CASSEVILLE, Wis. — Erasmus Okey, or as everyone calls him, Raz, competes hard in everything. He said he's often asked if he’s related to Wisconsin high school basketball legend Sam Okey.
They’re first cousins.
But Raz Okey did well living up to the family name, too. He knocked down 1,000 points in his basketball career, and his leadership stood out.
“I always tell all of our younger players in basketball that there is no better person to look up to and kind of learn how to approach practices, how to play, how to conduct yourself. Raz is a tremendous athlete, yes, but he also works really, really hard at all the stuff that he does," said Jacob Bernetzke, Cassville boys's basketball coach.
Raz Okey is one of the few people to beat his math teacher and basketball coach in ping pong.
“Probably never had a guy that tired quite as hard to win every single little drill that we had in practice," said Bernetzke.
That includes academics. Okey earned a 4.0 GPA and was class valedictorian. The youngest of Patty Okey’s six children, Raz Okey has made her a proud mom.
“Four of the other five were either salutatorian or valedictorian of their classes. And I will have to say, the other one was probably third," said Patty Okey.
The Okeys run a grocery store in Cassville. The family business helped shape the children.
“I grew up on a farm. You learn hard work growing up on a farm. I think a grocery store is a lot the same way. There are always things to do," said Patty Okey.
There are about 70 students at Cassville High School. The football and baseball teams co-op with Potosi, just twenty minutes down the road.
On the way to his baseball practice, it isn’t uncommon for Raz Okey to pick up groceries at the store for a home delivery.
“It kinda started in COVID. They didn’t want to go out, and now it kind of continues. It’s a lot easier for us to take it to them than to come to us," said Raz Okey.
In baseball, Raz Okey took charge of the infield as a catcher. His head coach on the diamond was also the offensive coordinator for football.
The senior is a team captain for his baseball, basketball and football teams.
“He’s going to be loud as a catcher. He’s going to communicate to his guys. He learned that through being the quarterback as well. Just being the sole vocal guy out there for the entire team," said Tony Leibfried.
Raz Okey went through high school without one of his biggest fans; his father died from pancreatic cancer. But he said he felt his dad was always with him.
“He was a big sports fan. I think he’d be cheering me on. He’d always tell me, keep pushing hard in all your sports, no matter what happens. If things don’t go your way, keep your head up and try your hardest. It kind of feels like he’s always there with me too. In a sense, it’s kinda helped me through my journey through sports and high school," said Raz Okey.
He recently won the Wisconsin Football Foundation Scholar Athlete Award. Dad would have absolutely approved of his son's high school success, Patty Okey said.
“Oh, he would be very proud. And one of his favorite sports was football, and he had a nice senior season," said Patty Okey.
Raz Okey took part in mission trips and recently helped his community fight spring flooding by filling sandbags for residents along the Mississippi River.
“I think that community we have in our town, where the whole school goes out and just helps, that's kind of what we're about," said Raz Okey.
Next year, Raz Okey will head to the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater to study marketing, but he’ll bring valuable lessons he learned, through sports and growing up in a tight community, with him.