Jeff Lockridge

jlockridge@tennessean.com

Vanderbilt sophomore cornerback and kick returner Darrius Sims is asked on occasion if his story is like The Blind Side.

No, he tells them.

While Sims is a budding SEC football star from Memphis who overcame difficult circumstances thanks to the care of an outside family, his tale varies from the book and movie about Tennessee Titans offensive tackle Michael Oher.

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For one thing, godparents Trione and Marvin Cooper, who gave Sims a place to live, financial support, structure and a nurturing environment during his high school years, are also African-American and career educators of modest means.

Secondly, Sims wasn't without options. He could have stayed with his mother, Phyllis Carter, with whom he remains close.

He could have continued to sleep on her couch, find his own transportation to and from school and walk the neighborhood streets with his friends looking for something to do. He would have had enough food to get by. He would have stayed warm in the oversized clothes that had belonged to his siblings.

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But if Sims — the youngest of five children to separated parents — had selected that route, he knows Vanderbilt fans would not be watching him wear No. 6 and play in Saturday's 10 a.m. spring game.

Helping hearts

The ragged shoes are what caught Trione Cooper's attention. Sims wore the same pair the whole school year, and she couldn't ignore her suspicion that things might not be ideal at home.

The Coopers, then teachers at A. Maceo Walker Middle School a few blocks from Memphis International Airport, first noticed Sims in the sixth grade. When he was in the eighth grade, Trione taught his algebra class and Marvin instructed him in social studies across the hallway. They were drawn to Sims' charming personality and willingness to learn.

"We were really becoming invested in who he was going to become," Trione said. "We did not want Darrius to become a victim of his environment. We saw he could be somebody special. We see so many children miss out, and we couldn't fathom Darrius being one of those."

The Coopers began to help Sims financially, attend his basketball games and offer him rides home to his brother's place, where he was living at the time. At the end of the school year, the Coopers paid for Sims to join an AAU basketball team and persuaded him to attend Whitehaven High rather than Sheffield for academic reasons.

"We didn't even know he could play football," Trione said.

Sims moved in with his mother but had started to spend weekends at the Coopers, who decided to offer Sims a room in their house on a permanent basis and become his godparents — if he wanted that.

Sims was hesitant at first. But he began to leave his clothes after visits, and then one weekend he asked Trione for a laundry basket. That was his way of accepting the invitation.

"It was not a decision just for me, but for my parents," Sims said. "No disrespect to my mom. She was a great mom. She fed me. She gave me anything I wanted. But we knew from an education standpoint that going with my godparents would do me justice."

There was no change in legal guardianship. Just an understanding. Carter was on board, even though it meant seeing far less of her son.

"I'd been through a lot and I didn't have things he needed at the time," said Carter, who has been working in a warehouse for the last two years. "We'd been struggling a whole lot in life and (the Coopers) pitched in and helped. They are really good people. If it weren't for me and them and God, and I don't where Darrius would be today."

Good habits

When Sims brought home a report card with a D and an F during his sophomore year, he discovered that his priorities were about to change.

Trione lit into him. She and Marvin informed him there would be no sports without good grades.

"We went absolutely crazy," said Trione, pausing to laugh. "We told him you are never to bring home a D or an F. If he did, he would not play football. That scared him because he knows that I'm serious. After that, we never had another episode and it was a total turnaround for him.

"Now he takes the initiative and he does his homework first. He still calls me (from Vanderbilt), and we may work on a paper together every now and then because it gets confusing."

Trione, a 32-year-old Vanderbilt alumna, and Marvin, 34, don't have children of their own. They have served as godparents to four children at different points, including a current Whitehaven senior named Chandreka and a Tennessee State graduate named Jason. Another boy that they aided, Jordan, now lives in Ohio.

Marvin, who is currently on disability after suffering two heart attacks and a stroke, has a special bond with Sims because of their parallel pasts. It's why he feels compelled to get involved.

"I connected with all of our kids since I was raised in a similar home before moving in with my auntie," Marvin said. "Darrius had an attitude toward learning and a desire in his heart. He needed direction. We knew this was his destiny if he did all the right things to get there."

Promising future

Trione said her Vanderbilt connection is the reason some Ole Miss fans say Sims chose the Commodores over the Rebels when selecting among his two top offers. While Vanderbilt was the Coopers' preference for the education, Trione insists she left the decision entirely up to her godson.

Sims was one of only three true freshmen to play during the 2013 season and emerged as Vanderbilt's top kickoff returner. He averaged 22.8 yards on 25 returns, including a 71-yarder down the sideline at Tennessee.

"That was a good one right there," he said. "That was one that started my career off."

Sims played with a cast on his right wrist and hand for much of the season after sustaining an early injury.

"Darrius' skill set is one that allows him to do a lot of things," new Vanderbilt coach Derek Mason said after seeing him in spring practice. "He can play down on the line of scrimmage. He can play off. He's smart. He's got an extremely high football IQ."

Sims' role is likely to expand with the loss of Vanderbilt's four starters in the secondary.

The Coopers will be in attendance on Saturday. Trione was at every home game last season as well as the 14-10 win in Knoxville. Carter didn't make it to a game last season, but she plans to drive up on Saturday with two of Darrius' siblings and Ray Sims, Darrius' father.

"He's the last child I had," Carter said. "He's accomplished a lot and I'm very, very proud of the young man he has become today."

"I call both (my parents and godparents) my mom and my dad," Sims said. "It's just spending time with both so you can have an understanding that I'm here for both of y'all, I love both of y'all the same, I love both of y'all equally."

Reach Jeff Lockridge at 615-259-8023 or on Twitter @jefflockridge.