After transfer from SEC team, former 4-star prospect brings size, speed to KSU

Donovan Westmoreland finally is healthy and can’t wait to show off his skills at Kennesaw State.

A sophomore who transferred from South Carolina, Westmoreland tore his Achilles tendon and missed the entire 2024 season. Needing a fresh start, he joined the KSU program and figures to play a large role in the team’s rebuilding effort this season.

“Being able to come back out here and being able to get on the field and on the grass again, it’s a blessing,” Westmoreland said.

Westmoreland still winces when he talks about it. He was coming off the ball, tried to run and heard a pop.

“At first I thought it was nothing,” he said. “I tried to get up and I just fell back down.”

While the physical therapy was tough, Westmoreland said the mental toll it took on him was even more difficult.

“Just staying consistent,” he said. “A lot of people will lose confidence and feel like they can’t come back from it, but you can as long as you just try being consistent. I was just praying and getting all my words to God, just trust in the process because you never know what could happen.”

Westmoreland (6-foot-1, 230 pounds) was a four-star prospect at Griffin High School and ranked as the No. 30 prospect in Georgia. He is the highest-ranked player to join the Kennesaw State program.

“The thing that jumped out to me, when he got cleared to come back this summer, was that he has a great first step,” Kennesaw State coach Jerry Mack said. “He has extremely heavy hands and we’re excited to see exactly what this camp is like, where growth potential is and where his ceiling is.”

Westmoreland will play on the defensive line for the Owls. He primarily was a linebacker at South Carolina but admitted that time helped him become more comfortable dropping into coverage.

“It helped me be more versatile in my game and be able to help the defense,” he said.

Now he’ll get a fresh start — and a healthy start — to begin a new chapter in his life.

“Just proving everybody wrong, proving myself right,” Westmoreland said. “Just saying I can do anything that’s possible.”

That same theme permeates through the entire defensive unit. The Owls allowed 31.2 points and 412.4 total yards per game during their 2-10 season. Westmoreland is expected to be a big part of the team’s improvement.

“We’ve been focusing on attention to detail a lot this season and being coachable,” he said. “I feel like we’re going to come out with a lot of energy, a lot of confidence, and ready to play, ready to go against anybody.”

Mack said he’s been particularly pleased with the overall progress shown after the team’s first scrimmage.

“We acquired some new bodies on the defensive side of the ball and you can tell by the way they fly around,” Mack said. “Their communication has continued to improve, but the biggest thing is the athleticism that we’ve shown on the defensive side.”