This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2014, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Provo • In BYU's 33-25 win over Houston last week, Cougar linebacker Zac Stout tackled Ryan Jackson in the end zone for a safety, handing the home team its first two points and setting off a raucous celebration on the sidelines and in the stands.
But for Gary Stout, the moment was meaningful in a much more profound way. Certainly, it was far different from that dreadful morning in November of 2012 when his son called, crying in front of him for the first time since he was a young boy, to tell him that he had been kicked out of BYU for his role in a Halloween night brawl at a 24-hour fast-food restaurant.
"He called and said, 'Dad, I am so lost right now,' " Gary Stout said. "As a father, do you know how hard that is to listen to?"
Last Thursday, the proud father found himself crying a little bit, too, as No. 47 and his teammates celebrated the safety. But these were tears of joy and gratitude.
"It's like I am dreaming, and someone is going to pinch me in a second and spoil this wonderful dream," Gary Stout said Wednesday "It was a devastating thing that happened to us. It was so, so hard. But Zac stayed the course, and look at him now."
Indeed, the highly recruited product of Southern California prep football power Oaks Christian, who gained notoriety before ever stepping on the field for BYU when he appeared at a pre-signing news conference with two other prep phenoms who were supposedly going to turn the Cougars into a national power quarterback Jake Heaps and receiver Ross Apo is back making plays when all but a few had written him off.
Making that happen took a lot of soul-searching, hard work and perseverance for more than a year and a lot of support from his parents, Mendenhall, linebackers coach Paul Tidwell and a religious leader in Orem, Zac Stout said earlier this week as the Cougars continued preparations for Saturday showdown with Virginia at LaVell Edwards Stadium.
Video from security cameras at the Rancheritos in Provo showed Stout, then 21, teammate Joe Sampson and two former BYU players fighting with other customers. It went viral. The two BYU players were later charged in Provo Justice Court with two counts each of assault, class B misdemeanors, and both were dismissed from BYU after hearings with the dean of students, athletic director Tom Holmoe and other administrators.
Stout was re-admitted to BYU last January as a walk-on, participated in spring camp, and then was given the starting nod at middle linebacker just prior to the season-opening win over UConn. A few weeks before that, Mendenhall called Stout into his office and re-awarded him his scholarship the one he had to vacate when he had been kicked out some 21 months earlier.
"It feels amazing to be back here," Stout said. "At the beginning, it seemed like it was going to be impossible, but looking back, it is like, 'Wow,' I can't believe I did it.'"
Mendenhall said the incident should serve as a reminder to "fans, media, coaches, anyone, to not write anyone off, to be pulling for them as they battle, as they struggle and as they work their way back into reaching their goals and their aspirations."
He said from the minute Stout left, coaches were talking about how fast they could get him back. Tidwell, who recruited Stout and who Gary Stout said "has loved Zac unconditionally from the day we met him," was the point man on the project.
"He was one of my guys, and we met often," Tidwell said, acknowledging that Stout's return is one of the most heartwarming stories he's been involved in in his 35-year coaching career . "A lot of encouragement from us, and he did his part. He did what he had to do. We're glad he's back."
Zac Stout recently spoke at a fireside (religious devotional meeting) in Texas before the Cougars beat the Longhorns 41-7 and said he couldn't have done it without the support of several people, especially his parents, his bishop and Tidwell and Mendenhall.
Gary Stout said the morning he got the call from his son about the dismissal, "and realizing I played a role in what happened," he told Zac that that would turn out to be the best day of his life.
Stout's road back to BYU
November 2012 • Dismissed from school for role in Halloween night brawl at Provo fast-food restaurant
January 2013 • Enrolled at nearby UVU and kept his grades up to stay eligible academically
December 2013 • Received an ecclesiastical endorsement from his Orem LDS Church bishop, paving the way for him to be re-admitted to BYU
January 2014 • Allowed to rejoin the football program as a walk-on
August 2014 • Was re-awarded his scholarship, and started at middle linebacker against UConn
Virginia atNo. 21 BYU
O Saturday, 1:30 p.m.
TV • ESPN