By Cory McCartney, SI.com

A perfect match

	Allie Lee (left) must sign every single play to Martel Van Zant during the game. Courtesy of Oklahoma State
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Lee's hands work feverishly on the sideline, calling in the play to Van Zant as a backup to DeForest. He has had to come up with his own signs to convey the slang that is so prominent in football. Lee holds up two fingers to signal cover two or forms a "Z" for zone coverage, working to get Van Zant on the same page as the rest of the defense.

The 36-year-old Lee is an unlikely figure on the Cowboys sideline. He looks like he "should be a water boy" according to defensive coordinator Vance Bedford, and knew little outside of the basics of football before coming on as Van Zant's interpreter. Early on, he struggled to learn the terminology and the intricacies of the game.

"He had to understand football, football terms and the speed of the game and how quick you teach," DeForest said of Lee. "There's some slang involved in football and that's something we had to work through."

Lee makes the 132-mile round trip from Oklahoma City to Stillwater every day, accompanying Van Zant to classes, team meetings, practices and games. If playing Division I-A football is a dream realized for Van Zant, being part of the Cowboys family is just as big of a thrill for Lee.

He grew up a Cowboys fan, and when he learned OSU was recruiting Van Zant out of Tyler, Texas, he offered his services. Two months passed and he thought the school went with someone else. It turned out they had lost his phone number. Now he is under contract with the school, staying on as long as Van Zant is a student.

"It's like they say, 'It's kind of a dream job,' " Lee said. "There would be no other way for me to come in and work with this team like this."

Van Zant's mother, Alice, feels a lot better knowing Lee is always present to be an advocate for her son. "Having Allie Lee is basically like having a member of the family with him," she says. "Because he has Martel's best interests at heart and we love him for that. Everything about him is sincere. Some people are in it for whatever reasons, you know, fame or whatever. But he is very sincere."  

It took a little while for Lee and Van Zant to get on the same page as the rest of the team and there were some tough moments during Van Zant's  freshman year. During practice, Lee once signed for Van Zant to go out on the field for kickoff return coverage, but the team was practicing punt coverage. "It was a big learning experience for me," Lee said. "Martel would come over and he would teach me things I didn't now about and that would make my job easier for him as a better interpreter."

Linebacker Roderick Johnson says things may have been lost in translation early, but Van Zant has developed into a flawless player. "Early on in his career it caused a little bit of confusion," he said. "[Now] he's perfect. He hardly makes any mistakes."