With his blazing speed, the Woodbridge football coaches slotted Justin Blake at receiver when he showed up as a first-time player as a freshman two years ago.
However, in August they decided to move the now bigger and stronger junior to running back so he would receive more touches.
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Good idea.
Blake showed glimpses early on and broke out with a signature, stunning performance in last week’s 41-14 win over Linden. Blake rambled for 292 rushing yards on just 13 carries with four touchdowns.
Fans voted Blake as the MyCentralJersey.com’s Big Central Conference Readers’ Choice Football Player of the Week in an online poll for his efforts.
He now has 784 rushing yards on 76 carries for the season while also playing outside linebacker and kicking (20-for-21 in extra points).
“He’s certainly blossomed into a really good player and he’s still learning,” Woodbridge coach Joe Goerge said of the former soccer player. “He worked very hard in the offseason in the weight room, got a lot stronger, got a lot faster. He’s got that ability to put his foot in the ground and he can really, really get moving after that. He’s learning to lower his pad level a little bit, running a little bit harder that way.”
Goerge noted that the 6-foot, 185-pound Blake “has the ability to change 10 (yards) or 12 into 40, 50 or more.” That was evident against Linden when he scored on runs of 43, 56, 63 and 89 yards.
“He was receptive (to the position change) and kind of never looked back,” Goerge said. “He’s a really good kid, easy kid to coach. He’s here every day, works hard. He’s willing to work at it. He has a nice attitude and very willing to play wherever. As he said to me, wherever I can help the team.”
This article originally appeared on MyCentralJersey.com: Football Player of the Week is Woodbridge's Justin Blake, Week 7