The nation’s top high school quarterback for the Class of 2017 once considered attending the University of Washington.
Thought to be a hard commit to Texas A&M, Bishop Gorman (NV) QB Tate Martell eventually switched gears and decided that Urban Meyer’s squad at Ohio State felt more natural.
That added a sting to Kevin Sumlin’s future offense.
Within the last year, their number of quarterbacks dropped like flies. Players like Kyle Allen (Houston) and Kyler Murray (Oklahoma) opted out of contributing to the Aggies’ passing game. It’s unknown if that was a pushing factor for Martell, but he made it clear on Twitter that he committed to the Buckeyes so that his future in the NFL was almost certainly promised.
And Tate Martell isn’t the only Bishop Gorman Gael heading to Columbus. Eventually DE Haskell Garrett and TE Tyjon Lindsey will join him. Martell is also encouraging S Bubba Bolden to enlist in the trend that is Buckeye Nation.
As a dual threat QB, Martell is primed to have a stellar senior season. But the exposure, from his freshman year to the 2016 Elite 11 camp, isn’t a new bother for the already-celebrity.
An interview with Martell as an eighth grader attending a football camp surfaced via D1 Bound Nation. In it, Martell declared his love for the University of Washington and Steve Sarkisian, while mentioning he had offers from Ohio State, Southern Cal and Miami.
But college football wasn’t the only concern for the young gun.
A career off the field played an equally important role than tossing the pigskin around. Martell proved he did his homework on the university, pointing out its ranking as a college with one of the nation’s highest graduation rates. As he aged and interests became more concrete, Martell’s obnoxious love for football has cost him some fans.
Despite being constantly under fire for his arrogant persona, Martell has been compared to Johnny Manziel and Doug Flutie. While those two names are recognizable, it’s worth noting there’s only one Pro Bowl selection between them (Flutie, 1998).
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Although his cannon for an arm is his prized possession, his ground game is just as sturdy (2015: 604 rush yards, 9 TD). But with all this excitement comes misfortune and for Martell, it’s his height (5’11”).
However, the shortcoming may be overshadowed by other attributes. His height hardly contained him during this year’s Elite 11 QB competition. After all, charisma and footwork catapulted the Nevada native into a national problem for defensive backfields.
And tonight, Martell has to quickly find a rhythm to tame the defense of St. John Bosco (CA).
Scheduled to be televised on FOX Sports West at 10:30 ET, Bishop Gorman (2-0) and head coach Kenny Sanchez will go into battle with St. John Bosco (2-0) at Fertitta Field in Vegas. While Bishop Gorman is restricting opponents to an average of 12 points per game in 2016, St. John Bosco has refused to surrender any points to their opponents thus far.
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The last meeting between these powerhouses occurred in 2014 when Josh Rosen acted as field general for St. John Bosco. Though Bishop Gorman held a healthy lead (27-3), the Braves wouldn’t go home quietly. Unfortunately for the California-based high school, Gorman walked away with a 35-31 win.
Players to watch: Re-al Mitchell (QB, St. John Bosco), Tate Martell (QB, Bishop Gorman), Biaggio Ali Walsh (RB, Bishop Gorman), Jacob Callier (DE, St. John Bosco)