Middle Tennessee State University Athletics
“They're grown men ready to take on the world now” - Senior Captains left their mark in Murfreesboro
11/18/2021 6:00:00 PM | Football
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — The moments can run together at times for CJ Windham. When you've been a Blue Raider as long as the wide receiver has, he stands to earn his record sixth varsity letter at the end of this season, it's easy to see how they would. But more than individual plays, the feelings Windham has with his teammates on the field are what's going to last.
"Jarrin (Pierce) made this one catch running down the middle of the field," Windham said. "He gets up, gives a little first down signal, and I was kind of right there with him. It's kind of cool to have those moments with your guys that's going to live forever, whether (or not) we might see each other on the same path at the next level."
Windham is one of four senior captains, alongside fellow wideout Pierce, linebacker DQ Thomas and safety Reed Blankenship, who will be partaking in senior day ceremonies this weekend when Middle Tennessee takes on Old Dominion at 2:30 pm at Floyd Stadium.
It's a group whose name is all-over the Blue Raider record book. Pierce catching passes in 30 consecutive games (and counting), Blankenship holding the all-time tackle record by over 50 tackles (currently sitting at 399 total tackles, and counting), Thomas rising up the sack and TFL leaderboard, while Windham is right there with his teammates in the top five of the most games played. But far bigger than any statistical mark these players have made on the program is their leadership of their teammates, helping them navigate the season post pandemic and get back into bowl contention after two straight tough seasons.
"Just like any senior class, they come in as young men, and now they're leaving as men," head coach Rick Stockstill said. "To see their growth, their maturity, the relationship that I have with all of them. I can't thank them enough for what they mean to me, what they've meant to this program. I love every one of them. I appreciate all of them.
"They're leaving here in a month, but our relationship will continue for the rest of my life. I'll always follow them, they know that, and I'll do anything in the world I can for any of these guys the rest of my life. They're grown men ready to take on the world now.
The humility of each player is evident when you talk to them, and it's not hard to see that. Middle Tennessee's football program elects their captains each year by a vote from the players. So each one of the five, including redshirt junior defensive end Jordan Ferguson, is well aware of responsibility and trust the C on their jersey entails.
"It just let me know that guys believe in me," Thomas said. "It's really just special. It's a humbling feeling to a captain of 100+ people. They're looking at you to show them the way, the proper way."
Windham and Pierce feel the same way. Pierce was elected a captain last season in addition to 2021, and having his fellow wideout join him as a leader for this last ride clearly impacted the wideout.
"It's an honor actually," Pierce said. "Knowing that you have that patch on your jersey, and you know you have a standard that you have to live up to every time you touch the football field, even off the football field."
Windham points out that standard isn't always easy to uphold through the long grind of the season. But that trust from his team kept him going when things were tough, knowing that they just wanted him to be the best version of himself every day.
"It's just a surreal feeling, knowing that all of your teammates have the respect level for you where they want you to be the guy that everyone looks to," Windham said. "You can kind of be yourself, there's a reason they made you captain. They respect the way you come to work every day, there's never a fall off."
The paths for all four of the senior captains were a little different, thanks to some extra COVID eligibility and injury troubles throughout their careers. Pierce, Thomas and Blankenship were true seniors last season that came back for one more year, while Windham got a sixth season to play due to the extra eligibility. And Ferguson, who redshirted in 2019 due to a knee injury, actually was in the same class as Thomas and Blankenship when they came in as freshman.
"For DQ, we came in early as freshmen," Ferguson said. "That was one of my best memories with him, because I met him first. Reed, I remember in recruiting, he was about to go somewhere else, this was before we even got here. I hit him up and it just seemed like we connected right away. And look now, me, Reed and DQ, we all grew together."
There's a good chance, thanks in part due to that extra eligibility, that a lot of their Blue Raider records might stand for decades to come. Blankenship's all-time tackle mark broke a 35-year old record, and it's hard to see anyone ever qualifying for a sixth varsity letter like Windham has this season, or playing in 57 games (and counting) like Thomas has. But these four captains will have time to think about that sort of impact in the future. Now? The attention turns to ODU, and trying to finish out a winning season.
