AP photo Former Nashua South and UNH QB Trevor Knight will be playing professionally in France beginning in January.

NASHUA – If you see Trevor Knight watching one of those self-taught language videos to learn French in the next few months, don’t be shocked.

That’s because the former Nashua High School South and University of New Hampshire quarterback, who doesn’t speak a word of French, has signed to play professionally for the Blue Stars de Marseille of the French professional league known as The Ligue Elite De Football Americain.

“It is with great pride that we announce the signing of Trevor Knight in Marseille,” the team said on its website and in a Facebook posting on Friday. “Originally from in Southern New Hampshire (USA), Trevor will have the heavy task of following Chase Burton, who had been able to make the most of our big blue nation. …

“Trevor is mobile, which is a threat to both the air game and the ground game,” the team said in its post. “He strengthens a young attack that could give the spinning to the defense of the French Elite teams.”

This gives Amherst’s Knight, who had a fabulous career at UNH before missing a lot of action last year with a bad shoulder, a chance to continue his football career.

How did this all happen? Credit social media. Knight got a Facebook message out of the blue (no pun intended) from Blue Stars offensive coordinator and scouting director Mele J. Mosqueda, an American born former player in the European leagues who turned to coaching in Europe after two torn ACLs ended his playing career.

“He kind of sold me on it, it’s just a beautiful location, and the football team is a very young team with a lot of talent,” said Knight, who feels the competition level is on par with U.S. Division II or III colleges. “It’s great that there’s an American there as well; it’d be tough for me to go there with no other American.”

Knight, in fact, doesn’t even know how Mosqueda found out about him. “To be honest I’m not even sure,” Knight said. “I should ask him that. … I knew they played football in Europe but I didn’t know what the whole deal was.”

The team’s statement went on to say that Knight is “a recruit of choice for our offensive coordinator Mele J. Mosqueda, who is looking forward to his arrival.”

Knight has watched film on line of the league and Blue Star games. The team will play about 12 games during the course of a season, but Knight won’t leave for France until early January for training camp. The playoffs begin in early June.

Knight sat down with his parents, Scott (Nashua South coach) and Tricia Knight, and they agreed it was a good opportunity. Certainly what helped is besides his salary, the team will pay for his living and transportation expenses.

“I want to keep playing football somehow,” Knight said. “You’re living abroad for free, while also playing football and getting a salary. I don’t know how it could get better.”

But in the meantime, after the disappointment of not being signed by any NFL or CFL team in the spring, Knight started his own quarterback school, TK’s QB Academy, as he has been training high school quarterbacks all over the area. He is going to take that over to France with him and train young athletes there while still using some internet software apps and video to work with his Nashua area clients.

“It would kind of build the brand even more,” said Knight, who is also going to be an assistant on this fall’s South footblal team, working with his father. “I’ll do clinics around Europe, maybe go to Switzerland for a whole weekend and run a clinic.

“And, I’ve invested so much time in the guys here, I don’t want to just say, ‘Hey, good luck,'” Knight said, “and leave them hanging for six months. I definitely still want to coach the guys I’m coaching now.”

He’d have time, as he said practices are only three days a week for the Blue Stars.

The team also mentioned how it apparently approves of Knight’s idea to continue his school overseas and will help him with resources, etc. As he said, “Don’t say anything more. I’m sold.”.

“Founder of a quarterback Academy in his hometown, he will also come to frame and strengthen the learning of our young talents,” the post said.

Knight will have big shoes to fill. Last year’s QB Burton threw for 2,496 yards and a whopping 32 touchdowns, making him the French league’s top rated quarterback. He was a former top Division III QB at Franklin (Ind.) College and is now an assistant coach at Kentucky Wesleyan.

Knight was disappointed that he wasn’t able to continue playing professionally in the U.S.or Candada in the spring.

“I kind of understand it,” Knight said. “Especially being a small guy from a small school in New Hampshire. I would’ve definitely had some opportunities if I wasn’t injured (his senior year at UNH). I didn’t play much. I had one big breakout year and the last year was nothing.”

Knight has been working out constantly, and Scott Knight has been training him a bit at South. He says he’s not just 100 percent now, but “110 percent. I feel better than I did. I feel awesome right now, I feel fast.”

The team injected some humor into their announcement of Knight.

“Only one flaw for our new quarterback,” it said. “He’s a Patriots and Tom Brady fan but it will soon be forgotten when he gets the crowd of the Delort Stadium (cheering).

“I’m real excited, I’ve got a good plan ahead,” Knight said, not just for his playing but his private coaching business as well. “Two months ago, I was very unsure of what I was doing.

“But oh my God, my favorite thing to do is compete.That’s why I picked up summer league basektball. I’ve been finding all different ways to compete. When it’s (his college career) over, I’m like ‘Ive got to keep going, I can’t just say ‘That was a good career.’ I have more energy than the high school kids.”

Meanwhile, how’s his French? Knight said the team is only allowed by rule two Americans on the field at once.

“I don’t know a single word,” he said, “Well, I think I know how to say ‘My name is.'”

But he sure knows how to throw a football, and now has a chance to do it again, get paid, and see Europe at the same time.

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