Y’all ready for this?
And if you are not quite ready, here is that ubiquitous song to get you in the mood. Go ahead and click the photo. Yes, go for it!!!
Anyone wondering what McKenzie Milton is up to lately?
Well, it was not that long ago that the Mililani graduate, the former star quarterback for the Trojans, was hurt badly on the football field. Not only did the leg injury threaten his football career, it also threatened his life.
He vowed to come back from it, and boy, has he … so far, anyway. He has the will and he will find a way.
A half decade or so ago, I remember not believing my eyes while watching Milton throw darts into a stiff wind at Leilehua in warmups for a preseason scrimmage.
What I watched today on video is a million times more impressive. I watched Milton throwing darts to his Florida State teammates during an April spring game.
How did I miss this a few months ago?. Eh, not surprising. Lot o’ other sports going on, including the Stanley Cup playoffs, so it’s understandable that I would not see footage of a college’s spring game.
And so, my friends, I would like to share this video with you now. Keep in mind, there is still a long way to go. It’s not a REAL game, but the fact that he’s throwing DARTS anywhere is MIGHTY impressive.
The college football season is right around the corner, and so we’ll see how he does then. But Milton has already been named to the Maxwell Award watch list, so that’s a sign that he’s going to be starting.
Milton, who played three seasons at UCF, transferred to Florida State for his senior year. He’s 27-6 as a college starter and finished sixth in the voting for the 2018 Heisman Trophy and eighth in 2017.
In 2017, Milton led the Knights to a 13-0 record and a No. 6 final ranking in the Associated Press poll. That season ended with UCF beating No. 7 Auburn 34-27 in front of 71,109 fans in the Peach Bowl.
McKenzie Milton. (Image credit: Tampa Bay Times).
In this three seasons at UCF, Milton threw for 8,683 yards, with a completion percentage of 61.8, 72 TD passes, 22 interceptions, 1,078 rushing yards and 20 rushing TDs.
Milton missed the last two games of 2018 after the devastating injury that caused nerve damage and led to reconstructive knee surgery.
In high school, Milton led Mililani to the top-tier state title in 2014 (“Mililani Drops Surrealistic Prep Bomb”), the school’s first. He ranks sixth all time in Hawaii high school passing with 7,303 yards.
While writing this story, I wanted to look back at some of the stuff I did while covering him in high school.
I am TOTALLY glad to look back and notice that I got one thing correct in the lead paragraph of this story, “Wondering Why Scouts Don’t Flock To See McKenzie Milton,” from Aug. 30, 2015 at HawaiiPrepWorld.com.
Y’all ready for that first sentence:
“I am here to tell you McKenzie Milton is something special.”
Ka-boom!!!! I guess I wan’t blowing smoke.
I’ll say it again: McKenzie Milton is something special.
2021 Florida State Football Schedule
>> Sept. 5: vs. Notre Dame
>> Sept. 11: vs. Jacksonville State
>> Sept. 18: at Wake Forest
>> Sept. 25: vs. Louisville
>> Oct. 2: vs. Syracuse
>> Oct. 9: at North Carolina
>> Oct. 23: vs. UMass
>> Oct. 30: at Clemson
>> Nov. 6: vs. North Carolina State
>> Nov. 13: vs. Miami, Fla.
