It’s his senior season and Sallisaw’s Tae Muskrat-Flynn would like to go out with a bang.
“I’d really like to get my teammates more involved this year and have more assists. We’ve kind of struggled the past few years so I’d like to see us win more games this year and have a winning record at least,” said the multi-sport athlete who plays wide receiver and safety in football and runs the 800 meters, the 4X800 relay, and long jump in track.
“I prefer playing basketball to football because I feel I can be more myself in basketball and I like the continuous action of the game more,” said Tae.
Part of that desire for a strong senior campaign goes to the fact that Tae has only gotten to play one season at Sallisaw.
“I transferred from Keys after my freshman year before the OSSAA changed its transfer rules and so I had to sit out my sophomore year,” said Muskrat-Flynn who is also in the National Honor Society. He was also an All-Conference pick last year and was the conference Newcomer of the Year in basketball.
Although Tae is probably best known for his abilities on the court where he averaged 12.6 points, 4.3 rebounds and two assists per game last year, his coach Zac Rogers says that Tae’s leadership is a strong point as well.
“People know that he’s an exceptional shooter but what they may not know is that Tae is also a good leader. Whether it’s in the weight room, the football field or the basketball court, he sets a tremendous example for our younger guys. This year he’s grown a lot physically thanks to our strengths coach and Tae has really worked his tail off in the weight room during the off season,” said Rogers.
When asked about a highlight from his time at Sallisaw, Tae didn’t pick a game where he was a star but instead a time when the team shined.
“It was last year at the Bethel Tournament. We didn’t win the tournament, but I felt like that was the best that the team played together all year,” he said.
One of the guys on that team was Cooper Cox who graduated but served as a role model for Tae.
“He was just a hard worker who never quit and I admired that.”
Tae hopes to play basketball at the next level somewhere next year and after he graduates would like to be remembered as a hard worker who was kind to everyone.
