It's a familiar refrain among high school recruits. Players choose a college for all kinds of reasons, but many end up wanting to stay close to home so their families and friends can see them play.
For Missouri redshirt freshman cornerback Terry Petry, the approach was exactly the opposite.
"I just wanted to be away from home," the Missouri City, Texas native said. "I wanted a new fresh start to things. A new start to life. I wanted to make new friends, see new people, get in a new environement."
So the four-star cornerback rescinded a verbal commitment to nearby Houston and signed with Missouri in the Class of 2017.
"He probably needed to get away just to sort of grow up a little bit," defensive coordinator and Petry's lead recruiter, Ryan Walters, said. "Be out on his own and see something different, experience something different."
In year one, that choice didn't immediately pay off. Petry redshirted in 2017 while fellow freshman Adam Sparks grabbed a starting role after a season-ending injury to Christian Holmes.
"Probably didn’t play last year because he was a little immature," Walters said. "I say a little bit. He was immature. In terms of figuring out how to prioritize your social life, your academic life and here athletically."
Petry doesn't dispute that assessment.
"Had a lot of problems going on, a lot of stuff in my head. Got my head clean and everything just fell into place how it’s supposed to," he said. "It was definitely beneficial."
"Because he does have a really high level skillset, he was not challenged much maybe his senior year and could get away with some of the lack of discipline because fundamentally he was better than who he was going against most of the time," Mizzou head coach Barry Odom said. "He’s grown up socially, he’s grown up in the classroom and he’s grown up in the weight room. He did not know what a weight was when he got here."
The improvements didn't just come off the football field, though. Petry has seen a major difference in his game between the lines as well. Both he and Walters identified spring football as the time where the flip switched for him.
"He kind of realized that he was wasting time," Walters said. "Seeing his potential and how he’s got to realize and maximize it as soon as possible. He’s taken heed to that and he’s taken advantage of the resources we have here and it’s showing up in the way he’s playing."
"The game has just really slowed down for me and now I'm able to take that next step," Petry said.
Part of the reason for the increased attention to detail was competition for playing time. Sparks and DeMarkus Acy were returning as starters. Holmes was coming back off an injury. Missouri signed three cornerbacks in the 2018 recruiting class. Petry could either get better or be left behind.
"The real competitiveness started in the spring. I started working a little harder," he said. "I saw how hard they were working and just started working, working, working. All of us just look at each other, they’re pushing a little harder, I’m going to push a little bit harder."
Ironically, in going further from home, Petry found some common bonds in Columbia. Both Acy and Holmes are products of the Lone Star State as well.
"He's a Texas boy," Acy said. "So we've got a lot of connections."
Acy met Petry when the younger Tiger-to-be was on his official visit. And he's seen big changes in the two years since.
"He’s changed a lot. He’s maturing," Acy said. "He's taking the challenge head on and he’s just been a different person."
The improvement in all aspects of his life is paying off in playing time. Petry played more snaps than any corner besides Acy and Sparks in the season opener. He made the first two tackles of his career, forced a fumble and just missed an interception along the sideline.
"You see that over the course of time, when that kind of light bulb clicks and goes off," Odom said. "He’s got a lot of really good ball ahead of him."
"The importance of being locked in every snap, playing every snap like it’s the most important of the game," Walters added. "The minute he understands that, I think his stock will skyrocket."
There may be no place like home. But for Terry Petry, leaving home has unlocked his potential as a football player and as a person.
"I am happy I made that choice," he said. "I got up here, I got my head straight, I've learned a lot in just over a year. I’m pretty much a completely different person."
