AJC player of the year: LaGrange's Tray Blackmon
By CURTIS BUNN
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 12/17/04
BRANT SANDERLIN / AJC
Linebacker Tray Blackmon had 115 tackles, eight sacks and six fumble recoveries during the Grangers' run to the Class AAA title.
LaGrange -- Walking through the halls of LaGrange High three years ago, Thomas Crocker noticed a student he had taught in fifth grade at the local elementary school.
Tray Blackmon had not played much football when Crocker first saw him in his physical education class. But Crocker, then the Grangers' linebackers coach, saw in the 10-year-old athlete a potential for excellence.
Crocker might not have been more right about anything else.
Blackmon grew from that kid with little organized football experience into the 2004 AJC high school player of the year.
And like his play, Blackmon did not just show up on the scene; he burst onto it. A linebacker with the speed of a sprinter and the tenacity of a hurricane, the senior who chose Auburn over Georgia, Florida State and LSU. He had had 115 tackles, eight sacks, 12 tackles for losses, two forced fumbles and six fumble recoveries, one for a touchdown during the Grangers' run to the Class AAA title. He's ranked the No. 6 player in the nation by Scout.com.
"Tray's just an explosive player," coach Steve Pardue said. "You don't see a lot of guys who can change the game on the defensive side of the ball. But Tray's one of those guys."
Blackmon's speed as a linebacker has been significant to his disrupting opponents' offenses. He runs a 4.49 in the 40 and gets down the line of scrimmage in a flash. When he arrives to the ball, the runner goes down, often quite forcefully.
"Just explosive," Crocker said. "If you're looking for a word to describe Tray as a player, explosive is it. He is a one-man bunch. You don't have to worry about his motor running. It's always running. He just loves to play the game."
His propensity for game-turning plays was a big reason LaGrange hardly was challenged during its undefeated season.
"Almost every play, the quarterback stops what he's doing at the line of scrimmage to point out where Tray is," Crocker said. "The offense made a big deal out of making sure to block him, which left lots of guys open to make plays. And Tray still made more than his share of plays."
He is 6 feet, 185 pounds, and loves contact. Actually, he initiates it.
"I just love being able to run around and be physical," Blackmon, 18, said. "That's football to me."
"He's 180 pounds but he hits like he's 225 pounds," Crocker said. "He plays bigger than he is."
Although blessed with the skills to play both sides of the ball, Blackmon prefers defense, even though he scored a touchdown as a running back against Harris County.
"It was great to score and contribute to the team that way," he said. "But it's way better to sack the quarterback than scoring a touchdown for me. It's a tremendous feeling taking him down."
Pardue considered using Blackmon in the backfield because, "Man, he can really run," Pardue said. "I believe he could make a special running back. But we didn't try him there because we like our backs -- and because he was such a factor on defense."
Blackmon traveled a long road to get where he is today. As a ninth-grader, he was confused on the field, Pardue said. Blackmon was better as a sophomore, but really bolted into something special when he was moved from outside linebacker to inside midway through his junior year.
"Since then," Pardue said, "he's been phenomenal. He hasn't had a bad game since."
"Playing inside linebacker gave me a chance to be more physical," said Blackmon, who visited Auburn last week. "And I could use my speed against the lineman and my eyes to read the quarterback the running back. So, it helped me a lot.
"At first, I was around the play a lot but I wasn't making the plays. Being inside, I'm able to get there and to make the tackle, too."
Impressively, he has had sensational games on the grandest stages. In the successive LaGrange championship games, Blackmon was dominant.
"The bigger the game, the better he plays," Pardue said.
Pardue said he's most proud of how Blackmon grew into a quiet leader during his time at LaGrange.
"He leads more by example," Pardue said. "He's not a rah-rah guy. He's a hard-working player who inspires his teammates. And he's a leader in school. All his teachers and all the administrators love him. He always has a big smile on his face. He's come a real long way. A lot has been thrown on him, but I'm proud of how he's handled it. One day, no one really knows about you. The next day, your photo is on the cover of a magazine. That's a lot, but he's still the same guy."
Blackmon attributed his off-the-field growth to his on-the-field success. As his football got better, he got more comfortable as a person and a student.
"Football has been big for me," he said. "I figured out what it took to be a great person more than I did being a great athlete. That's what's really important."
