Stokley UsL Pics
(8/30/96)Scouting report: USL's Brandon Stokley Ragin' Cajun wide receiver sets four NCAA receiving marks last season as a freshman
By Ryan Hunt
Southwestern Louisiana's Brandon Stokley probably never realized all of the time he spent playing catch with his father in the backyard would pay off for him so much.
His dad probably didn't realize it would, either.
But Nelson Stokley - who will begin his 11th season as head coach at USL - certainly is glad now that he spent some time with his son tossing the football around at a young age.
It's made his job a lot easier.
"I've been around football all of my life," said Brandon, who, along with his father, will lead the Ragin' Cajuns into Florida Field Saturday to take on No. 4 UF. "It's always came natural to me."
There was only one problem: football wasn't the younger Stokley's first love.
While at Comeaux High in Lafayette, La., Stokley played just one season of varsity football - his senior year. He had attempted to play quarterback as a freshman, but preferred basketball and baseball to lining up behind the center.
Only a chance to play wide receiver his senior year changed his mind. You could say he caught on quickly.
"Really I never even thought about playing college football," said the Ragin' Cajun sophomore. "But after my senior season, I started thinking about (playing at USL) a little bit. There weren't too many other options."
But even after a senior season which saw Stokley make 80 catches for 946 yards, schools weren't exactly busting down the Stokleys' door to sign Brandon - so Nelson Stokley didn't have to look very far to sign a wide receiver.
And to really get to know a son.
Ask the coach and he'll tell you that Brandon is now one of the Ragin' Cajuns' top receivers and leading offensive threats. Although he didn't start a game in 1995, Stokley shattered almost every freshman NCAA receiving record, catching 75 passes for 1,121 yards and nine touchdowns.
But what makes Stokley's season even more impressive is that he got off to a slow start, catching just three passes for 34 yards in the Cajuns' first two games. He finished off the year with four straight 100-yard games.
"Brandon's a very talented young man, no question about it," said Nelson Stokley, whose team went 6-5 last season. "I think he and (Ragin' Cajun quarterback) Jake (Delhomme) are on the same page. They each have a lot of confidence in each other and I know he's a guy we're going to look to and Jake's going to try to find."
But ask the father in Nelson Stokley and he'll let you know what Brandon's presence has meant - both on and off the field.
"It's been a lot of fun," he said. "It was really great for me to be able to be there and watch him be successful and to be able to share those times with him. I think we've become a lot closer."
"Last year, I think that he was a little scared to go out and say that early on," the younger Stokley said. "As the season went on he grew into it."
It was a bit of a transition for both of them, though. Nelson Stokley had to put aside being a father while on the sidelines. Brandon had to earn the respect of his teammates.
It was respect that he got.
"I never really caught that much flack for it," Stokley said. "They joked about it at first, but I would take it all in stride. I knew a lot of the guys before I got here, but I came in trying to work hard and it hasn't been a problem."
More than that, he earned the respect of his coach. After being a ball boy for his father at age 12, Stokley helped out in more ways than just on the field. They would do about everything that fathers and sons do -- but Brandon still would try to give his old man some advice.
"On the field, it's just player to coach, and off the field, we're father and son," Stokley said. "I go in his office and we talk about different things. I'll go in and tell him, 'We need to throw the ball a lot more.'" And throw the ball they did last season, mainly in Stokley's direction.
Stokley's earned the first 1,000-yard season in school history, not to mention the first by a freshman in NCAA history. Stokley's freshman season alone ranks him seventh all-time in receiving yardage at USL.
Not bad for a guy who has only played two seasons of organized football.
"He's a guy who has a great knack for getting open," said UF defensive coordinator Bob Stoops. "You don't catch that many balls without being talented and having a great intensity."
With that success comes a price, however, and this season Stokley fully expects to see each team's top defenders.
Which suits him just fine.
"I love being the go-to guy," Stokley said. "That's what I want, their best guy on me. Me and (UF strong safety) Lawrence Wright."
Just like playing catch in the backyard.
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