Photo: Westbrook Christian senior Eric Kirkpatrick signed a football scholarship with Murray State on Wednesday, Feb. 5. Pictured, from left: mom Mindy, Eric, dad James. (Courtesy of Grant Campbell)
By Chris McCarthy, Publisher
Eric Kirkpatrick recently found his home away from home.
The Westbrook Christian senior signed a football scholarship with Murray State University on Wednesday, Feb. 5.
“It feels like a 
true blessing for me and my family, and I’ve worked really hard for a long time to get to this point,” said Kirkpatrick, who transferred from Sardis prior to his sophomore season. “When I visited the campus, it felt a lot like home. The coaching staff showed me that they truly wanted me there, and I instantly fell in love with the place.”
This past season, the Murray State football team went 1-11 overall and 0-8 in the Missouri Valley Conference.
Kirkpatrick, who who plans on majoring in physical the-rapy, pointed to the guidance of Westbrook head football coach Steve Smith as a major factor in getting a scholarship.
“He taught me that playing at the next level wasn’t going to be easy, and he motivated all of us to keep pushing ourselves until we got to that certain point where we needed to be at. He taught us not to give up and to always work together as a team. I think we set a bar that hopefully the younger guys will reach and then go higher.”
Kirkpatrick helped the 2024 Warriors post the program’s first winning season in four years at 6-4. Westbrook finished two games out of the state playoffs while competing in Class 3A, Region 6.
Smith believes that Kirkpatrick’s best football lies in front of him.
“We had some games this year when we really dominated up front, and Eric was a big part of that,” he said. “Obviously Eric’s size is a factor, because you don’t often get 6’4, 230-pound offensive lineman. He improved immensely from his 10th grade year through his 12th grade year. Eric had times when he was a dominant player and had other times where he needed to work on a few things, and I think Murray State will see his potential and be able to work with him on those things. He’s just a 17-yead old kid, so he has a lot of room to grow and develop. If he continues to work, I think Eric will have a chance to develop into a really good college lineman.”
