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Interview requests were put in all spring long for Rutgers Football freshman quarterback Gavin Wimsatt.
Tuesday, TKR and other local media finally got a chance to talk to the young former four-star recruit from Owensboro, KY. after practice.
"Practice has been great. Just being able to practice with these guys has been great . We have some new faces and it’s been good being with the coaches and my teammates."
Wimsatt was listed at 6-foot-3 and 200-pounds when he first arrived last fall as an early enrollee. Now he is listed at 220. Wimsatt talked about getting bigger and stronger since becoming a Scarlet Knight.
“I’ve put on about 12-15 pounds," he said. "Workouts have been great. Coach (Jay Butler) has been working us hard. It’s been fun.”
Wimsatt played in two high school games for Owensboro High in September throwing for 504 yards and five touchdowns before enrolling at Rutgers. The Elite-11 Finalist who was a KHSAA Class 5-A State Player of the Year helped the Red Devils reach the state title game as a junior in 2020.
“Quinn Ewers, he’s a good friend of mine. I saw he did it, and I thought it would be cool and I wanted to see if I could do it," Wimsatt said. "Fortunately I was and coach (Greg) Schiano and coach (Sean) Gleeson and the whole team was accepting. They were all great in getting me here and teaching me the ropes.”
After adjusting to college classes and the program, Wimsatt saw his first action at Rutgers on the road at Illinois when he completed a 13-yard pass to Bo Melton on a drag route. Rutgers would go on to score the go-ahead points on the drive to defeat the Illini. It was the only play he played in that game, but it gave everyone a taste of what he could do.
“That was amazing being able to help my team win and contribute," Wimsatt said. "It was amazing. It was a great play.”
Wimsatt's first welcome to college moment was when he was on the sidelines for the Scarlet Knights victory at Syracuse.
“Just being at my first game at Syracuse, it was amazing just seeing all the players and everything. It was crazy," Wimsatt said.
Wimsatt finished with 45 passing yards on nine completions last season to go along with 68 rushing yards. He tallied seven completions and ran for 39 yards in the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl. Wimsatt has grown a lot since then.
“I’d say I’ve been able to mature a lot just because of the guys showing me the ways of college football. I’ve been here for a couple months now. Learning the offense has been good. All the QBs have been helping me ever since I got here.
“Evan (Simon), Noah (Vedral), and the whole room have been great. Evan’s been a great person and he’s been teaching me a lot. Noah has been a mentor. The whole room has been great in teaching me how to be a college quarterback.”
Schiano has made note of the fact that the quarterback play has been hit or miss this spring, but Wimsatt is doing his best to gain chemistry with the wide receivers.
“All the receivers have been working hard all spring," Wimsatt said. "In the winter we were going at it. We get throws in on the weekends with all the guys. We’re all working. They’ve been great.”
A starting for the season opener against Boston College won't be named until game day gets closer some time during training camp most likely, but Wimsatt will play at some point even if he doesn't start. He doesn't have any goals or expectations, though, and just said he and his teammates are striving to improve.
“Right now we’re just focused on getting better every day," said Wimsatt, who threw for 5,304 yards and 62 touchdowns in high school. "We have a saying ‘know where your feet are’, and we’re just trying to get better every day and making the most of it.”
Wimsatt should technically have still been playing in high school when he was throwing passes for Rutgers last fall and he should technically still be roaming the halls in Kentucky now. He said he's not going back for prom, but he will go back for graduation.
Nonetheless, he's enjoyed being in New Jersey.
“It’s actually been amazing. I love Jersey so far," he said. "The transition and the environment being so different, it’s very different, but I love seeing all the new things and being around here.”
All of Wimsatt's game appearances with the Scarlet Knights have come in away contests. Friday's Scarlet-White Spring Game will be his first playing time at home at SHI Stadium in Piscataway.
It's been a long time coming and he's very much so looking forward to it. The event is set for 7:00 p.m.
“It gives me chills thinking about Friday," Wimsatt said. "I can’t wait to play in front of Rutgers nation. They’re a great fanbase and I can’ wait.”
TKR's Richard Schnyderite contributed to this article.
Follow Chris Nalwasky on Twitter @ChrisNalwasky.
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