Enter Maurice Perkins.
The native of Indianapolis, Ind., had appeared in two games in 2003, so he was familiar to the coaching staff even though he did not have a catch. After his performance in the season opener at I-A Kansas State, he would be on opposing defensive coordinators’ radar screens the rest of the year.
Perkins finished with five receptions for 126 yards against the Wildcats, and he would go on to record 43 catches for a Gateway Football Conference-best 849 yards. That included four 100-yard efforts, including career highs of seven receptions and 141 yards in a 17-10 victory at nationally ranked Northern Iowa in October.
“At the end of the Kansas State game, I was on the radio when they gave me the stats. I knew I caught five passes, but the 126 yards surprised me,” said the 5-foot-9, 170-pound senior. “I don’t think the season would have been the same without that performance. To be able to have that kind of game against a I-A school, it says that you can do that against any opponent.”
“I don’t think the coaching staff would say that Maurice came out of nowhere considering what we saw in practice, but the performance against Kansas State made you say, ‘Wow! We’ve got something here,’” Hilltopper head coach David Elson said. “As the season went on, Maurice was just consistent — he’s everything you want a guy to be week in and week out.
“His hard work over the long haul simply paid off. It’s a great example for us to use with all of our younger players and those that are struggling a little bit, to see what Maurice went through and where he is now.”
Not only was Perkins surprised to hear his stat line after the opener, but his performance over the course of the season wasn’t expected either.
“I didn’t expect to see as many passes as I did. After I got in a rhythm in the first game, coach [T.J.] Weist kept coming back to me. If they were going to do that, I thought I might as well catch more balls. I wasn’t trying to do something big.
“Going into the season I knew that I was at least going to have a chance to perform, where they were going to throw me the ball to see what I could do. I didn’t expect that to be the first game.”
While Perkins gained the respect of coaches and players, his season didn’t appear as impressive to others — he was not honored with the release of the all-Gateway Conference teams following the regular season. It left Perkins feeling as if he hadn’t done enough on the field, but even worse, he had to hear about it from one of his older brothers (he’s the youngest of three boys). “He e-mailed me and just gave it to me. He told me, ‘You think you had a good season, but nobody in the conference or nationally thought you did,’” Perkins recalled.
Perkins and his brother weren’t the only ones with that feeling.
“I was disappointed for him because he worked so hard,” said Weist, Western’s offensive coordinator and wide receivers coach. “It’s tough, because you don’t want to push individual awards — we don’t talk about it much during the season, but it’s a nice reward when the year’s over. Awards serve as a way to measure your performance.
“I think in Maurice’s case, he led the league in receiving yards but that didn’t stand out to some coaches. That’s what made the difference.”
The fact that Perkins was even in the position to be considered for postseason honors is a tribute to his hard work and perseverance. Perkins was not on the Hilltoppers’ roster during the 2002 season, his first on campus after transferring from St. Joseph’s (Ind.) College where he was on both the football and track teams.
Especially considering that he had to go to the football office to introduce himself to the coaching staff.
“It’s not often that a player shows up on campus unrecruited and makes an impact,” Elson said. “When it does happen, it is a testament to the individual’s character and attitude, and what the game means to them. Maurice is a perfect example.”
The decision to make the move was tough on the Perkins family, who originally thought Maurice was good enough to play Division I football, but gradually changed their minds as his playing time at cornerback increased with the Pumas. However, friends and former teammates thought different.
Perkins ended up passing up the chance to walk on at both Boston College and Indiana to come to Western. The clinching factor in his decision was the Hilltoppers’ 2002 national championship.
The time off gave Perkins a chance to assess his status and make some decisions about what sport he was going to participate in on the Hill. “That year was a time to grow up, to try and learn more about football. I had to figure out if I wanted to come back, and if I did what position would I try out for. Instead of trying to learn while playing, it helped me prepare mentally.”
Perkins also took advantage of the time away from competition to take care of his academics, finishing with a 3.0 grade-point average both semesters.
While WKU’s coaching staff was relatively unfamiliar with Perkins when he arrived on campus, he had a connection with Elson — both are graduates of Indianapolis’ Cathedral High School. Perkins was a three-sport athlete for the Fighting Irish, earning three letters in football, track and basketball, and he experienced success there on both as an individual and with the football team. In addition to leading CHS to the state football championship both his sophomore and junior seasons, Perkins won the city championship in the long jump in 2000.
“I remember our coaches talking about coach Elson and the leadership he displayed. From what they told us, coach’s teams were tough,” he said. “It helped because I felt that I could go talk to somebody I had already heard about, and it was more of a man-to-man relationship than player-coach.”
“I try not to show any favoritism, and the bottom line here is if you produce you play,” said Elson. “Maurice has produced and he deserves every bit of attention and success that he has had.”
As the Hilltoppers’ open up the 2005 campaign tonight against West Virginia Tech, expectations have changed for Perkins. The statistical leader of a unit that includes three underclassmen on the depth chart, Perkins has taken on additional responsibilities off the field after being one of four players voted a team captain. The coaching staff attributes his development as a leader to basic character traits.
“Maurice is mature. He takes the responsibility to pay attention and take notes, and he’ll also say something to other guys who may not be paying attention,” Weist said. “A lot of times, players will have a hard time staying focused during two-a-days as they get tired, but he remains focused and helps his teammates too. And, he responds to coaching — some guys will clam up if you’re hard on them, but Maurice responds to that.”
Elson added, “I think, first and foremost, Maurice does the simple things of being where he’s supposed to be and getting there on time. He has an excellent work ethic, and he’s also coachable — when you want something done in a certain way, that’s how it gets done. That gets acknowledged and rewarded in our program.
“More than anything, he’s a leader by example. His teammates have selected him both to be on the unity council and team captain. I can tell they have developed a tremendous amount of respect for Maurice because of the way he has worked himself into the position that he is currently in.”
Perkins’ goals on the field are pretty simple.
“I want to have a better season than I had last year — more catches, more receiving yards and hopefully I can get some touchdowns under my belt this fall,” he said. “As a team, we want to go undefeated at home, win the Gateway Conference title outright and win a national championship.”
With his career winding down, Perkins is interested in finishing his education and getting involved in the computer industry. His interest in computers traces to his older brother Marlon — the same one who gave him a hard time following the 2004 season — who is a network administrator following Maurice’s career via the Internet from Korea. “I guess I’m just a geek behind closed doors,” Perkins said.
While he laughed as he said that, opposing coaches surely aren’t smiling as they prepare to take on Perkins and the Hilltopper offense. The secret’s out.
