Dameon Pierce, who now wears No. 27, in his first college game Sept. 1 against Charleston Southern. (Photo: Matt Stamey/UAA Communications)
Gators Freshman Pierce Driven to Fulfill Promise
Friday, September 21, 2018 | Football, Scott Carter
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By: Scott Carter, Senior Writer
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – In the weight room at Bainbridge (Ga.) Middle School, Patrick Clark has a distinct way of trying to inspire students in his seventh- and eighth-grade physical education classes.
When Clark has a kid acting up or struggling with academics, he points to an area in the weight room where a prized pupil once put in the work to chase a dream. Clark tells students he had a talk right there with Gators running back Dameon Pierce several years ago.
The first time Clark recalls meeting Pierce was the summer prior to Pierce's seventh-grade year.
"He already had a nice build on him,'' Clark said.
Still, as often is the case with middle-schoolers, Pierce needed direction if he was going to capitalize on the promise he flashed on the football field. From the time Pierce's mom signed him up for the local youth league when he was 7, Pierce was the star of the show.
He was bigger, faster and stronger than any kid in town his age. By the time he was in eighth grade, Pierce started to practice with the Bainbridge High School team so he could face stronger competition.
But first, back to that day prior to seventh grade.
"I'll never forget,'' Pierce said.
Pierce has a personality to match his quickness. Pierce remembers goofing off in Clark's class one day, enjoying the attention. Clark, who played on Bainbridge High's only state championship team in 1982 and later earned a track scholarship to Albany State University, saw the kind of athlete he hadn't seen come through Bainbridge in years.
He could easily see Pierce wooing college recruiters with his talent. He could also see Pierce squandering it away if he didn't take care of his schoolwork the way he did linebackers in his way.
Dameon Pierce reacts after scoring his first college touchdown last week against Colorado State. (Photo: Kaila Jones/UAA Communications)
"That whole week I was acting up in class," Pierce said. "One day he sat me down. 'You've got something special. Everyone knows you're good, but no matter how good you are, you are not going to get as far as you want to without an education.' He explained to me that I can get to college using my athletics to my advantage."
Clark closed with a statement Pierce recites in his mind often to this day.
"You're not going anywhere being dumber than a box of rocks."
If a seventh-grader can have an epiphany, Pierce had one that afternoon. Don't get him wrong. Pierce remains a character, one that enjoys having a good time and messing around with his teammates.
But he began to tap into another side of his personality six years ago in part because Clark made him think about the future in a way he hadn't before.
"He was always willing to listen,'' Clark said. "He's never been one to complain, even at times when I have had to get on him. Because he knew that if he would take care of the student part, the athletic part would come."
It came alright. Once Pierce got to Bainbridge High, he rewrote every rushing record the school had, ending his career with 6,779 yards and 92 touchdowns, passing Herschel Walker in Georgia's state record books.
Pierce became the hottest show in town on Friday nights, drawing the interest of the top college programs from around the country. Another Bainbridge boy, Georgia head coach Kirby Smart, helped lure a commitment to Alabama from Pierce when Smart was the Crimson Tide's defensive coordinator.
However, Smart left for Georgia after Pierce's sophomore year of high school. Pierce de-committed from Alabama, visited Georgia, considered Clemson, Florida State and others, but in the end chose Florida.
When Gators head coach Dan Mullen took a home visit to see Pierce not long after he took over the program last November – Pierce also had contact with the Gators' previous coaching staff -- Mullen spoke about the Gator Standard. He told Pierce the bar is set high at UF and it's not for everybody.
Pierce sensed a challenge.
"That would scare most people away,'' he said. "I wanted to take on that."
Dameon Pierce in the Bainbridge Middle School weight room on a recent visit home. (Photo: Courtesy of Patrick Clark)
Pierce enrolled early in January and said he felt lost on the field much of spring camp. Running backs coach Greg Knox moved him along slowly to help the adjustment to college.
"I knew as soon as he got here he was a really strong kid," Gators offensive lineman Brett Heggie said. "I didn't know how well he could move but then he came out here and he's moving extremely well. He's just one of those powerful backs that can hit the edge and take it to the sideline and go all the way with it too. He's definitely a dual guy."
Once the season started, Pierce was in the plans on special teams, a role he never played in high school. In the season opener, he brought fans at the Swamp out of their seats with a tackle on a kickoff return. Soon afterward, Mullen put him in the game at running back.
Pierce finished with nine carries for a team-high 75 yards, including a 27-yard run. He didn't have a rush in the loss to Kentucky, but in last week's victory over Colorado State, Pierce rushed for a team-leading 87 yards on five carries.
He once again electrified the home crowd, this time with a 68-yard touchdown run in the second half.
"He's a good player with the ball in his hands,'' Mullen said. "It's doing the other little things that he's learning. We put him on special teams to see his effort and his performance level on special teams. That's usually a pretty good indicator if a guy is going to continue to take steps forward."
So far, so good in the approach with Pierce, who has quickly moved up the depth chart following the departure of Lemons and broken foot to Davis.
Back in Bainbridge, where the population has hovered around 12,000 the past couple of decades, Pierce's early returns with the Gators have the town buzzing.
"We were all just elated [over this touchdown]," Clark said. "I'm proud of him. I just hope he keeps focused. He keeps the party going, and at the same time, he is a great leader. He does not enjoy losing. He always finds a way to keep his teammates up."
Three days later, Pierce's face lit up when asked about his first college touchdown.
"It just felt great,'' he said. "It was just a great moment. We have a great running backs coach in Coach Knox. I struggled in the spring, my first college playbook. He was patient with me."
Same as Clark was a few years back.
Ask Pierce about those watching back home, and his face lights up again.
"What drives me, honestly, is my hometown,'' he said. "It's a small place, not too many people know about it. Not too many people come from where I come from and be successful at this level. Basically I'm just here to be motivation for the youth in my community and the surrounding counties."
That's music to Clark's ears.
Words he can use the next time he sits down one of his students for a heart-to-heart in the weight room. Clark's message is usually direct and simple.
"If you just strive like Dameon has and work hard, it can happen for you."
