Travis Prentice

Infobox NFL player
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Name=Travis Prentice


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DateOfBirth
Birthplace=flagicon|USA Louisville, Kentucky
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Height_ft=5
Height_in=11
Weight_lbs=221
Position=RB
number=41, 30, 25
College=Miami (OH)
DraftedYear=2000
DraftedRound=3 / Pick 63
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Stats=Y
PFR=PrenTr00
DatabaseFootball=PRENTTRA01
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years=2000
2001
2002
teams=Cleveland Browns
Minnesota Vikings
Arizona Cardinals
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Travis Jason Prentice (born December 8, 1976 in Louisville, Kentucky; nicknamed "Touchdown" Travis) is a former American football running back. Prentice is best known for holding the NCAA Division 1A records for career rushing touchdowns, total touchdowns, and points scored while playing halfback for the Miami University RedHawks.

Prentice attended duPont Manual High School in Louisville, Kentucky, where he was first team All-District and second team All-State his senior year while running for 1,510 yards and 17 TDs.

College career

Prentice was redshirted his freshman year. The next year, Prentice had a very productive season even though he never broke into the starting line-up. In his first game he ran for 102 yards and two touchdowns; for the season he ran for 601 yards on 123 carries and 12 touchdowns.

In his sophomore year, Prentice earned a spot in Coach Randy Walker’s starting line-up. He did not disappoint Coach Walker by rushing for 1549 yards and 25 touchdowns. He was named first team All Mid-American Conference and was one of eight semifinalists for the Doak Walker Award.

In Prentice's junior year he ran for an impressive 1787 yards and 19 touchdowns while leading the RedHawks to a 10-1 season. Once again he was one of eight semifinalists for the Doak Walker Award. He was edged by Marshall University's Chad Pennington in the MAC’s Vern Smith Award for player of the year.

His senior year was under a new head coach, Terry Hoeppner , who installed a more open passing attack rather than relying on the running game. Still, Travis ran for 1659 yards and 17 touchdowns. In the process he broke several Division 1A scoring records and was named third team All-American by the Associated Press.

Touchdown Travis ended his career at Miami with 5,596 yards on 1,138 carries and numerous school, conference and NCAA records. Many people consider his 862 consecutive touches without a fumble his most impressive personal stat.

Notable games

Vs. Akron (1999)

Prentice exploded for 376 rushing yards in a 32-23 win against University of Akron. This set the Mid American Conference record for most yards in a single game. At the time it was the 6th highest rushing total in Division 1A history. Interestingly enough, on his final carry of the game he broke Ricky Williams' one-year-old career records for points scored and total touchdowns with a 72 yard TD run.

At North Carolina (1998)

Prentice helped lead the RedHawks to a 13-10 upset of the #12 ranked North Carolina Tar Heels, rushing for 162 yards and a touchdown. Most of his yards came in the second half, including several carries on the last drive that led to a last-second game-winning field goal by John Scott. It was the first time in ten years that one player rushed for more than 150 yards on UNC.

At Virginia Tech (1997)

Prentice helped Miami to a 24-17 win over then-undefeated and twelfth-ranked Virginia Tech. His numbers were not great (82 yards on 21 carries), but he ran for a touchdown on a game-changing fake field goal that was named CNN's “play of the day.”

NCAA records (at the end of his career)

* Career Rushing TDs (73)
* Career Total TDs (78)
* Career Points (468)
* Career Points (Non-Kickers) (468)
* Games with TDs (35)
* Game with Two or More TDs (25)
* Consecutive Carries Without a Fumble Season (365)
* Consecutive Carries Without a Fumble Career(862)

Pro career

Prentice was the first pick in the third round by the Cleveland Browns in the 2000 NFL Draft. His pro career was not as productive as his time in college; he spent four years in the NFL with the Cleveland Browns, Minnesota Vikings and the Arizona Cardinals.

References

* [http://www.ncaa.org/library/records/football/football_records_book/2005/2005_d1_football_records.pdf NCAA division 1 football records]
* [http://muredhawks.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/05-mediaguide.html Miami 2005 media guide]