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Lighting a fire under Humphrey

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By EDDIE DANIELS

edaniels@tampatrib.com

Published: June 19, 2009

TRINITY - Tate Humphrey can remember the exact moment his inner alarm clock began to sound.

He was standing on the sideline as a backup quarterback to starter Jake Gelakoska for the West Hills College Coalinga Falcons. As Humphrey stood on the sideline, a place he avoided as a three-season starter at Mitchell High, he felt, well, uncomfortable.

"I was on the sidelines our first game. It's hot, we're playing on turf out there, and my feet are burning," he said as a wide smile began to grow. "I pour water on my feet like, 'I can't do this sideline thing anymore. I have to start.'"

He sat the next game as well, but when he finally got his opportunity, Humphrey threw a touchdown pass on his second play.

From Game 3 on, Humphrey was the Falcons' starter. In eight games, he completed 78 of 152 passes for 1,081 yards, with six touchdowns and five interceptions. He also ran the ball 84 times for 438 yards and three scores. He was the team's leading passer and its second-leading rusher.

Not only did he light things up on the field, but he also found his comfort zone in the classroom.

"I've never had a 3.6 grade-point average in my life," he said.

Humphrey made the choice to distance himself from his high school ways once he reached the West Hills campus in central California. The challenge he faced on the field helped push him in that direction.

Humphrey, listed at 5-foot-11, had to wait his turn as the 6-foot-3 Gelakoska took the bulk of the snaps.

"It was motivation," Humphrey admitted. "That's all it is. It just made me work harder in school and on the field. That's all it did was make me work hard. And I wanted it more and I was just hungry."

That lone season of junior college success has been tucked away, only to serve as motivation for this summer's work. Humphrey has been a regular at Johnny Walters' speed camp in an effort to enter the 2009 season in great shape and prepare to fend off the incoming challengers.

"I told him next year, you're going to have two more Tates coming into your school, whether he's 6-3, 6-4 or 6-foot who may be just as good as you," Walters said of a past conversation with Humphrey. "You have to prepare like you're going to college and your job is still open. There's no security like there is in high school where you know nobody's going to beat you."

Since his 2008 success he has spoken to the University of South Florida; has gotten questionnaires from other schools (Illinois State watched him play); has visited UCLA; and has received interest from Troy University.

"It's just a big learning experience. You have to have that mindset," Humphrey said of his mental transformation. "I didn't have that mind-set in high school. I wanted to play football. Football was good and I was just slacking off in school. I didn't want to take it all the way."

After that fire was lit under his feet that sweltering September afternoon, he now has all the motivation he can stand.

Reporter Eddie Daniels can be reached at (813) 259-7066.

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