QC’s Larsen following Purdy script?
Devin Larsen has nothing against Idaho. He is happy the school reached out to offer him a football scholarship offer.
But that has been it for the 6-foot-5, 215-pound redhead with the Midas touch on his throws during his three-year Queen Creek High School varsity career.
Larsen enters Friday’s home game against Gilbert Highland (7-1) three yards from a third consecutive season of 2,000 passing yards. After the game, he’ll head to the coast and visit San Diego State on Saturday.
Larsen put Queen Creek (7-1) on the 6A map in its first season playing in the state’s highest division on Sept. 21, driving the Bulldogs 80 yards in the final two minutes to beat Phoenix Mountain Pointe 29-27.
Waiting for Power 5 offer
He is smart, accurate and has gotten really good at extending plays with his legs.
But as quarterback Brock Purdy did last season when he lit it up at Gilbert Perry, Larsen waits. And hopes for that Power 5 offer.
Mention the name Purdy, and Larsen lights up. Purdy’s senior season script gives Larsen hope.
The 6-foot-1, 200-pound Purdy’s recruiting took off after playing his final high school football game, a valiant effort in a loss to Chandler in the 6A state championship game. With Alabama offering a preferred walk-on opportunity in mid-December, Purdy then got offered by Kansas and Boise State.
Then, after Alabama upgraded the offer to a full ride, Iowa State stepped up, then Texas A&M. He suddenly became the hottest quarterback recruit in the nation in January. On National Signing Day in early February, Purdy raised his arms in a packed Perry auditorium and announced Iowa State as his college destination.
Little did anybody know that Purdy would be thrust into the national college spotlight, leading the Cyclones to back-to-back upsets of nationally ranked teams the last two Saturdays.
“Brock Purdy is a huge inspiration to me,” Larsen said. “I’ve talked to him a few times about it, the recruiting process. He said, ‘Take care of it on the field.’ That was the motivating factor for him. Other quarterbacks in the state were getting offered but him. That’s a huge motivation for me to get it done on the field.”
Larsen couldn’t have asked for better coaching in his high school career. Offensive coordinator Joe Germaine was a state champion quarterback at Mesa Mountain View, and drove Ohio State to the touchdown that beat Arizona State in the 1997 Rose Bowl. Germaine spent time playing in the NFL.
Germaine could also encourage Larsen with his own personal story, working his way up through the junior college ranks at Scottsdale Community College, before catching his break in the Big Ten at Ohio State.
“It’s an awesome thing to have him working with me,” Larsen said. “It’s crazy that anything can happen.”
Larsen has always had the talent, who has gotten stronger, smarter, faster with each season.
His sophomore year, he threw for 2,524 yards and 25 TDs with six interceptions and a 115.7 QB rating. Last year, he passed for 2,351 yards and 30 TDs with six interceptions and a 124.1 QB rating. This year, through eight games, he is 138 of 215 for 1,997 yards and 20 TDs with three interceptions.