By Tyler Duke, Staff Writer
It may not have been the path that Kennesaw State University football player Prentice Stone imagined from the beginning, but he’s back in his hometown playing for a head coach that has been mesmerized by his talent and his character since he was in high school.
While attending Sprayberry High School in Kennesaw, Georgia, Stone was highly recruited graduating in 2011 and excited coaches with his big-play ability on the offensive side of the ball. Among the teams interested in Stone was Georgia Tech, where current KSU head coach Brian Bohannon was an assistant coach at the time.
“He was on our recruiting list at Tech – in fact, I remember he was planning on coming to one of our one-day camps, and he was on our list to get evaluated,” Bohannon said. “He sprained his ankle right before the camp and wasn’t able to participate so things didn’t work out on our end.”
After Stone recovered from the injury during his senior year and performed well on the field, he was re-offered by Bohannon and Georgia Tech but chose to stay loyal to his original choice, Eastern Kentucky University.
“I think he was kind of shocked because I didn’t choose them at the time,” Stone said. “I wanted to stay with Eastern Kentucky because they stayed with me through the whole time, and it just felt like the right choice.”
After arriving at Eastern Kentucky, Stone found his way into playing time fairly quickly at his new school before suffering a devastating injury.
“When I got there, I was in the rotation a little bit and getting ready to play a big game against Kansas State,” Stone said. “Then in practice I went down with an injury and didn’t know what it was at first. I found out that I had three hernias and had to have surgery for that.”
When trying to return from that, Stone then found out he tore his abdomen. The injury put him out for another long period of time and eventually caused him to decide to return to his hometown to finish college and not worry about playing football anymore.
Stone transferred to KSU and pondered the idea of playing again because of his renewed health and the upcoming inaugural season at KSU. Bohannon heard that his former recruit was attending the school and eventually shared some words with him at the Convocation Center.
“An assistant told me he was here, and I happened to run into him at the Convocation Center one day,” Bohannon said. “I asked him if he was coming to try out, and he said, ‘yes sir coach, I am.’”
Stone went to the tryout and performed well enough to make the team as a wide receiver. He followed that up by playing hard in practice and started in the spring scrimmage game.
“I went out to the tryout and did really well,” Stone said. “I actually ran a 4.3 40-yard dash which was pretty good since I wasn’t really in shape. I made the team and from there I’ve just stuck with it.”
Now that Stone is getting closer to playing a snap for KSU, both he and Bohannon are excited about what is to come for the talented receiver.
KSU runs an option offense that focuses on establishing the running game, but the receiver is an integral part that is often critical in keeping the defense honest on the passing game and breaking out huge plays when the defense doesn’t respect it enough.
“He’s got some big play potential for us,” Bohannon said. “I think he’s a guy that can run, go catch, and can make a big play for us to change the game. He’s willing to block and do all of the things we ask him to do, but I think the big thing for him is he can provide some big plays for us. We’re going to have a vertical passing game.”
Stone knows he can make the big play and will get chances with the ball, but he also takes pride in blocking to help the run game.
“We’re run-first, so blocking is a big thing, which I don’t mind doing,” Stone said. “I actually like blocking a good bit and getting up on some little defensive backs. But I’m still a deep ball threat at any time. That’s my goal to accomplish during the season. I want to be the best deep ball threat in the conference.”
Bohannon has been impressed with Stone’s play, but he’s even more impressed with the journey he’s taken and what he’s fought through to get to the success he’s having today.
“There’s no doubt he’s got his head on straight,” Bohannon said. “He’s basically living on his own. Academically he excels, he’s a 4.0 guy. It’s amazing what he’s done, where he’s gotten to today, and what he’s been through. It’s just an amazing story.”
