Burkhart twins relish time on field together

ALMA — Levi Burkhart remembers where he was on that chilly November morning in 2015. And for once, he wasn’t sitting in a deer stand next to his twin brother Landon.

On that morning, the harsh cold wind did little to dampen the smile on young Landon’s face. That morning, he remembers, he bagged his first big buck — a 12-pointer on a rural parcel of land in Oklahoma.

“I think I was 11,” Landon said. “I actually killed two that day. It was like 10 degrees; it was so cold we weren’t going to go. There was snow on the ground and it was a 12-point.”

Levi, who bagged his first buck a year later, wasn’t with his sibling that day, instead he was participating in a choir concert.

It’s not unusual to find the Alma twins in separate places, whether it includes a rod and reel, a camouflage jacket for cold mornings in the deer stand, or chasing opposing quarterbacks on the football field.

But Levi will tell you that Landon — born about two minutes before him — treats him like a younger sibling.

“He holds it over me all the time,” Levi said. “He’s taller than me and he’ll tell me, but not by much. He tells me all the time, ‘I’m older than you and I can beat you in just about anything.’

“We’re together a lot.” They compete in duck blinds, too.

“When it comes around to duck season, I’ll take a group and he’ll take a group and we’ll meet up to see who gets the most,” Landon said. “We do different stuff all the time. Me and Levi have always been really competitive.”

Through 30 football games, Landon is closing in on 200 career tackles from his middle linebacker position. The player in the No. 34 jersey is a throwback to a different time — a tic under six feet tall and 175-pounds who leads the Airedales with 72 tackles despite playing on a gimpy foot for much of the season.

Landon loves his jersey number almost as much as does hunting and fishing. It was worn before by Jaiden Mitchell, who is the twins’ first cousin on their dad’s side of the family.

‘That’s why I wanted to wear it,” Landon said. “Plus, we are both inside linebackers.”

Alma coach Rusty Bush praised the play of the Burkhart brothers.

“He’s (Levi) a solid inside linebacker,” Bush said. “And Landon has played injured for much of the year, too. He’s a tough, hard-nosed kid who has a great focus on trying to be a really good linebacker.”

The Airedales (3-6, 2-4 5A-West) close out the regular season on Friday at Farmington.

Playing linebacker is more than just tackling. The position is the quarterback of the defense.

“You just have to focus,” Landon said. “It takes a lot of focus. You have to pay attention and watch where they’re going, and if you don’t get into position, you’ve messed up.” And now, it’s almost over. “It’s crazy how fast it’s gone,” Landon said. “Growing up and seeing how fast it’s coming, and with football, it’s really hard to put into words.”

Like Landon, Levi — who still flexes his voice as a member of Alma High School’s Honor Choir — has loved every minute of his football experience.

“It’s a big deal in my opinion,” he said. “Looking up to everybody that’s been in this position my whole life, I’ve always wanted to be an Airedale football player.

“Being a starting player for Alma, it’s definitely something I’ve enjoyed.”

Bush said having twins on the team has been a blessing in his two seasons as the head coach of the Airedales.

“I think it’s pretty special when two twin brothers, who’ve come all the way through our program from the seventh grade on, are out there every Friday night,” Bush said. “I’ve watched them grow in the 18 months since I got here, on the field and off the field, and with the hunting and fishing, and what they love to do when they graduate.

“They come out here and work hard every day. “They’re not overly big-sized kids, but you get 110 percent out of them every day, and there is always a smile on their face.”

Landon may follow his dad, Chris, into the HVAC business. Levi has a standing offer to become an outdoor guide in Alaska.

“I haven’t made up my mind yet what I’m going to do,” he said. “(But) the offer is there.”

(Photo courtesy of Alma Public Schools) Levi Burkhart (left) and Landon Burkhart are twin seniors on the Alma football team. The brothers are linebackers for the Airedales and also avid outdoorsmen who love to both hunt and fish when they are not tackling opposing players.