Chris Hays: Determined QB gets a trip to UVA.
Standing on the campus of the University of Virginia two weeks ago, Leesburg High quarterback Wyatt
Rector couldn’t help but ponder the sudden turn of events in his life.
Just five quarters into his junior season, things weren’t looking so rosy.
It’s a moment Rector has replayed in his head dozens of times.
The ominous foreshadowing that set the scene was like something from a Dickens novel. Clouds rolled in during an early September make-up game at Eustis High, but the game itself wasn’t the only thing with its future hanging in the air.
Rector said he felt like his whole world was collapsing around him. A knee injury forced him from the game, but he thought he’d be back on the next play.
“I started walking and then I went to go run to the sideline, and as soon as I ran, I almost collapsed,” he said.
He called it a “pretty terrifying night,” but only six months after suffering a fully torn anterior cruciate ligament and partially torn meniscus in his knee, Rector was in Charlottesville, Va., beaming with excitement. The latest commitment to the University of Virginia football program could finally see his future playing out the way he had always envisioned.
“It’s really a relief to have the coaches believe in me still and to actually give me the opportunity to play at the next level,” Rector said. “I’ve always wanted to play at a big Power Five school, so it’s really a dream and a blessing come true.”
He has Virginia head coach Bronco Mendenhall and quarterbacks coach
Jason Beck to thank. “I love the confidence the coaches have shown they have in me. That ought to tell you how much they really like me,” Rector said.
He has done plenty to gain that confidence the Virginia staff has shown in him. It’s not easy to work through the rehabilitation it takes to recover from an injury like the one Rector suffered. It’s grueling, painstaking, time-consuming and requires commitment. Rector’s wherewithal to get back to the level of performance he expects of himself has been impressive.
Rector, who carries a 4.2 weighted GPA, even took a part-time job at night to help him get used to the grind he will have as a fulltime student and athlete in college.
“I’m going to show them that they are getting what they want from me,” Rector said.
It’s amazing to see how far he has come. Rector was one of the most promising young quarterbacks in the state after his sophomore season. In his first two years at the varsity level, Rector threw for nearly 3,500 yards and ran for 1,500 yards, accounting for 61 touchdowns (32 rushing).
The 6-foot-4, 220-pound Rector was fast, strong, smart and had all the tools, yet no one seemed to be noticing his talent tucked away in Lake County.
He barely got a sniff from coaches at Florida, which sits just 74 miles north. FSU coaches liked him and invited him to camps, but the Seminoles had eyes on other prospects as well. Rector’s only Football Bowl Subdivision scholarship offers were from Southern Miss and USF. It was baffling that more schools had not taken notice. Then came the injury. Couple the lack of attention with the injury and Rector admits there were times when he wondered if his commitment and perseverance would ever be rewarded.
“I basically had to teach myself how to walk again and jog and run again. It’s hard stuff going through that. There was plenty of stuff, like the crutches for a month … ,” Rector said. “It was a battle and God definitely challenged me at a key point in my life.
“There were plenty of times where I just flat out wanted to give up, but my mentality and my drive that I’ve had my whole life, I just couldn’t let myself do that.”
He doesn’t have to hit rewind any more.
“I love the fact that I know where I’m going and I know what my future holds,” Rector said. “I know a lot of kids don’t have this opportunity to do this, so I definitely have to seize this moment.
“But now I don’t have to worry about any more recruiting. I know where I’m going and all I have to do now is have fun, play football and get a good education. Virginia is one of the top schools for academics, too.”
He liked Virginia so much during his first unofficial visit, he decided to return a week later. During a recruiting trip to the University of North Carolina, Rector talked his parents into going up to see UVa again. That’s when he committed to the coaching staff.
“It was unbelievable. I had an amazing time during both of my visits,” said Rector, who will be an early enrollee.
“It was breathtaking. I immediately knew it was home from the start. It was definitely very cool. The second time was even better than the first time.”
But Virginia isn’t the only thing he’s learned about during the process.
“I definitely learned a lot about myself,” Rector said. “It’s nothing anybody wants to go through, but it’s one of those freak things that happen and it showed me that I can overcome adversity … even though there’s a brick wall, I can just run straight through it and not around it.”