by: Jensen Diaz
After watching Joe Burrow’s first game at LSU, I placed a bet on him to win the Heisman and LSU to win the national championship. Under current NFL offensive coordinator Joe Brady, Burrow had NFL caliber WR’s wide open, all over the field. It only took one game of film on Burrow’s arm to see that Burrow would win the Heisman and could be the potential first quarterback taken in the NFL draft. This season, UF’s Kyle Trask is in a similar situation.
“Experts” are just now including Kyle Trask in the Heisman conversation and soon will be talking about his ascent into the first round of the NFL draft. All bias aside, Gator fans knew Trask would perform at this level preseason.
Last season, Trask proved himself immediately when he came from behind to win at Kentucky after Feleipe Franks’ leg injury. This season, an all-SEC schedule isn’t detracting from his stat sheet. In less than half of the number of games played, Trask almost has as many touchdowns (22) as he did in 2019 (25). Throwing at least four touchdowns in every game so far, Trask now has the fourth-highest odds to win the Heisman (+600).
The Heisman conversation should also include his elite weapon, tight end Kyle Pitts. Pitts is a mismatch nightmare for defensive coordinators. He is too tall for defensive backs and too fast for linebackers, at both the collegiate and NFL level. Kyle Pitts is a unicorn of a tight end prospect that I believe could potentially be the highest-drafted TE ever, beating Vernon Davis (6).
The Kyle-to-Kyle connection has been un-guardable all year, but Trask has shown he can do it all. He gets the ball to wide receiver Kadarius Toney accurately in space, putting him in position for yards after catch. He throws the back-shoulder fade to Trevon Grimes on the outside. His repour with Malik Davis out of the backfield has the running back third in both receptions and receiving yards on the team. Plus, he uses his legs to manipulate the pocket and run for first downs.
With only three interceptions on the season, Trask also has NFL decision-making ability to go with his prototype 6’6 frame. Quarterback whisperer Dan Mullen coached three NFL quarterbacks in college: Alex Smith, Tim Tebow, and Dak Prescott. Kyle Trask will be the next.