FORT COLLINS — If someone revealed was created in a football coach’s laboratory, everything would make sense.
He’s a football player in every sense of the phrase — a mountain of muscle with a heaping load of grit and sergeant-like work ethic who’s willing to do anything to help his team win. Itap the kind of presence which has behooved Colorado State football since his arrival on campus in 2015. Still just a redshirt junior, the 22-year-old is the precedent of effort for his teammates as the Rams approach the season.
“Everyday I’ve seen Prentice, he does everything right,” wide receiver Warren Jackson said. “He gives everything he has literally every single rep. I have never seen Prentice jog, itap just full speed. He does everything right. He gives his all every rep, and that gives me confidence and it really boosts me. I’m like, ‘Man, look how hard he’s going, I’m gonna go just as hard.’ I think that really sparks everybody else.”
For the fifth-year fullback, thatap just normal. Growing up a wrestler, the physical side of football became second nature. Itap part of what makes him such a strong lead blocker out of the backfield, and paired with the indescribable work ethic and leadership skills he brought with him to CSU, he’s earned coach ’s praise throughout recent seasons, something he’ll never boast about.
“Itap awesome but at the end of the day itap a team sport,” Prentice said. “Itap gonna take this whole team to get where we want to go at the end of this season. Itap not just what I do but itap how I help everybody else around me.”
Prentice says that mindset has forced him to become a better leader heading into 2019. From focusing on relationships on and off the field and getting to know what makes his teammates tick, he feels he’s grown into the role.
It becomes contagious when other players are around Prentice’s leadership every day. When Jackson was given an accountability group by Bobo this spring, it was foreign to the wide receiver. But he felt himself grow as a leader throughout summer and into fall, and Prentice’s humble teachings are part of the reason why.
“Thatap somebody everybody watches when they want to be a leader,” Jackson said. “I think he’s the perfect example for a leader and I’m just really happy that I get to play alongside him, walk out on that field with him and I have nothing but confidence about him.
“It takes a special person. Some games he might not play a lot, some games he will. But if he’s playing one rep, he’s gonna give it his all; if he’s playing 100 reps, he’s gonna give it his all. Thatap something very unique to this football team.”
The fullback has noticed other players stepping up, too, even if they’re not designated leaders. Whether it be spending extra time with young players or honing in on specific roles in certain plays, Prentice notices a difference in work ethic throughout the squad, something he knows a little something about.
“This is the hardest any team has worked in the offseason since I’ve been here,” he said. “Itap really encouraging, guys are excited to play, we’re flying around, running to the ball, hitting. Itap just exciting, I can’t wait to see what happens.”
In a backfield with the tandem of and Marcus McElroy, the fullback understands the importance of establishing the run this year to complement the passing game. And it makes it a little easier for the ball carriers knowing they have a mountain clearing the way.
“I’m going where Adam’s going,” Kinsey said. “Adam’s gonna clear a hole out, so I have no worries when he’s in front of me.
“Adam is like a coach on the field. He knows what to do, when to do it. He knows every play and every position. I think with Adam on the field, he makes everybody better. He has really, really good work ethic — I don’t think he ever gets tired. He’s the strongest on the team, he’s the most conditioned. Watching him makes you not want to quit.”