From Blacksburg to Mount Pleasant: Kalil Pimpleton's journey through adversity
Junior wide receiver Kalil Pimpleton practices ahead of a game against Ohio.
Kalil Pimpleton's college football career started in Blacksburg, Virginia.
Coming out of a state championship-caliber program at Muskegon High, Pimpleton took the 661-mile journey from his hometown to Virginia Tech. When he joined the Hokies, he was moved from quarterback to play wide receiver.
"It was a big change for me," Pimpleton said. "I had to adapt pretty quick, that was a struggle for me. I kept my faith and I got it done."
Pimpleton, now a junior at Central Michigan, played five games for Virginia Tech and carried the ball one time for four yards. He took a redshirt and decided he needed a move.
He wanted to play a little closer to home.
Pimpleton transferred to CMU before the 2018 season and was on the sidelines during the team's 1-11 season – he had to sit out due to NCAA transfer rules.
"It was tough to sit out the year I had to sit out," Pimpleton said. "I knew the next season something had to change to turn it around, so, that's what we had to do."
The change worked out for the better when Pimpleton was finally able to see game action. He played in all 14 games for the Chippewas last season and finished the season as the Mid-American Conference leader in receptions and receiving yards. He was also named First Team All-MAC as both a receiver and a punt returner.
Pimpleton said being out on the field in 2019 was a blessing. He also said the big difference from 2018 to 2019 – when CMU went 8-6 and won the MAC West title – was one word: focus.
"We had a lot of times (in 2018) that we didn't seem to be focused," Pimpleton said. "(In 2019), there was a different type of focus in the weight room, locker room, the meeting rooms, at practice."
Another important part of Pimpleton's growth through his college career has been his best friend, senior wide receiver JaCorey Sullivan.
Pimpleton and Sullivan played together for the Big Reds and made state championship appearances in 2013-14 and 2016. In each of those years, Muskegon lost in the state final -- twice to Orchard Lake St. Mary's (2014 and 2016) and Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice (2015).
Pimpleton said that the bond that he and Sullivan have shared throughout their lives has improved their relationship on the field for the Chippewas.
"Even when we didn't go to the same school or live under the same roof, we've always pushed each other," Pimpleton said. "That's been my brother since we were four or five years old, we've been in this for 10 years, plus. He and I will always push each other to do our best."
After a breakout year in 2019 in which Pimpleton caught 82 passes for 894 yards and six touchdowns, he said he has taken more a vocal leadership role. Helping his teammates execute drills in practice and leading by example.
Coach Jim McElwain has taken notice, too.
"(Pimpleton) has actually taken a leadership role a step above," McElwain said. "... He brings it every day. It doesn't matter if it's practice, if it's lifting. Doesn't matter if it's meetings. He brings that energy to everything he does."
That leadership Pimpleton is exemplifying shows in the team's quest for a MAC title in the six-game, conference-only schedule.
After winning the division title last season and losing a heartbreaker to Miami (Ohio) in the title game last December at Ford Field in Detroit, Pimpleton said he and the rest of the Chippewas are hungry to make their way back to the title game and knock the "West" off of "MAC West champs."
"I'm looking to do what I can for the team, do whatever I can to accomplish winning the MAC championship," Pimpleton said. "That's the focus – winning the MAC championship."
