D8 EZ SU T H E W A S H I N G T O N P O S T.S A T U R D A Y, O C T O B E R 5 , 2 0 1 9
choices. Of receiving congratula-
tions from Steve Spurrier after the
win over Tennessee on Sept. 21,
Trask said: “He’s got a field named
after him and a Heisman Trophy.
Just someone like that to tell you
congratulations, it was a pretty
special moment.”
He can’t remember anything
specific about his most recent loss
— you know, the one from ninth
grade.
So for now, end this effusive
movie with a high school offensive
coordinator south of Houston,
fielding a question about whether
coaches and everybody else might
learn anything from this rare case.
Crumedy: “Trust your eyes.”
[email protected]commits to something, he sees it
through. And, you know, he’s a
great teammate, and I’m sure
they’re going to rally around him.”
Cut back to Gainesville, Fla., to
Trask at a lectern, speaking to
Florida reporters in front of a
canvas full of little Gators logos.
He’s the starting quarterback for
the biggest game of the first Satur-
day in October, No. 7 Auburn at
No. 10 Florida, with Florida hav-
ing outscored three opponents
91-3 since his insertion. It will be
his third start since Kentucky and
also, somehow, his third start
since the glory days of the prep
freshman team.
He still looks shy doing media.
He’s hyper-cautious with wordericks Reggie Hemphill-Mapps,
who played at Texas; Keylon
Stokes of Tulsa; Sean Dykes of
Memphis; Hunter Hagdorn of
Dartmouth. Continuing: “He’s a
competitor. He’s going to do ev-
erything right. He’s not going to
have you on the news for doing
anything wrong. And he’s going to
be unselfish.”
And: “He’s going to gain respect
in the locker room. His team-
mates are going to trust him.”
And then: “When he was here
for us for four years, we knew he
was going to be fine,” even if they
did envision an unflattering docu-
mentary.
Florida adds a score on a long
run and wins, 29-21.
Coach Dan Mullen: “I can’t tell
you how hard it is to do what Kyle
did.... You know, if you’re a back-
up wide receiver, you’re going to
play 30 plays in the game. I mean,
if you’re on the D-line, you’re go-
ing to rotate and play. Backup
running backs, we’re going to roll
those guys through. You’re in
Kyle’s position, you know, like:
‘Hey, I’ve got to prepare. I’ve got to
be ready for every moment and
everything they’re going to do and
then not play. And then I’ve got to
do that again next week.’ ”
The film cuts to Central Michi-
gan, where Coach Jim McElwain
tells of how he and his staff at
Florida in 2015 had the guts to
trust their eyes, ignore the fur-
rowed brows of fretful fans and
sign a player who had scholarship
offers from Houston Baptist,
Lamar and McNeese State.
McElwain, by teleconference:
“One of the things that truly kind
of attracted us to him, to be hon-
est, is here’s a guy that played at a
really good high school. The sys-
tem didn’t necessarily fit him,
and, you know, he stayed there,
and he fought it out and had a
really productive senior year
when he did get in [for mop-up
duty]. So it doesn’t surprise me. I
think he’s a guy that once helike somebody who has studied
and taken notes of what the
coaches said for three years in
high school and three years at
Florida, which had the guts to sign
him in July 2015 after he ventured
to Gainesville for, yeah, a camp.
He looks like he might even be
somebody who refrained from
transferring, no matter how fash-
ionable that has become in both
Texas high schools and American
colleges.
He looks like he might even be
somebody who, while at Manvel,
told Corey Roepken of the Hous-
ton Chronicle: “I didn’t want to
run away from competition. No
matter where you go, there is
going to be some of that.” Soon,
after this game against Kentucky,
he will tell Florida reporters: “I
get asked that [transfer] question
a lot because, I mean, obviously
the transfer portal was a huge
thing and still is a huge thing. But,
you know, this is a [strong] aca-
demic university, and I have great
friends, great teammates here. I
never wanted to leave one time.”
But right now it’s like some-
body took this worker and home-
work-doer and plugged him in
and redirected the game’s electri-
cal current. He runs an option left,
gets wrapped in mean defenders
and pitches to Laminal Perine like
it says in all the football textbooks.
Perine scores, Florida lurks with-
in 21-16, 12:41 remains.
Trask leads Florida on a drive
from its 4-yard line to its 48, a
field-position feat, then 66 yards
in four plays for another score. It’s
22-21, and a text thread develops
in the Houston night, involving
unsurprised coaches, including
Crumedy.
