Hoboken’s Perez commits to Florida

Carlos Perez came to Hoboken from his native Dominican Republic when he was just five years old. When he arrived, he had never heard of the sport of football. Baseball was the only game in his life, which is no surprise, considering that baseball is played in practically every corner of the Caribbean island. “When I was a little kid, all I thought about was playing in the major leagues some day,” Perez said. “I never even gave football a thought.” However, last week, Perez made sure that football is an active part of his future. That’s because the brilliant 6-foot-1, 195-pound speedster from Hoboken High School declared his intentions to attend the University of Florida on a football scholarship, beginning in the fall. Perez made his intentions officially known on Monday. Two days later, he signed the national letter of intent to attend Florida, which is basically like signing a contract with the Gators, one of the nation’s premier football programs. On the same day, teammate Tyrell Dortch signed a letter of intent with Michigan State. Although Perez didn’t get plenty of opportunities to show off his pass-receiving talents in Hoboken’s run-oriented Delaware Wing-T offense, he made enough of an impression to be recruited by most of the top major college programs. Perez then narrowed down his choices to five – Florida, Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue and Notre Dame – and made several trips to the final schools before settling on Florida, whose team is coached by former Heisman Trophy winner Steve Spurrier. “They were all great schools,” Perez said last week. “I think the decisions came down to the coach and the opportunity to play right away. Plus, not every school was recruiting me as a wide receiver and that’s what I wanted to play in college.” Perez was an All-State selection as a linebacker this season for the 12-0 undefeated state champion Red Wings. But he realized his future in football was as a receiver, where he caught 30 passes for 577 yards and nine touchdowns this season. Florida was set to lose its top two receivers to the National Football League this year, opening immediate playing time for a player of Perez’ abilities. “They’re giving me the opportunity to showcase my talents right away and that’s all I wanted,” Perez said. “If I’m red-shirted, then that means I failed and it’s my fault. But there’s nobody with experience returning at the position there, so that was a strong reason for me choosing Florida.” Perez said that his relationship with Spurrier also played a part in the decision. “He reminded me of Coach [Ed] Stinson,” Perez said. “I felt comfortable with him. I had a very good visit when I went to Florida. Everyone made me feel comfortable there.” Perez is a deeply religious young man who attends the Christian-based Church of God of Prophecy every night for two-hour services and consistently reads the Bible. When he made his decision to attend Florida official, he kept a Bible at his side the entire time. Perez takes his faith as seriously as he takes his devotion to the game of football. “I know that God has a plan for me,” Perez said. “A lot of kids like me never get a chance to play major college football. There are a lot of people who have never heard of me, but I got a chance to go big-time. The reason is God. It’s so strong that I can’t even explain it. The things that I can’t explain, I know it’s God.” Perez added, “A lot of people my age don’t understand the faith. But I do. I preach my faith and tell everyone what it’s all about.” Perez said that when he was a youngster, he would play Nintendo video football games with Dortch and they would name their teams after college teams. “Tyrell was always playing for Michigan and I was playing for Ohio State,” Perez said. “We used to act it out during the video games. Not that we ever expected it, but now, think about it, it’s going to come true, only at different schools. It’s amazing. I’m still in a state of shock over it.” Perez, who is always spotted with a bright, wide smile, doesn’t want any of the new-found fame to change his warm, loving personality. “People see me in the streets and they now look at me differently, because I’m going to a big-time university to play football,” Perez said. “But I’m still like everybody else. I’m still Carlos. I’m the happy guy, the one who says, ‘Hi,’ to everybody. I like that about me. I don’t want anything to change.” Perez added, “And I don’t want anything to get in my way either. Nothing is going to change me.”