ARIZONA STATE FOOTBALL

Sun Devils QB Mike Bercovici: ‘I’m ready for this opportunity’

Sep 16, 2014, 10:14 PM | Updated: 10:17 pm

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TEMPE, Ariz. – No one would’ve faulted Mike Bercovici if he had left Arizona State.

The view from the sideline first as a backup to Brock Osweiler, and then later after losing the quarterback battle to Taylor Kelly in 2012 would have caused many in his position to rethink their current situation and opt for another opportunity.

That’s just how college players operate these days. If they don’t play, they transfer.

“There’s a lot of programs that Mike could go and be a starting quarterback at,” deputy head coach and offensive coordinator Mike Norvell said. “But he’s elected to stay here to put in his time to basically wait his turn and now this team needs him. It’s his opportunity to step up.”

Highly recruited out of Southern California, Bercovici arrived in Tempe three years ago wanting one thing: To be the Sun Devils starting quarterback.

His time has finally arrived, though at the expense of an injury to his good friend, Taylor Kelly.

“It’s definitely difficult,” Bercovici said. “We have a great relationship. I’m always talking to him, but obviously, for the current situation, we can’t think like that right now. We have to move forward until he’s back — and he is going to be back. But I’m excited. I’m ready to move this team down the field.”

Kelly, who was unavailable for comment Tuesday, has been ruled out for next week’s showdown with 12th-ranked UCLA after suffering a right foot injury in the third quarter at Colorado. He’s likely to miss at least two games meaning the Sun Devils’ offense, for right now, is in Bercovici’s hands.

“He’s prepared for this moment,” Norvell said. “This is something that he’s excited to have. I’m excited about it because I know that I have a guy that -— he’s not wasted opportunities in the last two years. He’s worked to get better each and every day for this opportunity if it was to ever present itself, and now it has on a grand stage.”

Added Bercovici, after he had just completed his first practice as the No. 1 quarterback, “If I wasn’t ready right now, it would be pretty obvious to the guys at practice. I think the guys felt nothing but confidence in me after this practice, knowing that there’s no drop-off. If anything, we want to escalate from this.”

In four years, Bercovici has thrown just 24 passes, 17 coming this season mainly in mop-up duty, so while it’s understandable if he had thought about playing elsewhere, the fact that he remained is commendable.

“This world is based off of performance,” he said. “Everybody wants to be in, everybody wants to be the guy, everybody wants to be the one with the cameras in their face. But, basically, I’ve said this before, my sister is a Sun Devil, I’m a Sun Devil, my parents didn’t go to college, but they’re Sun Devils, they’re adopted Sun Devils. I have great fans outside of here. When it’s the spring game and I’ve got little kids coming up to me saying, ‘you’re my favorite quarterback.’ That’s what makes it for me. It hasn’t been as hard as you would perceive it to be.

“I’m ready for this opportunity, and I guess perseverance does work.”

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