Former St. John's standout Winzeler ready for spring season at Findlay

Mar. 8—FINDLAY — Former St. John's Jesuit and current University of Findlay quarterback Matt Winzeler has had a bit of a winding road from high school to the latter part of his college career.

Winzeler chose to go to the University of Toledo as a preferred walk-on but then transferred to ASA College, a junior college in Miami. After spending two years in junior college, he made his way back to northwest Ohio to play for Findlay.

Following a standout season in 2019 when Winzeler passed for 2,577 yards and 27 touchdown passes with just five interceptions and garnered second-team All-Great Midwest Athletic Conference honors, he and his Findlay teammates were in a bit of a holding pattern with the coronavirus outbreak that began in March of 2020.

Winzeler was itching to get back on the field in the fall for his senior season, but now he will get a six-game spring season, as well as an opportunity to return for the fall of 2021 when he hopes to get in a full schedule.

Findlay opens its six-game, conference-only spring slate Saturday at Hillsdale.

"Everybody who got the fall season taken away from them [wanted to be on the field] " Winzeler said. "I think as a team we are really excited to get back to practice with this spring season right around the corner. I don't think its too different. We don't have a non-conference schedule, but we are still doing everything we possibly can with our practice schedule leading into game week and how we would normally prepare."

In 2019, Findlay coach Rob Keys and his staff liked the physical ability they saw from Winzeler when they worked him out on campus in the offseason before he committed to Findlay. Keys, however, was anxious to see how Winzeler would respond in game situations, especially with an opener against Ferris State, the No. 1 team in Division II.

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"We were nervous as a coaching staff about what kind of quarterback do we have, because you really don't know until he gets out on the field," Keys said. "He responded. He had a great game and we ended up losing by a point. You could just tell from that game that this kid was going to be good for us. He was very productive. He's got the team. They followed him after that Ferris State game and have ever since."

Winzeler said he wants to continue to build that trust and those relationships with teammates heading into his senior season. With a condensed spring schedule, Winzeler's main goal is to win every game.

"My main goal is to lead the team to an undefeated season," Winzeler said. "I don't try to put personal accolades at the forefront of my goals. I think that will come if I do what I'm supposed to on a daily and weekly basis to prepare mentally and physically so we can win games."

Keys is glad he has an opportunity to coach Winzeler, especially at a time when the program was looking to fill the void of record-setting passer Rhys Gervais. Keys believes Winzeler's two seasons at junior college aided his development as a player, as well as his maturity.

"I think number one is he got to play," Keys said. "I think for any player to be able to showcase your skills and show that you can produce at a high level, you need to be on the field. At UT he didn't have that opportunity, so he took a shot and ended up playing and got some stuff on tape that you need to see. He made some plays that we need quarterbacks to make in our program. I think it helped from a projection perspective because I didn't have to project. I saw him play junior college football. I think the whole time being in Miami and away from northwest Ohio, I think he matured quite a bit. I think we got him at his best."

Winzeler says it has been a roller-coaster ride of sorts just getting to Findlay, let alone navigating the coronavirus pandemic the past year. He has aspirations of pursuing a professional football career, no matter how that opportunity may present itself.

"My goal and dream has always been to have a chance in the NFL, whether that's as a free agent or however that opportunity comes," Winzeler said. "If that doesn't work, I want to look for opportunities in the CFL or even in the XFL. I want to play professionally. I need to continue to develop as a quarterback and get more solid experience so I have the best chance of making that a reality."

Keys knows it is extremely difficult to make it as a professional at all, let alone as a quarterback. He believes the spring and upcoming fall seasons will determine whether Winzeler has a real shot to make his dreams a reality.

"I've been here 10 years as head coach and we've had a little more than a handful sign NFL contracts," Keys said. "We've had a couple guys in NFL camps. We have the track record with scouts. We get all 32 teams in here. Looking at [Winzeler], he does have exceptional arm talent and he's one of those guys that is a late-bloomer. Right now if you watch him throw he has the talent, it's just a matter of developing the other stuff. He needs to get a little bigger and put on a few pounds to help him at the next level. He still has six games this spring and hopefully 11-plus in the fall to put it on tape. You have to be able to put it on film to show scouts you have the potential. It's tough to play in the league, and it's really tough to play as a quarterback."