Dak Prescott promises improved focus, accuracy
Dak Prescott has matured this offseason and supposedly improved his accuracy, too. (USATSI)HOOVER, Ala. — Mississippi State quarterback Dak Prescott has a one-inch scar next to his right eye. He uses it as a reminder of his newfound fame after he was attacked while on spring break in Panama City.
“I get to wake up and look in the mirror to that every day and I’m not ashamed of it,” Prescott said Tuesday at the 2015 SEC Media Days. “I hope other athletes across the country noticed, saw (the attack) and are learning from it as well. But we live in a different time of day. Everybody wants to be successful. Some are jealous of the ones who are successful and do what it takes to take them down or to be maybe be successful themselves.”
After a breakthrough year in which Prescott finished eighth in the Heisman Trophy voting, he found himself bloodied but not seriously hurt from the attack, which was caught on video and went viral. At one point, the video showed a defenseless Prescott laying on the ground and getting kicked in the head as he tried to stagger to his feet.
Prescott said the attackers knew who he was and acted out of “jealousy.” He said the incident also occurred because of a remark directed at a woman who was with him.
“I know exactly what led to it, but nothing that you’d say was worth that,” Prescott said. “Just say ‘jealousy’ is what fired it up. Me being prideful with what the guy was saying he was going to do to me led to that. I was told I was going to be shot.”
Prescott said he declined to press charges to avoid dragging the incident in and out of court, possibly through the 2015 season. “They didn’t hurt me seriously enough,” he said. “They got a video out of it, that’s all they got out of it. It didn’t hurt my pride so I’m fine with that.”
On the field, Prescott is working on being a better passer. In a Dan Mullen offense, the quarterback is always going to be the focal point and run the ball a lot. Prescott had four 100-yard rushing games in Mississippi State’s first six games in 2014, and then none the rest of the season.
Prescott threw for 3,449 yards with 27 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. But in a four-game SEC stretch against Auburn, Kentucky, Arkansas and Alabama last season while nursing ankle and shoulder injuries, Prescott tossed eight interceptions to only five touchdowns.
“I’ll be a lot more accurate this year,” Prescott promised.
Mullen believes Prescott will pick his spots better on when to run and when to check down and move the chains.
“Instead of having to make a play athletically, he’s going to be able to make plays as a quarterback that kind of to the naked eye watching are, ‘Well, that wasn’t much,’” Mullen said. “But in the big picture of a game, it’s an awful lot. That to me is going to be huge in his development this season and I’ve seen a lot of it this spring.”
Prescott believes he received a third-round NFL grade evaluation — “I really don’t know, I was so set on coming back” — but never seriously considered leaving Mississippi State early. After the Bulldogs rose to No. 1 in the country for the first time in school history, they ended an historic season with three of four losses.
“I’m motivated to take care of things that we didn’t get to finish last year,” Prescott said.
Off the field, Prescott said he wants college athletes to learn they need to be cautious because people are out to get them. He said he now stays away from big crowds that aren’t controlled by an event organizer.
“It’s not my cup of tea anymore,” Prescott said. “I know I live a different life than a normal college student or even normal college athletes.”
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