“Your football team takes on the personality of your quarterback, plain and simple,” Ohio head coach Tim Albin said when asked about quarterback Parker Navarro after Ohio’s 42-21 win over Ball State on Friday. “He’s tough, so guess what? We got a tough team.”
With Ohio now staring at a chance to win the Mid-American Conference Championship for the sixth time in program history, Albin’s words couldn’t be more true.
Navarro’s season has been a journey, to say the least, going from throwing three interceptions and getting benched against FCS Morgan State to being named the MAC Offensive Player of the Week three times this season. One thing, however, has remained the same: the toughness and patience the Arizona native has shown all season.
That toughness is now reflected in a 9-3 record, worthy of a Saturday trip to Detroit to play for the MAC championship.
Navarro has had these traits since playing as a low-ranked recruit at Desert Vista High School in Tempe, Arizona. It wasn’t until late in his high school career scouts noticed Navarro’s skill.
“I had a pretty pivotal game against Chubba Purdy, Brock Purdy's younger brother,” Navarro said. “It was a shootout, like 70-something to 60-something, and he was highly recruited. A lot of people came to check him out, and I think that from that game, I finally got a little recognition.”
In the matchup against Chubba Purdy, a current quarterback at Nevada, Navarro threw for 435 yards and seven touchdowns while adding 108 yards and a touchdown on the ground. That game, a monumental win, got Navarro on the map, and he eventually committed to University of Central Florida.
“After my senior season, most of my offers came in, and it was definitely a test of a lot of patience,” Navarro said. “Sure enough, Hawaii comes into the picture … UCF came into the picture. Arizona State, North Texas, a bunch of these schools started coming in late, to the point where I honestly didn’t have time to actually take all my visits.”
Navarro spent just two seasons in Orlando at UCF, playing under current Tennessee coach Josh Heupel and newly appointed Florida State offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn before deciding to transfer.
“Coaching stability was a huge factor. Who's going to hang around? Who really takes time building an intentional program and plans to stick around?” Navarro said. “I figured Coach Albin and his staff were all that… When I came in, the team was 3-9, so I figured I can come in, I can make a difference here, make an impact.”
Navarro came to Athens in 2022, joining a quarterback room composed of Kurtis Rourke and CJ Harris, two players he sat behind on the depth chart. In the two years he spent with Rourke, they became good friends both on and off the field. Sitting behind the 2022 MAC Offensive Player of the Year greatly benefited Navarro.
“I was in Kurtis' wedding; we developed a pretty good friendship together,” Navarro said. “Beyond just observing him as a quarterback — how good he is at passing, his preparation, executing each week — beyond that, it was just like he and I were just friends.”
Navarro saw some playing time in 2023 at the end of the season when he stepped in as the starter for the Myrtle Beach Bowl after it was announced Rourke would be transferring. Navarro had a big opportunity which he cashed in on, throwing for 120 yards and a touchdown while adding 83 yards on the ground in a 41-21 victory over Georgia Southern.
The Myrtle Beach game is what propelled him to the starting job this season. Albin and his staff were so confident in Navarro they didn’t bring in any other quarterbacks from the portal and gave him the starting job in Week One.
The beginning of the season was dicey for Navarro, as he was benched in Ohio’s third game against Morgan State after throwing three first-half interceptions. After the Kentucky game, where Navarro did not play, he soon stepped back into the starting role and never looked back, leading Ohio to a 7-1 record in the next eight weeks.
The offense looked better and better every week over the eight week stretch. Navarro’s connection with fellow Arizona native Coleman Owen became apparent, and the running game launched to a new level because of Navarro’s explosive legs.
“(Navarro’s) progressively gotten better throughout the season and continues to make good decisions and has been much better taking care of the football,” offensive coordinator Brian Smith. “He's really embraced his ability to use his feet. He has an ability to extend plays and make people pay if they're going to play man, or if they're going to drop into coverage and not account for him.”
Getting star running back Anthony Tyus III back from an ankle injury has helped the ground tremendously as well, opening up the read option and speed option game for Ohio.
“I think having (Tyus) back there with me, but then also having the threat with (Owen) on the RPO option, teams can only take away one,” Navarro said. “These last few games, we just had a stretch where (we were) making plays with the legs, and things started opening up.”
To go along with the 7-1 record in conference play since Navarro returned, the offense has put up 33.3 points per game, second in the MAC against conference opponents.
Navarro’s ability to lead the offense, mixed with a stout defensive effort, earned Ohio a shot at a MAC title Saturday against rival Miami.
“This team overall has this love of the process, and they have a love of just getting it done each week because we know that's how good we can be,” Navarro said. “There's this awareness of what we can accomplish, obviously – the MAC Championship Game.”
