Carter's Corner: Trask Quickly Said 'Yes' to Gators

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Kyle Trask did not take long to say "yes."

In fact, the day after visiting Florida for the second time in 2015 and competing in another UF football camp, Trask called to tell the Gators he accepted their scholarship offer on the drive home to Manvel, Texas.

Trask had scholarship offers from FCS-schools Lamar University, McNeese State and Houston Baptist. However, now he had one from the Gators and knew exactly what play to call.

"I thought about committing on the spot,'' Trask told reporters after practice Wednesday.

A redshirt freshman who sat and watched a year ago alongside fellow freshman Feleipe Franks, Trask is now competing with Franks to become Florida's starting quarterback in 2017.

Halfway through spring camp Trask is much more confident than last spring when he arrived on campus as an early enrollee.

"I feel a lot better than I did last year during this time,'' he said. "I've made a big focus on being more vocal at the line of scrimmage. I feel like that's really important. That whole offense looks to you and you've got to be confident because your energy reflects on everybody. I think it just comes with reps."

The 6-foot-4, 228-pound Trask was not a highly sought-after recruit like Franks coming out of high school. Trask wasn't even his high school team's starter and played behind D'Eriq King at Manvel (Texas) High.

Mavericks head coach Kirk Martin used Trask but stuck with King in Marvel's spread-style offense. King signed with Houston last year and moved to receiver as a freshman, catching 29 passes for 228 yards in his first college season.

Trask considered transferring in high school, but in Texas, you have to sit out a year like in college. Plus, he had another obstacle: his mom.

"She wasn't going to let me transfer for something like football,'' Trask said.

Instead, he stuck it out and watched and learned and visited several camps after his senior season, including Florida's Friday Night Lights.

Trask got on Florida's radar when defensive coordinator Randy Shannon visited Manvel to take a look at safety Derrick Tucker, who signed with Texas A&M in February. When Shannon got back, he told head coach Jim McElwain and offensive coordinator Doug Nussmeier about a quarterback that caught his eye on the trip.

That was Trask.

"It taught me to never take a rep off,'' Trask said of never starting regularly in high school. "I've always been in a competition. I think that's really been a blessing and taught me a better work ethic."

Nussmeier immediately took a liking to Trask. Prior to Florida's Outback Bowl win, Nussmeier spoke highly of Trask's intelligence.

"Kyle is a guy that when you tell him it one time, he gets it right now," Nussmeier said. "He can process information very, very well, his accuracy is unbelievable and he's just done a really, really good job for a guy that doesn't have a ton of snaps. When you put him in situations, he reacts very, very well."

Trask spent last season learning the offense and developing his skills – those he needs on the field and in the huddle as a vocal leader. He said his primary focus this spring is to improve reading his progressions and taking charge of a play as he steps to the line of scrimmage.

He wants his teammates to see his newfound confidence as much as his coaches.

"Once I got here I was just working my tail off,'' he said. "Redshirting was good for me to sit back and watch Luke [Del Rio] and Austin [Appleby]. You could just tell they were experienced as they approached the line of scrimmage."

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Franks also spoke to the media following Wednesday's practice. You can watch his interview below courtesy of GatorVision.tv:

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Carter's Corner: Trask Quickly Said 'Yes' to Gators

Players Mentioned

Feleipe Franks

Kyle Trask

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