Parting Shots: Leak in the beginning

After each season InsidetheGators.net talks to several of the top departing seniors and early entry juniors for a Q&A series we call Parting Shots. Until now, players have been the focus. However, today we'll go in a different direction and take a look at a player's career through the eyes of a parent. Curtis Leak, the father of Chris Leak, gives us his perspective on his son's career as a Gator.

InsidetheGators.net: Growing up, what was Chris like as a kid?

Curtis Leak: "He was a normal everyday type of kid. He was a little prankster at times – he played around a lot. He had four older brother and sisters, so he was the little guy. They all loved him, but he was the baby, so everyone pretty much spoiled him because of that. He would still get picked on though by his brothers and sisters.

"His older brother (C.J.) started playing football when he was seven and Chris followed in his footsteps. He started when he was eight and he started out as a linebacker before moving to quarterback. He wanted to be like his brother. He could always throw the ball, and during his second year he got better to the point where everyone thought that throwing the football was his future."

InsidetheGators.net: He is legendary for his work ethic and for being a student of the game. How far back does that go?

Curtis Leak: "As far back as kindergarten, he was a normal kid, but he always did well in his school work and then when he got into athletics it carried over. You could always see that he stayed focused on his books and what he needed to do. We never had to push him to do his homework or had any issues with him in school as far as being attentive. He's always been a serious minded kid. He wanted to do as well as he could - very self motivated."

InsidetheGators.net: You brought up your son C.J., who was involved in one of the most unique recruiting stories to date when he received an offer from Wake Forrest as a sophomore. You certainly weren't new to the recruiting process having gone through it with him. What was different about the way programs came after Chris?

Curtis Leak: "C.J. had the height, the size and the athleticism that college coaches were looking for at that position. Recruiting for him started right around his junior year when he started getting letters. By his senior season he was red hot – the No. 1 dual-threat quarterback at that time. He went on all his visits and went through the process in about a year, maybe a little bit more.

"Chris started on Varsity as a ninth grader – his publicity started earlier because it was so unusual for a kid that age to start that early. His recruiting started when he won a state championship as a sophomore. Then he won one as a junior and took off and continued right up until he broke the national record for high school touchdown passes.

InsidetheGators.net: Many thought it was a foregone conclusion that he would end up in Knoxville with C.J. What exactly happened there?

Curtis Leak: "C.J. played at Wake Forest as a true freshman because coach (Jim) Caldwell wanted to get him some reps. The following year, I think it was the third game of the year, he injured his knee and was out. Coach Caldwell got fired, so C.J. thought his best bet was to go to another school.

"He chose Tennessee with Casey Clausen.

"The plan was he would compete with him for playing time and if it didn't work out, he had no problem moving to another position.

"What eventually happened was Casey was injured and it looked like it was C.J.'s opportunity to play. He played three plays and got pulled for a freshman they brought in that they thought the world of (James Banks).

"It gave the appearance that they didn't give him the opportunity that he worked so hard to earn. He didn't know how fair that was and Chris was at that game and saw all that.

"Before that it was pretty well known that Chris was going to follow in his brother's footsteps in everything he had done. After the way that happened, he didn't feel like Tennessee was a place where he could trust the coaches.

"He didn't think that was a good situation so he dropped them and went on to the other schools."

InsidetheGators.net: Was what happened with C.J. the reason your family asked for and received a Plan of Action from all of his finalists?

Curtis Leak: "What we wanted to know was the truth. A fact of life in recruiting is that people, coaches, tell you what they think you want to hear. What you want to hear may not be what the coach has in store for your son when he gets on campus.

"We wanted to find out exactly what the plan was. We wanted to find out as a family what each coach had in his heart and in his mind for Chris. If this didn't work out, what would happen? If this situation came up, what would the response be?

"We wanted and expected some honest answers – not a sales job - after the experience C.J. went through."

InsidetheGators.net: In your opinion, what put Florida over the top?

Curtis Leak: "Florida was a good fit for him because of the fact that Rex (Grossman) was there and he thought he would have a chance to come in and learn from him – that was important. That gave Florida an edge – everything looked to be perfect because Chris had basically fallen in love with everything about Florida. And then the next thing you know, Rex leaves early.

"Ron (Zook) told him nothing had changed about the university, and now he would have a chance to come in and compete with Ingle Martin who had only throw about ten passes or something.

"He had already pretty much decided and then hearing that he had a chance to compete for a starting job gave Florida the advantage in the end."

InsidetheGators.net: Florida was a program that had enjoyed recent success under Steve Spurrier, but then fell into a tailspin with five loss seasons. What was it like living through that?

Curtis Leak: "Many people may not know this, but Ron was honest with us while he was recruiting Chris. He said the cupboard is bare, but in two or three years he would have it restocked to where Chris would be playing for a National Championship. To this very day, I remember those words.

"He was very honest about the fact that it was going to take some time to rebuild the talent at Florida. When you look at how many players have been drafted from Florida the last couple of years and compare it to the number that will be drafted this year and it's easy to see that he was being honest about the talent level."

InsidetheGators.net: Your son is the quarterback at the time - aka - the lightening rod. Whether justified or not, good or bad, the quarterback gets either the credit or the blame. What did you see in Chris over those first two years in how he handled that?

Curtis Leak: "Chris was aware that it was going to take a little bit of time. The fans might not have been. You know, they want it right now, the expectations are always there. They just didn't have the players to make it happen.

"He kept on track, sticking with his work habits, trying to get better. It takes a whole team to win championships – with Urban (Meyer) - that's one thing he stresses. You have to have it on both sides of the ball and special teams.

"Chris kept it in mind that they were going to eventually get to where they would play for a championship."

InsidetheGators.net: What was it like the day you found out Ron Zook was let go?

Curtis Leak: "It was tough, we all liked Ron. The thing that stuck out about Ron was his honesty. The players loved and respected