>> Nov. 20: at Boston College
>> Nov. 27: at Florida
McKenzie Milton’s UCF Results
2018 (12-1)
>> UCF 56, at Connecticut 17
>> At UCF 38, South Carolina St. 0
>> At UCF 56, Florida Atlantic 36
>> At UCF 45, Pittsburgh 14
>> At UCF 48, SMU 20
>> UCF 31, at Memphis 30
>> UCF 37, at East Carolina 10 (Milton did not play)
>> At UCF 52, Temple 40
>> At UCF 35, Navy 24
>> At UCF 38, Cincinnati 13
>> UCF 38, at South Florida 10 (Milton hurt in second quarter)
>> AAC Championship Game: At UCF 56, Memphis 41 (Milton did not play)
>> Fiesta Bowl: LSU 40, UCF 32, at Glendale, Ariz. (Milton did not play)
2017 (13-0)
>> At UCF 61, Florida International 17
>> UCF 38, at Maryland 10
>> At UCF 40, Memphis 13
>> UCF 51, at Cincinnati 21
>> At UCF 63, East Carolina 21
>> UCF 31, at Navy 21
>> At UCF 73, Austin Peay 33
>> UCF 31, at SMU 24
>> At UCF 49, Connecticut 24
>> UCF 45, at Temple 19
>> At UCF 49, South Florida 42
>> AAC Championship Game: At UCF 62, Memphis 55, 2 OT
>> Peach Bowl: UCF 34, Auburn 27, at Atlanta
2016 (6-7)
>> At UCF 38, South Carolina State 0 (Milton did play)
>> At Michigan 51, UCF 14 (Milton did play)
>> Maryland 30, at UCF 24 (Milton’s first start)
>> UCF 53, at Florida International 14
>> UCF 47, at East Carolina 29 (Milton did not play)
>> Temple 26, at UCF 25
>> UCF 24, at Connecticut 16
>> At Houston 31, UCF 24
>> At UCF 37 Tulane 6
>> At UCF 24, Cincinnati 3
>> Tulsa 35, at UCF 20
>> At South Florida 48, UCF 31
>> Cure Bowl: Arkansas State 31, UCF 13, at Orlando, Fla.
McKenzie Milton’s Mililani Results
2015 (10-3)
>> Mililani 73, McKinley 14, at Roosevelt High field
>> At Mililani 49, at Campbell 21
>> At Mililani 67, Kapolei 21
>> At Liberty (Henderson, Nev.) 76, Mililani 53
>> At Mililani 54, Aiea 6
>> Mililani 71, Farrington 28, at Aloha Stadium
>> Mililani 45, at Kailua 21 (Milton did not play)
>> Mililani 60, at Moanalua 36 (Milton did not play)
>> OIA first round: At Mililani 48, Moanalua 13 (Milton did not play)
>> OIA second round: Mililani 45, Waianae 20, at Aloha Stadium (Milton did not play)
>> OIA championship game: Kahuku 20, Mililani 7, at Aloha Stadium (Milton did not play)
>> State top-tier first round: Mililani 62, Hilo 18, at Aloha Stadium
>> State top-tier second round: Saint Louis 56, Mililani 30, at Aloha Stadium
2014 (13-0)
>> Mililani 2, McKinley 0 (forfeit)
>> Saint Louis 63, at Mililani 47
>> At Mililani 49, Kailua 7
>> Mililani 41, at Kapolei 14
>> Mililani 56, at Aiea 14
>> Mililani 57, at Campbell 28
>> At Mililani 41, Farrington 14
>> At Mililani 48, Moanalua 26
>> OIA first round: At Mililani 54, Kaiser 14
>> OIA second round: Mililani 47, Campbell 15, at Aloha Stadium
>> OIA championship game: Mililani 20, Kahuku 7, at Aloha Stadium
>> State top-tier first round: Mililani 17, Farrington 14, at Aloha Stadium
>> State top-tier championship game: Mililani 53, Punahou 45, at Aloha Stadium
2013 (11-2)
>> Mililani 39, at Moanalua 9
>> Punahou 24, at Mililani 14
>> Mililani 35, at Kapolei 0
>> Mililani 44, at Waianae 24
>> Mililani 39, at Waipahu 12
>> At Mililani 42, Campbell 21
>> At Mililani 44, Leilehua 14
>> At Mililani 35, Aiea 7
>> OIA first round: At Mililani 21, Leilehua 9
>> OIA second round: Mililani 37, Kahuku 22, at Aloha Stadium
>> OIA championship game: Mililani 37, Farrington 6, at Aloha Stadium
>> State top-tier first round: Mililani 41, Campbell 7, at Aloha Stadium
>> State top-tier championship game: Punahou 28, Mililani 22, at Aloha Stadium
