ORLANDO, Fla. – Braylon Burnside is the name on his profile but everybody who knows the four-star receiver calls him Stonka.
That’s what all the fans at Mississippi State will be calling him as well as the Starkville, Miss., standout re-committed to the Bulldogs Wednesday at the Under Armour All-America Game over Ole Miss.
“You have the big Tonka truck, I’m a big-fit type of guy,” Burnside said. “I had that name since I was about one-year-old, me moving around coolers and big cases of water all the time. My dad said I was big like a Tonka truck. The stonk just comes from just stinking up the house as a baby.
“If you put the stinky in front of the Tonka truck, you get Stonka.”
Burnside had been committed to Mississippi State from June through November but backed off his pledge as the Rebels and many others came in along with the Bulldogs making a coaching change.
But when Mississippi State hired offensive-minded coach Jeff Lebby away from Oklahoma, Burnside took the short drive back to campus with a bunch of other top recruits and commits and loved his time there.
His talks with Lebby about how the Starkville standout would be utilized in the pass-happy offense Lebby plans to employ really intrigued Burnside again.
“(The message was) I would come in and be that guy, come in and make plays and show everybody what I could do,” Burnside said.
“That I’ll be one of his main guys that he will focus on. I’ll be one of the main guys going to work.”
The message from Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin was also appealing and the Rebels were under serious consideration especially after the season they had and heading into next season where they could be ranked high in preseason polls.
But home won out for Burnside again and he’s excited to be used inside, outside and wherever else Lebby can get him the ball.
“I prefer out but I’m kind of getting the hang of the inside type of stuff because of the bigger guys on the outside but I’m a guy who can make plays on the outside, too,” Burnside said. “I’m kind of getting a feel for the slot receiver stuff, too.”
