Brooks Bentley aims to be next in family to make it in college football
VENICE, Fla. (BVM) — Most top recruits usually get to start talking with SEC coaches as they reach the middle and latter stages of high school. For Brooks Bentley, he got to grow up with one.
Brooks’ father, Bobby, has had recent stints at South Carolina and Auburn and is now part of the staff at the University of South Florida. Brooks has been able to see firsthand the dedication required in order to succeed.
“It’s beyond helpful,” Brooks said. “After every practice, we watch film. After every game, we watch film. Every time he’s free, we’re watching football and learning something. It only makes me better. I’ve been able to learn so much from him.”
The film watching has paid off for Brooks, as he is now a three-star quarterback in the 2023 class for Venice High School with offers to play Division I football.
With Brooks’ dad being a collegiate coach, the Bentley family has done their fair share of moving, spending time in Alabama, South Carolina and now Florida. While it was tough initially for Brooks, it has been an overall beneficial experience.
“It’s honestly a good thing,” Brooks said. “You get to experience more things in life. You get to meet more people. I think it’s honestly a good thing the way I look at it now.”
The Bentley family moved to Florida before Brooks’ junior season where he played at Gaither High School, then later transferring to Venice in the spring of 2022 seeking a fresh start. As a junior, he threw for 1,893 yards and had 18 touchdowns.
Brooks emerged as a leader for the team, guiding Gaither to the playoffs. The leadership qualities that he showcased were more traits that he picked up from his father.
“No matter what happens, there’s always going to be ups and downs,” Brooks said. “If you start getting down, your teammates are going to follow you. Once that happens, your season is going to go downhill.”
Another big role model in Brooks’ life is his older brother Jake, who played at South Carolina, Utah and South Alabama before joining the coaching staff at Florida Atlantic. With Jake experiencing multiple injuries throughout his career, including tearing his ACL in eighth and ninth grade, Brooks saw what a top-tier work ethic looked like.
“He taught me to work harder in every situation,” Brooks said. “Seeing how great he wanted to be really wore off on me and just told me that I had to be the best I can.”
As far as the recruiting process goes, he has plenty of experience in his corner, with Jake being a former four-star recruit and his father being named on Rivals’ Top 25 recruiter list for 2019.
“I try not to focus on it that much,” Brooks said. “I just worry about getting better every day and helping my team.”
One way Brooks’ looks to help his new team is by becoming a team captain before the season starts, hopefully leading to team success.
Brooks was a part of a championship team his sophomore year in basketball, but has never achieved that in football. He wants nothing more than to be able to experience what he once did with the Indian football program this fall.
