Travis Cobb is building a name for himself, one kickoff return at a time.
The Arizona Wildcats junior was a special teams star in Saturday's 36-33 loss to Washington, returning five kicks for 118 yards. Coaches also included Cobb on offense — he ran the ball twice on fly-sweep plays for a total of 6 yards.
"Travis has got great speed, so we're trying to get him more involved," coach Mike Stoops said. "Offensively, we need more explosive plays. So that's what we're working on."
Don't be surprised to see more of Cobb, who …
… might be the Wildcats' fastest player.
Cobb has been timed at 4.31 seconds in the 40-yard dash, numbers that make him — at least on paper — the fastest man on the roster. Devin Ross, Nicolas Grigsby and Bug Wright have also laid claim to the fastest-on-the-field title, but Cobb can't get a race.
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"I told them if they want to race me, let's go," he said.
… gave up baseball for the gridiron.
Cobb, 22, played second base throughout youth baseball and at Rocky Mount (N.C.) High School before giving football a try. Cobb made his high school team as a senior but caught just two passes for 45 yards.
… traveled to Texas for a shot at college football.
Lacking a major college scholarship offer, Cobb enrolled at Blinn College in Brenham, Texas, in August 2007 and tried out for the Bucs' football team. After introducing himself to the Blinn coaches, Cobb lined up to run sprints.
"I slipped, got up and ran a 4.35" (in the 40), Cobb said. "The coaches said, 'Who are you?' I said, 'I've traveled all the way from North Carolina to Texas to do this.'"
… reinvented himself as a kickoff return specialist.
In two seasons at Blinn, Cobb averaged 34 yards per return with a 95-yard touchdown. Cobb believes the ability to return kicks is "more of a God-given thing" than a learned skill.
"The first thing, you've got to see the ball off the kicker's foot. You've got to catch the ball, and when you catch it, you've got to go full-speed and hit the hole," he said. "Once we see the hole, we go straight through the hole. No tippy-toeing, no dancing … just hit the hole."
… chose Arizona over 11 other offers.
Cobb signed with the Wildcats in December with hopes of returning kicks and working into the team's rotation at wide receiver. The team's wide-open offense lured Cobb to Tucson, along with the knowledge that other former Blinn players — guard Herman Hall and linebackers Sterling Lewis and C.J. Parish — were on the roster.
"I felt real comfortable here," Cobb said. "The coaches were trying to show me all the places on campus, and I said, 'No. I just want to see the plays,'" Cobb said. "I love bubble screens. They give you plenty of open field to work with. The plays are real basic and simple, so they're really not that hard to learn."
… changed the momentum against Washington.
Cobb's 49-yard kickoff return to start the second half set up a UA go-ahead touchdown. The play stood as one of the most defining plays of the game until Washington's fourth-quarter scoring bonanza.
Cobb said the momentum actually shifted in the locker room at halftime.
"We said, 'We've got to come out with a different kind of mind-set.' I was thinking to change the offense I had to set tempo. I was thinking about the old days at Blinn, and I got pumped and everything. I got the ball, went with my gut feeling and hit the hole."
Up next
• What: Stanford at Arizona
• When: 4:30 p.m., Saturday
• TV: Versus
• Radio: 1290-AM, 107.5-FM, 990-AM (Spanish)