"They mean the world to me," Blankenship said of his fellow seniors. "Our relationship has grown as we've played together each year. I'm going to miss them, but we've just got to finish out the year strong."
"Jarrin (Pierce) made this one catch running down the middle of the field," Windham said. "He gets up, gives a little first down signal, and I was kind of right there with him. It's kind of cool to have those moments with your guys that's going to live forever, whether (or not) we might see each other on the same path at the next level."
Windham is one of four senior captains, alongside fellow wideout Pierce, linebacker DQ Thomas and safety Reed Blankenship, who will be partaking in senior day ceremonies this weekend when Middle Tennessee takes on Old Dominion at 2:30 pm at Floyd Stadium.
It's a group whose name is all-over the Blue Raider record book. Pierce catching passes in 30 consecutive games (and counting), Blankenship holding the all-time tackle record by over 50 tackles (currently sitting at 399 total tackles, and counting), Thomas rising up the sack and TFL leaderboard, while Windham is right there with his teammates in the top five of the most games played. But far bigger than any statistical mark these players have made on the program is their leadership of their teammates, helping them navigate the season post pandemic and get back into bowl contention after two straight tough seasons.
"Just like any senior class, they come in as young men, and now they're leaving as men," head coach Rick Stockstill said. "To see their growth, their maturity, the relationship that I have with all of them. I can't thank them enough for what they mean to me, what they've meant to this program. I love every one of them. I appreciate all of them.
"They're leaving here in a month, but our relationship will continue for the rest of my life. I'll always follow them, they know that, and I'll do anything in the world I can for any of these guys the rest of my life. They're grown men ready to take on the world now.
The humility of each player is evident when you talk to them, and it's not hard to see that. Middle Tennessee's football program elects their captains each year by a vote from the players. So each one of the five, including redshirt junior defensive end Jordan Ferguson, is well aware of responsibility and trust the C on their jersey entails.
"It just let me know that guys believe in me," Thomas said. "It's really just special. It's a humbling feeling to a captain of 100+ people. They're looking at you to show them the way, the proper way."
Windham and Pierce feel the same way. Pierce was elected a captain last season in addition to 2021, and having his fellow wideout join him as a leader for this last ride clearly impacted the wideout.
"It's an honor actually," Pierce said. "Knowing that you have that patch on your jersey, and you know you have a standard that you have to live up to every time you touch the football field, even off the football field."
Windham points out that standard isn't always easy to uphold through the long grind of the season. But that trust from his team kept him going when things were tough, knowing that they just wanted him to be the best version of himself every day.
"It's just a surreal feeling, knowing that all of your teammates have the respect level for you where they want you to be the guy that everyone looks to," Windham said. "You can kind of be yourself, there's a reason they made you captain. They respect the way you come to work every day, there's never a fall off."
The paths for all four of the senior captains were a little different, thanks to some extra COVID eligibility and injury troubles throughout their careers. Pierce, Thomas and Blankenship were true seniors last season that came back for one more year, while Windham got a sixth season to play due to the extra eligibility. And Ferguson, who redshirted in 2019 due to a knee injury, actually was in the same class as Thomas and Blankenship when they came in as freshman.
"For DQ, we came in early as freshmen," Ferguson said. "That was one of my best memories with him, because I met him first. Reed, I remember in recruiting, he was about to go somewhere else, this was before we even got here. I hit him up and it just seemed like we connected right away. And look now, me, Reed and DQ, we all grew together."
There's a good chance, thanks in part due to that extra eligibility, that a lot of their Blue Raider records might stand for decades to come. Blankenship's all-time tackle mark broke a 35-year old record, and it's hard to see anyone ever qualifying for a sixth varsity letter like Windham has this season, or playing in 57 games (and counting) like Thomas has. But these four captains will have time to think about that sort of impact in the future. Now? The attention turns to ODU, and trying to finish out a winning season.
"They mean the world to me," Blankenship said of his fellow seniors. "Our relationship has grown as we've played together each year. I'm going to miss them, but we've just got to finish out the year strong."
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