CHENEQUA, Wis. — Former Eastern Washington wide receiver Kendrick Bourne had a great statistical year in 2016 for the Eagles.
He topped 1,000 yard receiving and had seven touchdowns. it wasn't all smooth sailing going into his senior season though.
Then assistant coach Aaron Best said Bourne had some struggles in the classroom in the spring. As punishment, the team assigned Bourne to the third team d during fall camp. He'd have to earn his spot back.
"He looked me dead in the eye and said. 'I understand that, I'm not going to fight that, I'm going to compete for that,'" Best recalled. "He didn't hang his head. He had the same smile, he had the same smirk he understood why h e was there, but he was going to be on the other wide of that field once he earned his spot back, and he did."
Bourne played a big part in the Eags success in his senior season as the team made it to the FCS Playoffs semifinals before losing to Youngstown State.
Bourne now plays in the NFL for the San Francisco 49ers. He had six receiving touchdowns last season as his team made it to the Super Bowl before losing to the Kansas City Chiefs.