Jeremy Navarre does not like attention. As a starting sophomore defensive end for the Maryland football team, some attention is unavoidable, but the 19 year-old Joppatowne High graduate found himself as the center of attention after the Terps? 27-24 win over Florida State Saturday.
Navarre had five tackles (2.5 for a loss), including an eight-yard sack and a fumble recovery. But what everybody will remember him for from that game is his block of Florida State?s potential game-tying field goal in the final minute to seal a huge Terps win.
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The Atlantic Coast Conference named Navarre its defensive lineman of the week, along with Georgia Tech middle linebacker Philip Wheeler.
“Jeremy plays hard every week. He is a throwback,” Maryland coach Ralph Friedgen said. “He is a tough, hard-nosed football player. I am glad to see he had a breakout game and was honored by the Atlantic Coast Conference.”
Bill Waibel, Navarre?s high school coach at Joppatowne, said the honor for his former defensive end/fullback was simply “awesome.”
“The first thing people need to know about Jeremy is that he is an extremely hard worker,” Waibel said. “He comes to work every day, and he prepares himself in the offseason as well and any kid I have ever coached. That is where his advantage lies.”
Those close to Navarre knew of his consistent hard work, but he had not had a breakout game until last weekend. Navarre?s father, George, said that?s because his son is playing looser than before.
“He would have flashes, but in the terms of a complete game, it had not come together,” George Navarre said.
George said that in his routine call to his son the night before the game, he told Jeremy to be confident in himself and play as such.
“It was a big game. It was on national TV,” Jeremy said. “I went in with that type of mentality.”
Navarre downplayed his role in the play that ended the Seminoles? chance of tying the game.
“Everybody was pushing,” he said. “If I had not blocked it, somebody else would have.”
The sophomore said he was also surprised by the ACC honor.
“I am trying not to focus on the attention I get from this,” Navarre said. “I have got to stay focused and keep working. I need to build off this.”
In the trenches
» Jeremy Navarre, a 265-pound defensive end, was battling and winning the war against Florida State offensive linemen who all topped 300 pounds.
» Originally recruited as a fullback for Maryland, Navarre saw in his first spring practice that he would have a better chance getting on the field as a defender. He made the conversion over the summer before his freshman season and became thefirst true freshman to start under coach Ralph Friedgen.
» Navarre graduated early from Joppatowne and started at Maryland when he was only 17. Before finishing his career with the Mariners, he won a state football championship and two wrestling state titles.
