Preston Carey knew at an early age he held a future in football.

The Class of 2026 recruit received his first unofficial visit invitation in eighth grade from Penn State. His stature was nothing comparable to someone of his age, though, and when he planned his outfit for his trip to Happy Valley, he wanted to show it off.

"I wanted to show the guns," Carey said. "I was going to rock like a wife beater and a sweat outfit or something, some black (Nike) Air Forces."

But it was his father, Benjamin Carey, that pulled back the curtain to the business world. Benjamin gave his son the option to wear what he wanted to wear or set the tone for his entire recruiting process.

"He never went to a business meeting or a business interview unless he was in a shirt, tie and suit because it's the first impression," Preston said.

Benjamin grew up in up-state New York. He moved from Ballston Spa, a small rural town north of Albany, to New York City to compete in track and field at Hunter College and get his foot into the door of corporate life.

"My dad grew up without a shirt on his back," Preston said. "He learned so much because New York City is a melting pot. I'm very grateful because he's a great dad, and he taught me a lot."

By the time of his visit in April 2022, Preston listened to his father and showed up to Penn State in a black collared shirt, plaid jacket and gray dress pants.

That's when a tradition started.

"If it's a school I've been to multiple times, I'll never stop wearing it," Preston said. "They know that I'm there for business, and I'm a businessman. Al Pacino wore a suit, and there's multiple other gangsters that wore a suit. They're still bad asses that wear suits, too."

Preston, a native of Long Island, New York, transferred to Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy for his junior season in 2024, and over the past three years, he's dressed business-like for all of his unofficial visits.

"I've gotten good things and bad things towards it, not bad things but just people busting my chops and stuff over the years," Preston said. "But I've also gotten nods of appreciation by coaches and even some players."

Preston still adds his own flare to his outfits. He wore an all white suit for the Penn State White Out game in September 2023 and matched his ties to one of the primary colors of the schools he's visited.

"People still laugh at me because I still wear my beat-up black Air Forces on the shoes to let people know," Preston said. "I got to keep it business up top."

Carey reached a milestone with his 40th offer from Missouri on Thursday. As he looks to trim down his list by March, he will continue to dress to impress.

"It's a thing I would instill on anyone that that would do it, too," Preston said. "Even wearing so much as a button-down shirt can help you because it's a good first impression, and a lot of kids aren't wearing stuff like that to make a good first impression. So you'll stick out."

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