Deckard Triplets Make McK Their Home
by Stephanie (Coartney) Dulaney ’10
Having spent just one day apart in 18 years, triplets Andrew, Brandon and Curtis Deckard knew when it came to choosing a university, they needed each other to make college
feel like home. The first-year students from Bethalto, Ill., decided McKendree University
offered the best opportunity to gain a quality education and to play NCAA football
on an all-star team. During last year’s highly anticipated National Signing Day event
at Civic Memorial High School, each put on a McKendree Bearcats ball cap, revealing
their college choice to the world.
Growing up, the inseparable triplets shared many interests and got along better than
most siblings. “They’ve always had this strange bond,” said their mother, Marsha Deckard.
“The one day they were apart from each other, I was out of town, and they each stayed
with a different relative or friend. They didn’t function well at all, and it was
a very long night for the people watching them.”
While the brothers say they aren’t really believers of “triplet telepathy,” their
mom recalls several times they brought home the same book from their school book fair
despite being in separate classes. It also happened at Christmas, when their school
held a shop for children to buy gifts for their families. Unaware, each bought identical
gifts for the same family members. “It happened year after year, and the teachers
thought it was so funny,” Marsha said. “I tried to encourage them to be their own
person and make their own choices, but they pick the same things even when they’re
not together.”
From playing childhood sports together to sharing a truck in high school, the Deckards
have always felt more comfortable with each other than on their own. “We’re almost
the same person,” Andrew explained. On and off the football field, they describe themselves
as very competitive, but each with unique qualities. Brandon, they decided, has the
best sense of humor and lifts the most weight; Curtis has the best grades; and Andrew
has the biggest heart.
All chose the same major: business administration. They play the same position on the Bearcat football team: offensive lineman. Consistently
their team’s largest players, Andrew stands at an impressive 6'1" 360 pounds, Brandon
at 6'1" 310 pounds, and Curtis at 6'4" 360 pounds, earning them the nickname “the
900-pound wall.” It’s more than size that makes them intimidating opponents on the
field. The brothers’ unique connection and natural instinct for the sport have always
made them valuable players.
“As kids, they were too aggressive in pee-wee soccer,” Marsha said. “They knocked
all the other kids down, and the coach told me he had to kick them off the team because
they had too many penalties. He recommended they go into football.”
In high school, the Deckards earned All-Conference accolades and received widespread
attention for their synergy on the field. Receiving offers from 13 universities, the
brothers were attracted to McKendree’s well-organized football program and friendly,
supportive and close-knit atmosphere, on and off the field.
“It’s nice to have brothers playing for us,” said Bearcats Head Football Coach Mike
Babcock. “It means they know what it’s like to be part of a family.”