Through his TV screen, Crume-
dy has just spotted something
unmistakable: teammates’ trust
in Trask.
Crumedy: “Kyle’s been throw-
ing to Division I receivers since he
was a sophomore in high school,”
and here he reels off former Mav-- Florida trails Kentucky 21-10
with 14:56 left. Clearly, Kentucky
will defeat Florida for the second
straight year after losing for the
previous 31. Clearly, Florida isn’t
ready just yet to rejoin a national
picture it once (or twice) graced.
Florida quarterback Feleipe
Franks has just suffered an injury
so gruesome that the stadium vid-
eo replay drew mass gasps audible
through a TV. Florida stuffs Ken-
tucky on fourth and one, begins at
its own 38-yard line. ESPN play-
by-play man Steve Levy: “Say hel-
lo to Kyle Trask, redshirt junior
out of Manvel, Texas. He’s 4 of 5 on
the season passing, 40 yards and
one touchdown. Let’s see how
they ease him into the game.. .”
Trask sets to throw...
Levy: “... Or take a shot.”
What happens from there is
one of those almost-mystical
turns that help make sports worth
so much of our bloody time: Trask
hits Van Jefferson on the right for
eight yards; Josh Hammond on
the right sideline with an elite
throw and catch for 14; Jefferson
on the left side for seven yards,
which Jefferson turns into 20; and
Jefferson on a slant for 12.
Trask looks commanding. He’s
the opposite of wobbly. He looks
Power Five quarterback when
they saw one.
Manvel offensive coordinator
Kendrick Crumedy: “Aw, if it was a
hundred coaches in, we probably
heard it about 99 times. It was the
same thing: ‘We really like him,
but he’s going to be hard to sell in
the coaches’ meeting.’ ”
That and often something
along the lines of, maybe he could
come to a camp.
Show a scene depicting one of
those blasted college coaches’
meetings in a plush athletic facili-
ty, groupthink in the air. Now
show a Manvel coaches’ meeting
because they have had a running
joke: There’s going to be a docu-
mentary someday about this
backup big lad, Kyle Trask, and at
some point in the documentary,
the documentarian is going to
intone about what idiots these
Manvel coaches must have been,
having this guy as a backup.
Commendably they, including
head coach Kirk Martin, who
would move on to Syracuse in
early 2018, chortle at their own
future depiction.
Proceed to a thick night in cen-
tral Kentucky in mid-September
GATORS FROM D 1
EARLY SHIFT
Noon Maryland at Rutgers » Big Ten Network
Noon Utah State at No. 5 LSU » SEC Network
Noon No. 6 Oklahoma at Kansas » WJLA (Ch. 7), WMAR (Ch. 2)
Noon Kent State at No. 8 Wisconsin » ESPNU
Noon Purdue at No. 12 Penn State » ESPN
Noon No. 14 Iowa at No. 19 Michigan » WTTG (Ch. 5), WBFF (Ch. 45)
Noon No. 21 Oklahoma State at Texas Tech » Fox Sports 1
Noon TCU at Iowa State » ESPN2
Noon Tulane at Army » CBS Sports Network
12:30 Boston College at Louisville » NBC Sports Washington
If it’s a Saturday in the fall, it must be time for another massively important
game for Jim Harbaugh’s future at Michigan, which hosts Iowa. It’s a
sequel of sorts to pretty much every game against a ranked team that he
has coached in Ann Arbor over the past season-plus, with the latest coming
two weeks ago when the Wolverines laid a four-turnover egg against
Wisconsin and were barely competitive. There’s plenty more to come this
season, too: Michigan has games remaining against Penn State, Notre
Dame, Michigan State and Ohio State, so beating the Hawkeyes seems
kind of important for a coach who has lost his past three games against
ranked teams by an average score of 46-23. A.J. Epenesa, the Hawkeyes’
junior defensive end who is a probable first-round NFL draft pick, had
101 / 2 sacks last year and is drawing nearly constant double teams in 2019,
freeing up Iowa’s other defensive linemen. Against four mostly
overmatched opponents, the Hawkeyes are allowing 251 yards per game
(fifth nationally).
