Working harder, flying higher
Senior cornerback Adams rebuilt Navy career after difficult sophomore season
Quincy Adams’ Navy football career was shaped by the way he responded to adversity during his sophomore season.
After starring at Louis D. Brandeis High in San Antonio, Texas, and spending a year at the Naval Academy Prep School, Adams played in 10 games in the defensive backfield his freshman season. He started four and finished with 28 tackles and an interception, broke up four passes and recovered a fumble.
The next season, though, he found himself playing primarily on special teams. Adams played sparingly on defense.
“I wasn’t playing good football coming out of camp,” Adams said. “From that moment on, it was an uphill battle. I wasn’t exactly where I wanted to be, but I just had to understand my role. It motivated me to have better junior and senior years after not playing as much as a sophomore as I wanted to.”
After the frustration of his sophomore year, Adams rededicated himself. No longer relegated to special teams, he started all 13 games at cornerback and finished third on the team with 75 tackles. He also had an interception, broke up nine passes, forced one fumble and recovered another. He was part of a defense that finished 31st in the country in passing yards allowed (205.2 per game), and his efforts earned him Football Bowl Subdivision All-Independent honorable mention.
“He had to get back to playing like he did his freshman year. His sophomore year, he wasn’t the Quincy he should have been,” Navy secondary coach Keith Jones said. “He thought he was the starter, and he didn’t work like he should have worked and didn’t play the way we thought he should play. He dropped but he came back.”
For Adams, the experience of his sophomore season served as a lesson learned.
“I just tried to focus on getting better every day,” he said. “I came in the weight room and worked hard, and in the offseason, I felt like I had a chip on my shoulder. A chip ultimately brings out the best in you, so I feel like it ultimately helped me in my football career.”
After registering five tackles in the season opener against Ohio State, Adams had his best game of the season the following week against Temple. He had 10 tackles — including eight solo stops — broke up three passes, forced a fumble and was named Eastern College Athletic Conference Defensive Player of the Week. He also had 10 tackles against Western Kentucky and capped his season with six tackles and broke up a pass against San Diego State in the Poinsettia Bowl.
“For me, it was all effort. I knew I had to play hard. I knew I had to run to the ball,” Adams said. “I had to do extra because I’m not the tallest, not the fastest and I’m not the most athletically gifted. So I had to hustle and put in extra effort and make sure my fundamentals were perfect and make sure I was doing my job.”
Adams made sure he handled the success of his junior year differently than after his freshman campaign. He retained his starting spot through camp, and after missing the season opener against Colgate, has played in the past 10 games heading into Saturday’s game against Army. He has registered 60 tackles, including a careerhigh 12 against Tulane, has broken up seven passes, and has recovered and forced a fumble.
He has been part of a defense that has held opponents to 21 points or fewer in nine of11games, including shutting down prolific Memphis and Tulsa on the road. He forced a fumble and recovered a fumble in a victory over then-No. 15 Memphis and pitched in to hold the Tigers to their lowest point total of the season while halting their 15-game winning streak.
“That was huge. It’s awesome when you get a chance to shock the world and put Navy football in the spotlight nationally,” Adams said. “I think people weren’t giving us a shot going into that game. That’s just how it is. You have to prove them wrong with your play.”
Adams, who was given the service assignment of Marine Corps Ground, has developed into a leader for a senior class that has a chance to go down as the winningest in school history with victories Saturday and in the Military Bowl against Pittsburgh on Dec. 28. He’s also part of a senior class that has a chance to be the first in school history to win three bowl games.
“Throughout the summer and in the early parts of the season, I think he put an emphasis on leading by example. He didn’t really say too much; he just tried to show people how it’s done,” senior safety Lorentez Barbour said. “People just enjoy spending time with him, and that’s what we’re going to remember about him. As a leader, he works hard and he’s passionate about the game, so it makes him easy to follow.”
With a win Saturday, Adams would be part of the 10th straight senior class to go undefeated against Army. The current group of seniors would win its third Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy.
“We talk about the brotherhood and love all the time, and I really do love all the seniors,” Adams said. “Everything that we’ve been through has made us tighter and stronger, and we’ve pushed to be excellent in everything we do, on and off the field. I think it’s shown that our dedication to being right off the field has helped us on the field.”