I could tell he was special since the first time I saw him throw. He was just 5 foot 7 when I saw him (in the eighth grade) — real small and real skinny. But the ball had that zip coming out of his hand. He was throwing better at that age than guys who were already in high school. – Hallandale coach Dameon Jones
HALLANDALE, Florida — For years, Tyler Huntley got the same present every Christmas — a new football.
“He acted surprised every year,” his mother, Regina Huntley, said.
Added Ricky Huntley, his father: “He would see the football and light up.”
These days, Tyler Huntley just lights up opposing defenses.
The 6-2, 185-pound senior quarterback, who changed his college commitment from Florida Atlantic to Utah after visiting the Salt Lake City school's campus in July, is putting up staggering numbers at Hallandale High in South Florida.
On Sept. 25, he passed for 468 yards and four touchdowns in a 36-28 loss to national power Fort Lauderdale St. Thomas Aquinas.
He followed that up last week by passing for 515 yards and seven touchdowns — both school records — to lead 4-1 Hallandale to a 56-38 win over district rival Jackson.
Huntley, a starter since his freshman year, has led Hallandale to a 26-9 career record, including 22-4 since the start of his sophomore season.
“I could tell he was special since the first time I saw him throw,” Hallandale coach Dameon Jones said. “He was just 5 foot 7 when I saw him (in the eighth grade) — real small and real skinny. But the ball had that zip coming out of his hand. He was throwing better at that age than guys who were already in high school.”
Huntley, 17, has always been ahead of the curve. He started playing flag football at age 3, but his parents said he was booted out of that YMCA league because he was scoring too many touchdowns.
“He was playing against boys 4 and 5 years old,” Regina said, “but he was too advanced.”
When he was 10, Huntley told his parents he wanted to pursue football at the highest level possible.
“His thoughts have always been ahead to the next level,” Regina said.
Huntley entered this year with 5,417 passing yards, 64 touchdowns and 17 interceptions in his three full seasons at Hallandale. That included 29 touchdowns and two interceptions last year when he averaged 38.5 points and went 10-1, losing to eventual state champion Miami Central in the playoffs.
That was a crushing loss for Huntley, who said he watched that game film at least a dozen times, looking for ways to improve.
This year, his TD-to-interception ratio is 16-2, and the Chargers are averaging 40.2 points per game.
Huntley is at the controls of one of the most impressive offenses in the state. Besides Huntley, five other skill-position seniors have already committed to Division I colleges: running back Zack Moss (Miami) and wide receivers Neru N’Shaka (Virginia), Josh Hammond (Florida), Demari Simpkins (Utah) and Chris Cotto (Western Kentucky).
Simpkins, a 5-10, 170-pounder, committed to Utah a few hours before Huntley, who went on the same trip to Salt Lake City in July.
Huntley’s mother said she originally favored her son staying local and going to Florida Atlantic. But she said she changed her mind once she went with her husband and son to the Utah State-Utah game.
The Huntley family, accustomed to the flat land of South Florida, was mesmerized when they were taken to a mountaintop, surveying Salt Lake City below.
And the football game — a 24-14 Utah win — wasn’t bad, either.
“The student section never sat down,” said Tyler Huntley, who has 4.6 speed and is the youngest of three sons, including Sam, 19, who is a senior receiver on the Hallandale team.
Huntley doesn’t want to sit down, either. With a 3.78 grade-point average, he plans to graduate in December and enroll at Utah by January.
And with Utah graduating its top two quarterbacks — Travis Wilson and Kendal Thompson — Huntley said he expects to get at least some first-team reps next spring.
Huntley’s primary recruiter has been Utah assistant head coach Dennis Erickson, who led the University of Miami to national titles in 1989 and 1991.
When Huntley was 4, he met Erickson at a UM event, walking away with a cap signed by the coach. Now they are just a couple of months away from teaming up together in Utah.
Huntley said Erickson and the entire Utah environment were the reasons why he switched his commitment from Florida Atlantic.
“I wanted to be on a bigger stage,” he said.
Huntley has NFL aspirations, but — just in case — he is planning on a career in sports broadcasting, a fact that puzzles his parents.
“He’s so quiet,” Regina said. “I asked him: ‘Are you sure you want to study broadcasting?’ He just said, ‘Mom, I know how to smile.’"
Added Ricky: “I’m hoping that the extroverted person he has inside himself will show at some point.”