Colleges

Hester has the name, he's getting the game

The USF receiver with a well-known father breaks out.

By GREG AUMAN, Times Staff Writer
Published September 11, 2007

TAMPA - When Saturday's game at No. 17 Auburn began, Jessie Hester Jr. had four career catches in two largely unmemorable years of USF football.

When it ended, he had six more receptions, including the most memorable first touchdown in Bulls history.

"Once the ball was in the air, I had to catch it," said the sophomore receiver, who caught a 14-yard pass from Matt Grothe in overtime to give USF a 26-23 upset victory. "There were too many people depending on me. I really didn't think about it, it happened so quick. I just caught it, and that was it."

That was it, after 3 hours and 40 minutes, after four missed field goals for USF and back-and-forth drama in front of 82,617 fans, most of them cheering for an Auburn team that had won its past 14 home games.

"I always tell him his time is coming, and it's here," senior receiver Amarri Jackson said Saturday. "When he gets back to campus, he's going to have a lot of people coming at him."

Few will be prouder than Hester's father, Jessie, who was a first-round draft pick who played 11 NFL seasons as a receiver out of Florida State.

"As a parent, to watch your son like that, it's an emotion-filled situation," said Hester, who attended Saturday's game. "He's really excited, and this is something he definitely needed to help his confidence."

Hester shares his father's name, his undersized 5-foot-11, 170-pound build and his rare combination of speed and hands. He graduated from powerhouse Glades Central High in Belle Glade, as his father did, and inherits the high expectations that come when your dad has 373 NFL receptions.

"I've told him that the name recognition is something he's not going to be able to shake," his father said. "He wants to establish his own identity out there, and Saturday, I think he took the first step toward doing just that."

Saturday was a giant leap after many small steps. He played sparingly as a true freshman in 2005, managing only three catches, two in a season-ending loss to West Virginia. Last fall, he took a redshirt season, hoping to add size and build strength to help his body avoid the minor injuries that limited him his first year.

"It feels good," Hester said of his six-catch, 64-yard breakout game Saturday. "It's been a long time coming, but I'm glad it's here. I have to keep doing it. I can't just have one big game."

By catching that touchdown, Hester did something his father couldn't do in college: beat Auburn. Hester Sr. caught three passes in a 27-24 loss at Auburn in 1983, then had four catches for 143 yards, including a 73-yard touchdown, in a 42-41 home loss his senior year.

Hester's contributions weren't limited to the touchdown Saturday. When USF tied the score at 17 midway through the fourth quarter, the biggest play on the drive came on third and 13, when Grothe found Hester across the middle for a 16-yard completion with a facemask penalty tacked on at the end.

Needing a field goal to tie with barely a minute to play, Grothe found Hester for a 6-yard gain to the 2-yard line, making easier work for Delbert Alvarado, who had missed four attempts.

Hester said USF's persistence and fight will carry over to other games.

"It really showed us we're a team. We're not going to quit," he said. "Coach (Jim) Leavitt tells us every day, four quarters. You've got to play the whole game."

Hester was one of several USF receivers to drop passes in a lackluster opening win against Elon, but Leavitt said the performance Hester gave against Auburn is what he expects of him.

"He's a heady ballplayer, and we knew he had the talent," Leavitt said. "He dropped a couple of passes in the first game, and that wasn't like Jessie. The game I just saw is what I always envisioned him to be playing like."

[Last modified September 11, 2007, 10:23:51]