Mamta Popat/Arizona Daily Star

UNM's OJ Swift gathers a fumble against Arizona. Swift plays safety and is a captain for the Lobos. His stat line this season is full: 59 tackles, three fumble recoveries and one interception. "He should be first-team all-conference," said head coach Rocky Long, "but he won't be, because he's little." Swift is generously listed as 5-foot-9 and 196 pounds.

Mamta Popat/Arizona Daily Star

Lobos safety OJ Swift runs with a fumble against Arizona. Swift is one of head coach Rocky Long's favorite players. His toughness - his ability to plug holes despite his smallish stature - have proved vital when the game is on the line. And he loves to hit.

More LoboZone

• Richard Stevens: Faces I'll remember are the smallest ones
• Michael Garcia: Here's to you, athletes, coaches and friends. These memories - and lessons - will last forever.
• Tribune sports: Five faves

MOST RECENT TRIB STORIES

• ABQTrib.com to remain available
  08:48 a.m., February 25, 2008
• Congressman is indicted
  08:37 a.m., February 23, 2008
• Series of attacks target Green Zone
  08:36 a.m., February 23, 2008
• Iran is defying U.N., agency says
  08:35 a.m., February 23, 2008
• Waterboarding approval probed
  08:34 a.m., February 23, 2008

TRIB IN THE BLOGOSPHERE*

• Ty Murray Invitational thrills fans in Albuquerque
• Is Rome Burning?
• Ominous Skies
• The Road to Invalidation
• Albuquerque company participates in “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition”

*Note: The Tribune does not create and is not responsible for the blogosphere's headlines and stories. These links to blogs talking about ABQTrib.com are automatically generated. Use them at your own risk.

STORY TOOLS

• E-mail story
• Comments
• iPod friendly
• Printer friendly

SHARE THIS STORY [?]

Othellus Jermaine Swift.

Sounds like the name of a British barrister. Or, maybe, a medieval knight. Hey, wasn't he one of the kids in the "Harry Potter" series?

Errrrgnnt. None of the above.

The character in question - but not a questionable character - is a football player at the University of New Mexico.

But not just any football player.

This is OJ Swift, whose verve and wizardry took on almost mythic proportions for the Lobos' faithful last week.

With the clock bleeding toward zeroes and the Lobos and Colorado State tied 23-all, Swift returned a Rams punt 18 yards. Nothing so special about that, except Swift - calm in the violent maelstrom of football, not to mention his first-ever punt return in college - hit the ground at least 6 yards early so he could stop the clock and give kicker John Sullivan a shot at a game-winning field goal.

Fortunately for New Mexico, Sullivan came through with a deadeye 43-yarder as time expired, giving the bowl-hungry Lobos their seventh victory of the year.

All because the heady Swift plays as if he attends Hogwarts, not UNM.

"You want a story of a big-time football player?" challenged Lobos head coach Rocky Long. "OJ looked at the clock and went down on purpose. Now, he was stumbling. And he says as he was trying to keep his balance he looked up, and saw there wasn't much time, so he went down.

"There's not many football players in the world that can do that," concluded an admiring Long. "There are a few, but not very many. He's a big-time football player."

Big-time and big body do not exactly intersect for Swift, a senior from Apopka, Fla. He's generously listed as 5-foot-9 and 196 pounds - large enough to play safety, but evidently too small for a lot of headlines, at least outside of Albuquerque.

Long frets that Swift, UNM's defensive captain and perhaps its best player, won't get the postseason honors that befit his varied contributions to a team that feeds off his all-around brilliance. Swift's stat line, to be certain, is full: 59 tackles, three fumble recoveries and one interception.

"He should be first-team all-conference, but he won't be, because he's little," Long grumbles.

For his part, Swift basically shrugs. Soft-spoken and resolute, OJ is about the W's. And though he's on track to get a degree in university studies in December, his focus is on football, always football. Next play, next game.

Maybe it has to be this way. Although Swift is a safety, he's often a linebacker in disguise - walking up and squaring up to take on blockers and ballcarriers as they ramble into the box.

If you're looking for a comparison - right down to the dreads on his head - he's a lot like Bob Sanders of the Indianapolis Colts, an undersized hitter who makes his teammates better.

"He ain't that big," said an admiring Swift of Sanders, "but he can play. And he's made a real big name for himself."

Then Swift adds:

"He'll run around and hit. He'll take the ball out of the air. He'll give some licks; he'll sack quarterbacks; he'll be real physical. I love the way he plays. By his size, he ain't lettin' that get to him. People talk about my size, I'm just like . . . you know."

Left unsaid - but not unnoticed - is Swift's love for hitting. New Mexico's smallish defensive front has exhibited the consistency of yogurt in recent weeks, a trend rugged Utah will likely try to exploit Saturday when the Lobos meet the Utes in Salt Lake City.

Fortunately for UNM, Swift's toughness - his ability to plug holes despite his smallish stature - have proved vital when the game is on the line. Maybe that's why the usually circumspect Long talks about Swift like he's a good-luck charm.

In any case, Swift knows the essential truth: Nobody is thinking about all-conference this, or all-conference that when a game is on the line. During those moments, it's about a player's heart. And head.

And in his soft Florida lilt, Swift adds one more thing. It's about the guys who wear the same uniform.

"(All-conference) don't matter, Swift says, shaking his head. "I'm just a team player. I'm not an individual."