SOUTHEASTERN CONFERENCE FOOTBALL MEDIA DAYS

July 20, 2026

Eddy Pierre-Louis

Oklahoma Sooners

Press Conference

Q. Team goals are obvious. What individual goals are you setting for yourself to help the team?

EDDY PIERRE-LOUIS: Some of the individual goals that I set on myself is also coming out every day with a good intensity and passion. Especially some of those guys in my group, they look up to me. So having a good humility and knowing myself, I have to come in with good passion every day, good energy, juice, and come in willing to work every day.

Q. What's it like being at Media Days back in your hometown?

EDDY PIERRE-LOUIS: Oh, man, this is great. Being back in my hometown, Tampa, Florida. I was able to see my mom earlier. So that was also a good blessing. And also it's great. I worked for it. And also it was good that my teammates seen that in me as well. So I'm quite honored for sure representing my squad and also representing Oklahoma.

Q. Food recommendations?

EDDY PIERRE-LOUIS: Jerk Hut, Jamaican spot on Hillsboro.

Q. Who are some of the people growing up here in Tampa getting involved in football and all that, who are a couple of people that maybe really helped you become who you are today, outside of your family, maybe it was a coach, maybe it was a teacher, anybody you'd like to cite?

EDDY PIERRE-LOUIS: My trainer down in Tampa. He's at Trench Academy, those guys, Coach Taylor, my O line trainer, Ray McNeil. And also my high school coaches. I had really good high school coaches. Like Coach McClain and Coach Jeris McIntyre, those are also good coaches that I had.

Also I had good mentors. Like you were saying, my family, my mom was someone that mentored me since I was young. Having her with me throughout my whole side has always been something that I needed.

Q. Professional teams, if any, or college teams did you follow closely when you were living here in Tampa? Or maybe you had a favorite player or two.

EDDY PIERRE-LOUIS: It was really Oklahoma. Oklahoma was my dream school since I was a kid. I made a video to myself saying, like when I was 7, saying I was going to go to Oklahoma. And I'm blessed that I made that happen, for sure.

Q. You're standing in the tunnel in Norman. Everybody is going crazy. Boomer Sooners ready to take you out on the field. What gives you the goosebumps?

EDDY PIERRE-LOUIS: What gives me the goosebumps? Actually, the first time I had the goosebumps was my first game, getting in the game. Coach Bedenbaugh, my offensive line coach, got me in there. He said, get in there.

I looked around in the crowd. I'm looking at everybody. It was a night game too. I'm looking at everybody and I'm just like, wow, we're really here.

So really that gives me -- I don't really get any goosebumps anymore. But that was a moment that I did, I felt a little bit of, I was a little shaken from that. But after that, I was definitely good after that.

Q. You said that Oklahoma was always your dream. How does it feel to be living your dream?

EDDY PIERRE-LOUIS: It feels great because I know where I came from and I know where a lot of people are from as well. So being in this situation, being in front of all y'all people as well is a blessing definitely.

Q. John came up here earlier and said that your car is always at the facility longer than anyone else's. First off, what kind of car is it? And second, just how bad do you want to be successful that you're putting in this extra work constantly?

EDDY PIERRE-LOUIS: I drive a Ram TRX. It's definitely been a long process. It's been a hard process. But every process, I don't mistake any of it.

So coming in each and every day, like I was saying, my guys, they look up to me. So having that each and every day I gotta know that I gotta go harder for those guys. I've got to put myself aside. I can't worry about me. I've got to worry about my group.

That's something that I overemphasize with my group as well. Sometimes you can't be thinking about yourself. You've got to think about what's good for the team, what's best for the team.

Q. A lot of talk from your teammates and your head coach this morning just about the leader you've grown into. How has the process been of you being to where you are now as to one of the loud guys in the room representing Oklahoma here?

EDDY PIERRE-LOUIS: Actually, when I first started, I wasn't very vocal. I just led by example of willing to work each and every day, just coming out to work. That's something that I overemphasized as well is, we just got to be there, really, to work.

It's been getting better over time. Like now, I've been able to be more vocal and talk a lot more to my guys.

It's been, at first it was definitely uncomfortable, but now I've been getting to that point where it's more comfortable and I've been able to hold it a lot better. So definitely it's been good.

Q. You mentioned you were 7 years old when you really took to the Sooners. What was it about you at that age that Oklahoma was so appealing?

EDDY PIERRE-LOUIS: I actually seen them on TV. I seen them on TV, and I was just a football kid. I seen them on TV. That red just lit up to me. I seen the passion that they had when they were playing a game. So that was something that I wanted to be a part of. I just kept working for it.

Q. To follow up on watching Oklahoma on TV, was it Baker Mayfield by any chance?

EDDY PIERRE-LOUIS: It was Baker Mayfield.

Q. What did you think about Baker? What do you like about Baker and his game?

EDDY PIERRE-LOUIS: The thing that I liked about Baker is really the way he comes out. He has good passion, good energy. That's something as well that John Mateer has as well, like him having that good energy, good juice is very -- that's good across the whole board because that brings me, too, and especially my offensive line group. That has us all being able to really go run through a wall for him as well, like, literally.

Just him coming out with good passion, energy, juice, each and every day, that's something that you need and what you want in your quarterback.

Q. You also ran track at Tampa Catholic, incredibly fast for a big man. How has that speed translated to the college game in Oklahoma?

EDDY PIERRE-LOUIS: It translated a lot. But also what that speed that I had, I had to know that I had to have better body control as well. I had to work on a lot of other things, too, to help myself out because I always had good speed on myself. But also you have to have good speed and able to maintain that speed and slow down with certain guys, because we have a lot of good dudes, good defense.

So sometimes you don't have to play too fast, because sometimes playing too fast can mess you up. So have you to kind of balance it out a little bit and make sure it's good.

Q. You said it was never a question Oklahoma's where you wanted to go, but a lot of schools recruited you. What do you remember from Texas A&M back in those days? Then you guys get to play them this year. How much are you looking forward to play a team like?

EDDY PIERRE-LOUIS: I'm actually excited to play a team like that. They're a great team. They've got good players. I was fortunate enough to visit the school as well. It was a great school. I feel like the way just (lost audio). They've got good players. We've got good players. Just ready to play ball, definitely.

Q. Wanted to ask about your fit, and who is the best dressed at Media Days?

EDDY PIERRE-LOUIS: I don't really have to (indiscernible), but I really do think it's me for sure.