professional Landmen in 2013–2014, with a membership of 20,000-plus at the time. In 2007, Hanna Oil and Gas established the Don Key Leadership Scholarship in the Energy Management Program at OU. Don has been a keynote speaker for various athletic and church groups, in addition to various university and professional events. His talks extoll the virtues of life’s challenges. Often the emphasis is “press on!”