Taylor Swift: Singer and Basketball Player

Originally Published: Jan 17, 2010 7:28 PM CDT

Curt Hill

Oklahoma Sports Staff Writer

CLAREMORE, Oklahoma -- For Claremore senior Taylor Swift, sharing the name of a pop star often comes with the hassles of being one.

“When I go to the store or something like that, people always look at me and they don’t believe me. And I’m like ‘Yes, my name is Taylor Swift,’” Swift said. “I have a Facebook account, and it got deleted because they thought I was being an impersonator.”

Swift is not an award-winning music artist, but she’s just as talented. Not only does she sing, she is quite the basketball player.

“She’s better at basketball,” head coach Mark Campbell said. “However, I did hear her sing our National Anthem, and I said if she could play basketball the way she could sing, we would be undefeated.”

Swift is a shooting guard for Claremore, but it’s not about the stats for her.

“The stat that would stick out for her is her defense,” Campbell said. “She’s just a really, really good defensive player. She’s a really good on-the-ball defender and just does a good job with that.”

So what type of music corresponds with her play?

“I’ve been told that I’ve kind of been the spark, so just something upbeat that kind of gets you pumped,” Swift said.

Swift is also a leader on the court and, like a Taylor Swift song, she is someone her teammates can relate to.

“When I get on them pretty hard, she is there to pat them on the back and tries to pick them up,” Campbell said.

“I try my hardest to be the best leader that I can,” Swift said. “I might not perform at my best all the time, but I try and do that for my teammates and be there for them.”

After coming up short of a title during her career, Swift has her eyes set on the school’s first state championship since 2005.

“We were almost there last year, but we fell short in the first round,” Swift said. “I have a lot of expectations for myself and this team, and I'm expecting to get to the tournament and hopefully win it.”

If the Zebras are able to take home the title, Swift said she will have no problem singing “We are the Champions.”

Same Name, Different Tastes
When asked if she liked Taylor Swift’s music, Swift said that she listens to some of her songs.

“I do like some of her stuff. All of her songs kind of sound the same to me, but she's alright,” Swift said.

Are You Kidding Kanye?
During the 2009 MTV Music Awards, rapper Kanye West took the microphone from Taylor Swift during her acceptance speech for Best Female Video and said that Beyonc?'s video for "Single Ladies” was better. When asked how she would react, Claremore’s Swift said it would be tough.

“I'm not good with confrontations,” Swift said. “I probably would have just looked at him and said ‘Are you really being stupid right now. This is my time and not yours. You’ve had plenty, give me my time.’ I would have been upset.”

Confused Coach
“I saw that (Taylor Swift the music artist) had gotten some type of award, and immediately I thought of our Taylor,” Campbell said. “And then realized it wasn't the same one.”