As Western’s quarterback gets ready for his ‘last ride,’ the goal is simple: A state title
Before the Western Wildcats held their first preseason football practice, quarterback Collin Hurst made it a point to watch the film from their second-round playoff game last season against Miami Columbus. Western’s season ended that night, the Wildcats falling by a 27-8 final score on a rainy November night on their home field.
The loss still lingers. The defeat still stings.
“It just lit a fire in me,” Hurst said. “It’s one of those things that’s just going to motivate you. It’s definitely still in the back of my mind.”
Hurst, entering his senior season, has one final chance to try to get the Wildcats over the hump and lead Western to its first-ever state championship. He has evolved over the past three seasons from a freshman thrust into the starting role to arguably the best quarterback in Broward County this season.
“It’s that last-year mentality,” said Hurst, a three-star prospect and the Miami Herald’s 8A-6A Broward Offensive Player of the Year last season who with college offers from Columbia and Presbyterian College. “This is it. I felt like I was a freshman yesterday, so I always felt like I was going to have a lot of chances, but this is the last ride.”
And what a ride it has been.
Hurst took over Western’s starting quarterback job on Sept. 13, 2019, the third game of his freshman year, against University School. He completed 11 of 15 passes for 151 yards and ran for a touchdown that night in a 14-9 defeat. He’s had the starting job ever since. He finished his freshman year completing 61.1 percent of his passes for 2,102 yards and 26 touchdowns against just seven interceptions as he led Western to the regional finals.
The COVID-19 pandemic limited Hurst to just four games in his sophomore season, but he still threw for 940 yards and six touchdowns.
And as a junior? Hurst completed 70 percent of his passes for 3,267 yards, 35 touchdowns and just two interceptions. He followed up the high school season by playing with the loaded South Florida Express 7 on 7 team this summer and winning MVP at the national OT7 tournament in Las Vegas.
Hurst’s success on the field has been apparent from the start. He plays much bigger than his 5-10, 160-pound stature shows.
But for coach Adam Ratkevich, the most impressive area of growth was watching Hurst — a “lead-by-example” guy — find his voice and gain the ability to command the team’s attention and respect.
“As a true freshman, when you’re on a team with [now-Miami Hurricanes sophomore safety] James Williams and [now-UCF junior defensive back] Justin Hodges and some of those dudes that were around him, it’s hard to take control of a team as a 14-year-old,” Ratkevich said. “There’s no question that he’s in charge now.”
But there is a lot of talent to replace offensively. All six Western players with at least 100 receiving yards last season — most notably Jullian Lewis (1,260 yards, 14 touchdowns), Tyreik Thorpe (958 yards, 12 touchdowns) and Brennan Taranto (477 yards, three touchdowns) — were seniors.
How will Western fill the gaps?
Nelson Walker is moving to receiver for his senior year after being Western’s primary running back last season. Senior Matt Wilson, a transfer from Parkland Stoneman Douglas, and sophomore Chance Washington are slated to take on the bulk of the running back duties.
Seniors Santana Fleming and British Mitchell, transfers from Plantation American Heritage and Miami Edison respectively, will be the Wildcats’ one-two punch in the slot. Senior Justin Tedim will be the Wildcats’ starting tight end. Senior left tackle Roger Reyes will anchor the offensive line.
“Pretty much everybody that is going to be starting in our offense was together this spring,” Hurst said. “We were able to put a bunch of hours in and implement the fundamentals and the foundation of the offense.”
It will need to carry the Wildcats through yet another challenging regular-season schedule. Western opens the season Aug. 25 when it hosts Georgia’s Johns Creek High and will face annual playoff contenders St. Thomas Aquinas (Sept. 16), American Heritage (Oct. 7), Miramar (Oct. 21) and Plantation (Nov. 4).
And even with the FHSAA’s new Metro-Suburban realignment, Western will still likely have to get through at least one of Miami Palmetto or Columbus if it wants to make a playoff push.
“We’re gonna keep pounding and battling with those people,” Ratkevich said, “and try and prove that we belong in that conversation.”
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