RayJaun Stelly, The Seattle Medium
Standing at 5-foot-7 and weighing 180 pounds, junior running back Jeremiah Burroughs has now become a focal point within Eastside Catholic’s team. Coming off a heartbreaking loss to Yelm in last year’s 3A State Championship game, Burroughs and the Crusaders are on a hunt to get back to the promised land of winning a state championship.
Although he made the varsity team last year as a sophomore, Burroughs saw limited playing time on a very deep team that went 12-1 overall and finished 7-0 in the Metro League. Even with limited opportunities at the varsity level, Burroughs displayed glimpses of what his team, fans, and opponents could look forward to as he continues to evolve and expand his skillset.
But now as a junior, Burroughs has earned his spot as the starting running back on Eastside Catholic’s depth chart and is living up to it.
“It feels pretty good, God has allowed me to work all offseason. He continues to give me strength, courage, and vision on the field, allowing me to maintain my position and excel at it,” said Burroughs. “It is still hitting me sometimes, being the starting running back and going from just suiting up each game hoping to play, to having the chance to change the game when I get the ball.”
The journey has been a testament to Burroughs staying true to his work ethic and trusting the process. Understanding that his time was bound to arrive, Burroughs hasn’t lost focus on continuing to put in the work to become one of the best running backs in the state of Washington.
“I have never been the fastest, or the strongest when it came to sports in general,” said Burroughs. “It instilled a certain work ethic in me, that no one can outwork me and it has helped me get this far.”
“After losing the state championship last year, it finally gave me the push I needed to make the changes to my body and my abilities,” he added.
Eastside Catholic’s season has been a rollercoaster. The Crusaders lost their season opener on the road to Orange Lutheran High School from California, then they went on a three-game win streak, during which time their opponent didn’t score, before losing to O’Dea in a mid-season showdown of perennial Metro League powers.
Falling to third in the Metro League standings, and up against Garfield High School, the Crusaders were in need of a bounce-back win in order to stay on course for a favorable playoff seed.
Hosting the Bulldogs, Eastside Catholic dominated on both sides of the ball, as they posted an impressive 31-10 victory. Just as impressive, Burroughs led all rushers with a career-high 135 yards rushing and one touchdown.
Attributing the results of this game to his hard work in the offseason, Burroughs says that the game and the moment were surreal.
“Honestly, it feels unbelievable,” said Burroughs about his performance. “I just need to continue to fuel my motivation each and every week with the state championship in mind.”
“One of my coaches that helped me this offseason was Anthony Gaynes; he has and is a big part of helping me develop my game and get better each week, as well as my running backs coach Dave Plotts. But none of my goals I set for myself each game would be possible without the lineman, so my thanks goes out to them,” added Burroughs.
While Burroughs understands that personal improvement can help his team, he also understands that football is a team sport where you must rely on your teammates as much as they rely on you. In order for Eastside Catholic to put themselves in a position to avenge their loss in the state title game from last season, he and his teammates understand that they need to push each other to continue to improve both individually and collectively if they want to be successful in pursuing their dreams.
“[I’m] just trying to play for my team and play for my brothers, I think both my individual and team goals are important,” said Burroughs. “As an individual, my personal goals help the team overall to an extent, but people make mistakes when they let it go to their heads about themselves and they lose sight of the overall goal, which is playing together to win a title and leave a legacy that can be remembered.”
Coming into his own, Burroughs and his Eastside Catholic teammates are currently 4-2, and are looking to finish the regular season with another three-game win streak before playoffs. The second step in that journey is set for this week when they face Seattle Prep, as their quest for redemption continues.