SWING SHIFT
2 Albany at Richmond » NBC Sports Washington Plus
3:30 Air Force at Navy » CBS Sports Network
3:30 Virginia Tech at Miami » ESPN
3:30 No. 7 Auburn at No. 10 Florida » WUSA (Ch. 9), WJZ (Ch. 13)
3:30 Bowling Green at No. 9 Notre Dame » WRC (Ch. 4), WBAL (Ch. 11)
3:30 No. 11 Texas at West Virginia » WJLA (Ch. 7), WMAR (Ch. 2)
3:30 Baylor at Kansas State » ESPN2
3:30 Illinois at Minnesota » Big Ten Network
3:45 Memphis at Louisiana Monroe » ESPNU
4 Northwestern at Nebraska » WTTG (Ch. 5), WBFF (Ch. 45)
4 North Carolina at Georgia Tech » ACC Network
4 Troy at Missouri » SEC Network
4:30 Arizona at Colorado » Pac-12 Network
Florida and Auburn are meeting for the first time since 2011, which puts
the absurdities of the SEC’s cross-division scheduling format in full view.
Consider: Auburn’s Gus Malzahn is in his 11th season as an SEC head
coach or coordinator, but this will be his first trip to Gainesville. Florida
Coach Dan Mullen pointed out that the Gators will play Miami three times,
Florida State six times and South Florida three times over the next six
years — but Mississippi State (his old school) only once. The Gators won’t
have quarterback Feleipe Franks — he’s out for the season after suffering a
bad ankle injury against Kentucky — but they will have cornerback CJ
Henderson (six career interceptions) and defensive end Jabari Zuniga
(18^1 / 2 career sacks) back from injuries. They will look to slow Auburn
freshman quarterback Bo Nix, who’s coming off his best game yet:
391 total yards and three touchdowns in the Tigers’ 56-23 win over
Mississippi State.
NIGHT SHIFT
7 No. 3 Georgia at Tennessee » ESPN
7:30 No. 25 Michigan State at No. 4 Ohio State » WJLA (Ch. 7), WMAR (Ch. 2)
7:30 Tulsa at No. 24 SMU » ESPNU
7:30 Vanderbilt at Mississippi » SEC Network
8 California at No. 13 Oregon » WTTG (Ch. 5), WBFF (Ch. 45)
8 Pittsburgh at Duke » ACC Network
9 Oregon State at UCLA » Pac-12 Network
10 San Diego State at Colorado State » ESPN2
10:30 No. 15 Washington at Stanford » ESPN
10:30 No. 16 Boise State at UNLV » CBS Sports Network
Michigan State hasn’t scored a touchdown against Ohio State in their
annual matchup since 2016, with only three field goals in the two games
since. The Spartans also scored just one offensive touchdown in two of
their first three games this season, although they seemed to find a spark
with 71 points over their past two games. Touchdowns would seem to be an
asset in short supply against a Buckeyes team that has allowed 10 points
or fewer in each of its past four games and has scored at least 42 in all five
it has played.... SMU has seen a lot — nearly all of it horrific — since
sitting out the 1987 and 1988 seasons under the NCAA death penalty:
eight coaches, 11 seasons with between zero and two wins, only five minor
bowl appearances. But Coach Sonny Dykes, quarterback Shane Buechele
and the Mustangs are 5-0 entering Saturday’s game against Tulsa,
their first as a ranked team since 1986. Buechele, a Texas transfer, ranks
11th nationally in ESPN’s QBR metric, and SMU leads the nation with
25 sacks, which happens to be the number it recorded all of last season.
— Matt BonesteelT O D A Y ’ S T V G A M E SOther area games
Howard (1-4) at Harvard (1-1), 1
Catholic (0-4) at Coast Guard (3-1), 1:30
Bowie State (4-0) at Winston-Salem State (1-3), 2
North Alabama (2-3) at Hampton (2-2), 2
North Carolina A&T (3-1) at Norfolk State (1-4), 2
VMI (2-3) at The Citadel (2-3), 2
Georgetown (3-1) at Cornell (1-1), 3
Villanova (5-0) at William & Mary (2-3), 3:30
Morgan State (0-4) at Bethune-Cookman (3-1), 4
James Madison (4-1) at Stony Brook (4-1), 6
Western Kentucky (2-2) at Old Dominion (1-3), 6
Liberty (3-2) at New Mexico State (0-5), 8
college football
BY GENE WANGIn the closing minute of the
second quarter of Navy’s most
recent game, quarterback
Malcolm Perry was leading a
drive into Memphis territory
when he absorbed a crushing
blow on a third-down run of six
yards.
The dynamic senior was slow
to his feet, favoring his right
(throwing) arm and shoulder. He
eventually walked to the sideline
and stayed there for the remain-
der of the half, with backup Perry
Olsen handling the rest of a
possession that yielded no points
in a sloppy, 35-23 loss.
