Facial recognition: Bearded local QB stars lead UC Davis, Idaho State football teams
Tyler Vander Waal sports a full-on beard with a shock of hair on top to match. Hasn’t cut any of it in a year. The Idaho State leader is even pondering a mullet look to match three of his offensive linemen.
Hunter Rodrigues had facial growth so thick it was a challenge to snap his chin strap, but the UC Davis leader trimmed and tidied, reducing the thatch to a handlebar mustache.
The look for both juniors is the result of pandemic boredom with a twist of appearance defiance. Why shave? Nothing’s normal. Let it grow.
“My Mom (Tiffani) doesn’t really like my beard and my girlfriend lives in Arizona, though she likes the long hair, so I really don’t have anyone to impress,” Vander Waal said by phone this week with a laugh.
No one is inspired by a boring quarterback, and neither of these emerging stars with local roots have ever been deemed dull.
With a penchant for the big play and able to chuck it long, or 30 yards with touch, or to sprint for yardage on the run, Rodrigues and Vander Waal lead their teams Saturday in Big Sky Conference spring action. UCD (2-1) hosts the Bengals (1-2) of Pocatello on Saturday at 1 p.m. (televised locally on CW31/PlutoTV and on Sports 1140 radio).
Rodrigues rolls with the banter from Aggies teammates and coaches who appreciate his handlebar approach.
“It was my quarantine beard, and then I just went with the ‘stache,” Rodrigues explained.
Rodrigues and Vander Waal have worn myriad expressions throughout their journeys.
Rodrigues was battered and nearly broken early in his Whitney High School football career in Rocklin, two seasons ending early, before a healthy run his senior year. He wanted to be a Division I college quarterback, but landed at American River College, a statewide junior college power. He sparkled in his lone season there, earning All-American honors. Rodrigues transferred to UCD after one season, was a backup to record-setting three-year starter Jake Maier in 2019 and then beat out a star-studded quarterback crop of six to earn the Aggies starting job on the eve of this spring season.
In his UCD debut, Rodrigues completed 23 of 29 passes for 243 yards and three touchdowns to beat Idaho 27-17 on the road. He was solid the following week at second-ranked Weber State in an 18-13 loss.
Against Cal Poly, in UCD’s 1,000th game in the 102-year history of the program, the 6-foot, 180-pound Rodrigues sparked a record effort to batter the Mustangs 73-24. He completed 19 of 23 passes for 265 yards and three touchdowns and he ran for a score as UCD set program records for points in a game, yards (768) and touchdowns (10). He was named the Root Sports Big Sky Offensive Player of the Week.
“He’s played unbelievably well,” UCD coach Dan Hawkins said. “He’s quiet, super smart, super competitive, a really great leader. The guys like him and respond to him. He’s been amazing.”
Vander Waal’s long road
Vander Waal, too, has been amazing this year, even if his path was hardly that.
Stout and strong at 6-4 and 215 pounds, Vander Waal has found a home in Pocatello. He started his prep career at Elk Grove High and finished it at Christian Brothers in Sacramento. He signed a scholarship deal with Wyoming, where he became a starter, then was benched, started again, was benched and started again.
His head was on a swivel, a target on social media by Wyoming fans, blamed for not being better. Vander Waal was so down on some of his efforts that he broke down and wondered if he was cut out to be a college quarterback. He sought counsel from his parents, who urged him to hang in there, and they backed his decision to transfer to Idaho State, where he endured the long COVID-19 pause through the fall of 2020. He then emerged as the starter.
Vander Waal passed for 304 yards and three touchdowns in his Bengals debut against Weber State, a 49-21 setback. He went for 238 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions in a 26-24 victory over Southern Utah, and he passed for 409 yards and two touchdowns — and he ran for two — in a 46-42 setback to Eastern Washington last week.
Vander Waal found out how fast college football is a business and how much he appreciates a safe haven.
“At Wyoming, coaches were depending on players to perform so they can earn a living and feed their families, and it’s cutthroat — you get benched, coaches get fired,” Vander Waal said. “Football is a business. It’s been eye-opening for me. It would have been easy for me to throw in the towel at Wyoming — football isn’t for me — for all the ups and downs I had, but there’s a love of the game that’s there.”
The only positive of not having fans at games due to the pandemic? The heat from fans.
“I played at Missouri while at Wyoming, my second start, and the student section was behind our bench,” Vander Waal said. “They knew my mother’s name, my girlfriend’s name, and they let me have it from all angles.”
Brotherly impact
Vander Waal said he plays to honor his brother, Ryan, four years older, who died over the summer in his sleep, rocking a close-knit family. Vander Waal had the words “hope: and “happiness” tattooed on his wrists, one for each and both circled by angel wings. Those were words his brother embraced.
“It symbolizes what our family is all about, and it’s a heavy meaning in our family, definitely an emotional thing,” Vander Waal said. “He’s gone, but he’s with me. When I’m playing, I feel like he’s watching over me. It’s heartbreaking that he’s gone, but he’s my guardian angel.”
Rodrigues also looks up to his older brother, Jake, who played college ball at Oregon and San Diego State. From his brother, Rodrigues learned about competition and expectations, that the college game is a great deal different than the high school game.
Rodrigues said he “hasn’t always had it easy and had my ups and downs before here,” in regards to injuries and his path. So imagine his delight to land the starting role for an Aggies program that has trotted out scores of star passers over the decades.
“We’re all best friends and we support each other here,” Rodrigues said of the other quarterbacks. “We’ve made it work, and I don’t take any of this for granted. You appreciate every day.”
This story was originally published March 25, 2021 at 7:27 AM.