After awaiting for chance at quarterback, FIU’s Caleb Lynum embracing position switch

Once, as a five-year-old at a roller-skating rink, Caleb Lynum got change for $20 his parents had given him and used all those coins to make sure his friends had whatever they needed from the vending machines.

In the sixth grade, his stepfather, UPS driver Garlan Wilkins, noticed that Lynum’s book bag was unusually heavy, and it was because he had packed extra food so he could give to his buddies at lunchtime.

“He’s always been a kid who takes care of everyone,” said Temia Wilkins, who is Lynum’s mother and a database program manager. “Our family has done Thanksgiving Day community feedings for 15 years. Caleb was taught love and giving at a young age.”

Lynum, now 20, is still doing what’s best for his friends — in this case, the FIU football team. Even though he has a huge arm, he made the difficult decision this summer to switch from quarterback to wide receiver, where his size (6-2, 220 pounds) and speed (4.6 seconds in the 40-yard dash) could be an FIU asset.

Prior to this year, he spent the past two seasons on the bench, waiting for playing time at quarterback that never came.

But now there’s a new opportunity, and FIU coach Butch Davis has guided players through this QB-to-receiver switch before, most recently in 2018, when Maurice Alexander led the Panthers in receptions (40) and also earned first-team All-Conference USA honors as a punt returner.

Davis has compared Lynum’s size and backstory to ex-NFL star Anquan Boldin, who was Florida’s Mr. Football as a prep quarterback at Pahokee High but was then converted to receiver at Florida State.

“It makes me feel kind of good, but I like to stay level-headed,” Lynum said when asked about Davis’ praise. “When I start to make plays in games, then I can say, ‘OK, I see that’.”

Lynum said playing receiver is much harder work physically than quarterback.

“Playing QB, I’d have a shirt half full of sweat after practice,” he said. “Now, it’s a full shirt of sweat.”

ROCKET ARM

Caleb Joshua Lynum — he was named after two men from the Biblical time of Moses — is from Leesburg, 45 miles north of Orlando.

The youngest of three kids, Lynum is a country guy — a hunter (deer mostly) and fisherman — and he also has an upbeat personality.

“He’s a comedian,” his mother said. “He likes all kind of music. Turn on the radio, and he’s singing.”

Lynum started his high school football career at First Academy in Orlando and then played his final prep season at East Ridge in Clermont.

“I had seen video of him at First Academy, which is a small, private school, and Caleb looked like Cam Newton,” said Justin Robinson, who coached Lynum at East Ridge. “He was bigger than everyone else. He was bouncing off tacklers and throwing footballs 100 mph.”

Robinson, who also coached NFL quarterback Trevor Siemian, said Lynum’s throwing ability is the real deal.

“Caleb can throw a football 70 yards with no problem — I’ve seen him do it,” Robinson said. “His arm is one of the strongest I’ve ever seen. It’s stronger than Trevor’s. And Caleb also has great athleticism — he’s a freak.”

The fact that Lynum never got a chance to throw a collegiate pass puzzles Robinson.

“I’m excited about what he can do at receiver, but I’m also surprised someone hasn’t figured out how to get him on the field at quarterback,” said Robinson, now a quality control coach at the University of Louisiana-Lafayette. “The offensive coordinator side of me would’ve loved to see Caleb play quarterback. But I trust [the FIU coaches] and lean to whatever they think is best.”

FIU offensive coordinator Rich Skrosky agrees Lynum has the raw tools to play quarterback.

“From the day he showed up, arm strength was never a problem,” Skrosky said. “The way the ball comes off his hand is pretty.”

Still, Skrosky said Lynum wasn’t helped by playing small-school competition early in his prep career, and then he didn’t play up to his ability last year when he got chances in scrimmages.

At receiver, Skrosky said Lynum knows the assignments due to his time at quarterback but still needs technique work.

“He needs to learn to use his strength,” Skrosky said. “He’s like a Greek god — muscles on top of muscles. His hands are good, but he has to show in a game he can catch in traffic and under duress.

“We usually play four to six receivers a year, and he will be in that mix.”

ALL FOR ONE

Lynum, a sports management major, is such a mature and independent thinker that he only told his parents about his position switch after he had made the decision.

“He told me, ‘Mom, I’ve prayed about it,” she said, “and this is what I’m going to do.”

Lynum, who has gained 30 pounds of muscle since he signed with FIU in February of 2018, said he has kept a positive attitude throughout his FIU experience.

“I just had to swallow my pride,” Lynum said of giving up on quarterback. “I’m helping the team, and that’s the most important thing.”