It was the second time in the
half that Perry missed at least one
snap following a hard hit.
Although Coach Ken Niumatalo-
lo and offensive coordinator Ivin
Jasper appreciate Perry’s grit,
they reminded him this week to
protect himself, with rival Air
Force the opponent Saturday af-
ternoon.
After all, the Midshipmen’s tri-
ple-option attack, which leads the
Football Bowl Subdivision at
344.7 rushing yards per game, is
greatly diminished without Perry
directing it.
“You try, but a lot of his stuff is
cutback,” Niumatalolo said ofinstructing Perry to be more vigi-
lant in avoiding contact. “It’s sort
of like: ‘Don’t cut back anymore.
Keep going to the sideline.’ But it’s
such his nature, and Ivin’s been
trying to tell him, but he’s obvi-
ously such a great cutback run-
ner. But he’s got to remember,
sometimes he’s got to go down,
man. Just keep going toward the
sideline and get there.”
Perry had 91 yards and two
touchdowns on 25 carries and
completed 6 of 10 passes for
82 yards and another score with-
out an interception against the
Tigers, the preseason favorites to
win the American Athletic Con-
ference’s West Division. He leads
Navy (2-1) in rushing with
275 yards and seven touchdowns
as a full-time quarterback after
alternating between slotback and
quarterback last year, when the
Midshipmen limped to a 3-10
record for their fewest wins since
2002.
They also failed in their bid to
claim the Commander-in-Chief ’s
Trophy for the first time since
2015; they lost to the Falcons,
35-7, in Colorado Springs and to
Army, 17-10, in Philadelphia. Per-
ry started at quarterback last year
against Air Force (3-1), account-
ing for just 90 total yards in
Navy’s most lopsided loss to itsservice academy rival since 2002.
“Really, it comes down to Mal-
colm and just understanding,”
Jasper said. “We’ve preached it.
I’ve talked to him about it. He’s a
competitive kid — just used to
running, making all the cuts,
stuff like that — but again he has
to be smart, has to get down. He
has to last the entire season for
us.”
In 11 career starts at quarter-
back, Perry has carried 243 times
for 1,505 yards and 20 touch-
downs. He’s one of five players in
school history to have two
200-yard rushing games in a
season (2017) and one of four
with three in his career. His
3,578 all-purpose yards are the
fifth most at Navy, and he needs
383 rushing yards to become the
fourth Midshipman with at least
3,000 career rushing yards. The
others are Keenan Reynolds,
Napoleon McCallum and Chris
McCoy.
“Obviously that’s something I
need to work on,” Perry said of
not taking unnecessary hits.
“Coach Jasper’s in my ear about it
a lot. I think it’s something I’ll get
better at as the season progresses.
My body’s telling me to do the
same thing, so I’m going to have
to find a better balance.”
Perry was one of a handful ofmajor contributors on offense
who missed plays at Memphis
after getting hurt. Junior fullback
Nelson Smith, the team’s second-
leading rusher, exited for good in
the middle of the second quarter
with concussion-like symptoms,
and junior slotback Keoni-
Kordell Makekau departed in the
third after rushing for a career-
high 101 yards. Niumatalolo indi-
cated that he expects those play-
ers to be available against Air
Force.
The Midshipmen have not lost
at home to Air Force since 2011
and may be in line to set another
attendance record at Navy-Ma-
rine Corps Memorial Stadium.
The current mark of 38,792 came
in 2017 against the Falcons, and
Saturday’s game is a sellout.
“We do treat every game the
same, but there is something
special deep down about these
games,” said Navy center Ford
Higgins, one of four senior cap-
tains. “Not only do we represent
us as a football team, but we
represent the Naval Academy,
and more so than that we repre-
sent the Navy and Marine Corps.
That’s something we take pride
in, especially when we get an-
other military academy coming
in.”
[email protected]As Falcons fly in, Mids’ Perry aims to stay upright
Trask goes from stand-in to star for Florida
ANDY LYONS/GETTY IMAGES
Kyle Trask, being hoisted by tackle Stone Forsythe after running
for a touchdown, has completed 51 of his 66 passes (77.3 percent).JOE RONDONE/THE COMMERCIAL APPEAL/ASSOCIATED PRESS
Malcolm Perry is 383 rushing yards from joining Keenan Reynolds, Napoleon McCallum and Chris McCoy as Midshipmen with 3,000.