Quarterback Trask’s task is to lead the Florida Gators to a national title in football

Six years a backup, and now he’s a star.

Kyle Trask rode the bench for the final three years of his high school career and then again for his first three seasons at the University of Florida.

It’s a crazy story, but it makes more sense upon the realization that Trask — who is the now in his second season as the starting quarterback for the Gators — played his high school ball at Manvel High (Texas), where he sat behind current Miami Hurricanes quarterback D’Eriq King.

Trask finally got his chance last year when Gators starter Feleipe Franks got injured. Trask went 8-2, saving Florida’s 11-2 season. The only losses were to national champion LSU and to SEC East champion Georgia.

“I trusted my gut,” Trask said when asked why he remained loyal all those years, never seeking the transfer portal.

At Manvel, Trask actually played a lot as King usually handed him a big lead. In his last two years, Trask completed 70 percent of his passes and had 16 TD passes and zero interceptions.

“We didn’t look at Kyle like a backup,” King said. “We had a 1A and a 1B.”

Last year, Trask completed 67 percent of his passes for 25 TDs and just seven interceptions. He is first among SEC returners with 2,941 passing yards.

Now a 6-6, 240-pound redshirt senior, Trask carries Florida’s hopes for the Gators’ first national championship since 2008.

The Gators, who finished sixth in the nation last year, appear to be on the rise. In two years under coach Dan Mullen, the Gators are 21-5, including 2-0 in bowl games. That’s Florida’s best two-year run since they went 26-2 in their final run of greatness under coach Urban Meyer (2008-2009).

But Mullen, who has tutored quarterbacks such as Tim Tebow and Dak Prescott, returns just five starters on offense.

That starts with Trask, who ranked 11th in the nation last year in accuracy, according to Pro Football Focus. And his 25 TD passes were the most by a Gators quarterback since Tebow.

But PFF also said Trask was poor — 110th nationally — in turnover-worthy play rate.

His top targets are expected to be a pair of tall juniors: tight end Kyle Pitts (6-6, 240 pounds) and wide receiver Trevon Grimes (6-5, 215).

Pitts, a second-team All-American, had 54 catches for 649 yards and five TDs last year.

Grimes, who won two state-title rings at St. Thomas Aquinas High School, had 33 catches for 491 yards and two scores. Grimes sat out some initial UF practices due to COVID-19 concerns.

However, the Gators lost four wide receivers to the NFL: Van Jefferson (second round), Freddie Swain (sixth), Tyrie Cleveland (seventh) and John Hammond (undrafted).

Florida’s ground game also took a hit as running back La’Mical Perine was drafted in the fourth round after producing a team-best 938 scrimmage yards last year.

Junior Dameon Pierce, who ran for 305 yards with a 5.6 average last year, is the new starting running back. He’s quick and tends to bounce off tacklers, but he will work behind an offensive line that is Florida’s biggest weakness.

The Gators also added running back Lorenzo Lingard, a transfer from the Hurricanes who was a five-star prep recruit.

Defensively, the Gators return just four starters. The NFL drafted three Florida defenders: cornerback CJ Henderson (first round) and defensive ends Jabari Zuniga (third) and Jonathan Greenard (third).

Greenard led the SEC with 10 sacks last year and finding a pass rush without him and Zuniga will be tough. Seniors Kyree Campbell and Tedarell Slaton and junior Zachary Carter (who also sat out early practices due to COVID-19 concerns) are the expected starters up front. Campbell is Florida’s top run-stuffer, and the pass rush could come from Georgia transfer Brenton Cox, a former five-star recruit who started one game for the Bulldogs before bolting.

But a wild-card on the defensive line is Gervon Dexter, a 6-7, 290-pound freshman who had an impressive 35 tackles and seven forced fumbles last year. Lindy’s magazine predicts he will be one of the 10 most impactful freshmen in the nation.

At middle linebacker, Florida will miss David Reese, who signed with the Carolina Panthers as an undrafted free agent. Reese was a monster against the run for Florida.

Ventrell Miller, who ranked second on the team in tackles last year, is the top returning linebacker. Amari Burney and James Houston IV are also back — they were sixth and seventh in tackles, respectively. All three are juniors.

The strength of the defense is the secondary — even though Henderson departed after just three years.

Florida’s next star could be sophomore cornerback Kaiir Elam, who intercepted two passes and allowed just 10 completions in 23 targets last year. His father, Abe, and uncle, Matt, played safety in the NFL.

Those are great bloodlines, but it’s not just Elam. Florida’s entire secondary, which includes standouts such as junior cornerback Marco Wilson and senior safety Shawn Davis, ranks as the nation’s fourth-best, according to Lindy’s.

Florida’s kicking game is in good shape with junior Evan McPherson, who made 17-of-19 field goals last year.

So, just how good can this season be for the Gators?

The answers start coming on Sept. 26 at Ole Miss, and the annual trip to Jacksonville to play Georgia will be telling. Georgia has won the SEC East three years in a row, and the Bulldogs have beaten the Gators each time.

“We’re confident,” Trask said. “We can go toe to toe with anybody.”

This story was originally published September 8, 2020 at 10:30 AM.