Navy backup makes most of chance

Kriss Proctor was a three-year starter in a triple-option offense at Big Bear High in California, leading the small school to back-to-back De Anza League championships with a combined record of 24-2 as a junior and senior.

Proctor wanted to play quarterback at the next level and Big Bear head coach Dave Griffiths told him the best opportunity to do so would be either Navy or Air Force.

"I talked to Kriss about the service academies and told him that they ran the same type of offensive system that we did," Griffiths said. "Initially, he wasn't too interested."

Proctor was recruited by Nevada, Stanford and Utah as a safety and seriously considered all three schools. However, that desire to play quarterback led him to reconsider the Naval Academy; so Griffiths made contact with the coaching staff in Annapolis.

"It came down to the fact the kid wanted the ball in his hands," Griffiths said.

Offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Ivin Jasper took a look at Proctor's highlight tape and liked what he saw.

"Without a doubt, I was impressed. He was an athletic kid who ran well. He had moves, he had quicks, he had good hips," Jasper said.

Steve Johns, a California native who had just been hired as an assistant, went to Big Bear High to talk with Proctor and convinced him to visit Annapolis. That trip sealed the deal for the youngster, who returned to California "a changed person," according to Griffiths.

"I loved Annapolis, I loved the campus, I loved all of what the academy was about. The education, the training, the opportunities available after graduation… all that had a big impact on me," Proctor said.

Navy coaches are certainly glad they lured Proctor across the country to the East Coast. That triple-option experience that Proctor got in high school as proven crucial as the youngster has been pressed into action much earlier than expected.

An injury to starting quarterback Ricky Dobbs has forced Proctor into the lineup as a sophomore and he has responded. The 6-foot-1, 190-pounder made his first career start on Saturday against Wake Forest and rushed for 89 yards and a touchdown to lead Navy to a 13-10 victory. The California native will be back under center this Saturday as the Midshipmen seek to become bowl eligible by beating Temple.

Jasper said Proctor had a decent performance against Wake Forst - earning good grades for reading the defense and distributing the ball, but getting marked down for committing two fumbles.

"Other than the fumbles, I thought Kriss played pretty well. For the most part, he made good reads. He missed some reads, but when you run option as often as we do that is going to happen," Jasper said.

In the third quarter, Proctor committed a fumble at the Wake Forest 3-yard line that likely prevented a Navy touchdown that would have clinched the contest. On the team's second-to-last possession, the youngster mishandled a snap but recovered his own fumble for a 2-yard loss.

"The fumble on the goal line was major and the one on third-and-short could have cost us the game," Jasper said. "Kriss knows he needs to do a better job of taking care of the ball."

In terms of grasping the triple-option and displaying poise while running the offense, Proctor reminds Jasper of former Navy quarterback Kaipo-Noa Kaheaku-Enhada. The Hawaii native was also forced into the lineup as a sophomore and handled himself well due largely to having played in a similar offensive system in high school.

"Kriss and Kaipo are a lot alike. Kriss is a little bit tougher than Kaipo, but they are similar in their approach and the fact both had developed an understanding of the triple-option while in high school and both were very calm when they got thrown into the fire as sophomores," Jasper said.

"Having run option in high school, Kriss understood the terminology and basic fundamentals. He was further ahead than most quarterbacks that come in here."

Navy quarterbacks get hit a lot while running the triple-option and the team has been forced to turn to the backup quite often over the years. Kaheaku-Enhada was called upon to replace the injured Brian Hampton in 2006 while Jarod Bryant filled in for Kaheaku-Enhada on numerous occasions in 2007 and 2008. Last season, Dobbs was forced into the lineup as a sophomore after both Kahaeaku-Enhada and Bryant went down.

Jasper said it's no accident that Navy's backup quarterback has been capable of running the show and performing at a fairly high level.

"I think it goes back to how we practice and the fact we two-platoon. We have two separate huddles and both quarterbacks get equal repetitions," Jasper said. "It's not like Kriss has been standing on the sideline watching. He's been getting just as many reps as Ricky ever since he became the backup quarterback. He is very comfortable with the offense, very natural at running the option and very understanding of the game plan."

Proctor has benefitted from having an innate confidence that results from having been a three-sport star in high school. In addition to starting at quarterback for Big Bear for three seasons, he was a two-time All-State selection as a center fielder in baseball and an All-League pick as the point guard in basketball.

Proctor scored his first career touchdown as a freshman in a playoff game against Oaks Christian High, which was quarterbacked at the time by Jimmy Clausen (Notre Dame). As a junior, Proctor almost single-handedly led a miraculous comeback against Aquinas High. Big Bear trailed by 10 points when Proctor threw a touchdown pass, executed a perfect onsides kick that he recovered himself then ran for the winning touchdown. He was also a standout kicker.

"Kriss was the best athlete we've seen here at Big Bear in quite a long time. I'm not exaggerating when I say he was usually the best athlete on the field every week," Griffiths said. "Kriss is the typical laid-back California kid off the field. But put him between the white lines and you will not find a tougher competitor."