BOULDER — Kendrick Celestine can joke that he knows precisely how long it takes to stock a shelf in a Wal-Mart, but regaining his timing on pass routes during Colorado’s spring football drills is a work in progress.
It’s said that timing is the first thing to go. The junior wideout quit the Buffaloes two games into the 2008 season and was away from football for 18 months. But he’s not far removed from being a stocker at a Wal-Mart in Lafayette, La., or, more recently, at a Boulder grocery.
If that won’t cause a young father to pause and, well, take stock of his life, nothing will.
“This is a whole lot more fun than bagging groceries,” Celestine said Monday after a two-hour practice. “But I do feel like I’m a little rusty. I’m like slipping out of my breaks once in a while. I don’t feel like I have my feet underneath me. I’ll be working on that all summer.”
Celestine cited “personal reasons” for his decision to walk away from the team, including the pressures of being an expectant father. Celestine also told reporters at the time he was disappointed with his playing time. He now realizes he expected too much, too soon. Celestine caught 11 passes for 151 yards in 2007 as a freshman and had five receptions in two games as a sophomore before quitting.
“I came in big-headed as a freshman,” he recalled. “But now I see the other side of it. I’m now more into the team success instead of my own personal success.”
Celestine returned to Boulder in the spring of 2009 and decided to get settled — yes, with a stocking job — before contacting CU coach Dan Hawkins, although he had been spotted around campus by his former teammates.
Celestine told Hawkins all he wanted was another chance. A deal was made. If Celestine paid his way for the summer and fall semesters, regained his eligibility and fulfilled other obligations, Hawkins would consider allowing him back on the team.
On Christmas Eve, Hawkins phoned Celestine with news he would be back on scholarship for the spring semester. Celestine, who now has been joined in Boulder by his girlfriend and their son, said he had never received a better Christmas present.
“It was good to see him come back,” junior running back Brian Lockridge said. “It happens to some guys. You go through a process where you don’t know what you want to do. He went home for a little bit and realized what life’s all about.”
“It’s not about telling people where something is on a shelf, I know that,” Celestine said.
A dinged finger during the first week of spring drills has slowed Celestine’s progress. Hawkins said the Louisianan “has some talent. But he also has more competition out there than he had before, and he needs to keep battling.”
New wide receivers coach Robert Prince said Celestine’s quickness and ability to separate from the defender “is where he might bring something to the table.”
Celestine said he is not trying to get ahead of himself and just wants to make the most of his second chance.
“I’m going to work hard to be the best player I can,” he said. “But even if I don’t make it to the pro level, just getting a degree from Colorado will make me successful.”
Footnotes.
Sophomore defensive tackle Nate Bonsu, who had offseason surgery to repair torn meniscus in his left knee, is sitting out spring camp but said he will be ready for August drills. . . . Hawkins said Monday’s first practice after spring break “looked sluggish at the start, but they picked it up toward the end.” . . . Hawkins said cornerback Steven Hicks is no longer on the team.
Tom Kensler: 303-954-1280 or tkensler@denverpost.com
