Tom Jura 1998-00

School Record:

Rushing Yards Single Game: 273

Stats:

1998:

1999:

2000: 1,207 Yards Rushing/ 15 TD's Rushing/ 1 TD Reception

Career:

Articles:

Tom Jura

SCHOOL: Thomas Jefferson

WHO IS HE? A 5-foot-11, 205-pound senior fullback/linebacker for the Jaguars football team.

THIS WEEK: Jura ran 23 times for a school record 273 yards and three touchdowns in his team's 35-8 win over Uniontown Friday. He also had two sacks and one interception in the game.

SEASON: Jura has rushed for 479 yards on 52 carries (9.2 yards per carry) and scored six touchdowns in four games.

WINTER OF REST: Jura is a two-year starter in football but played in only nine of the team's 12 games last year because of a herniated disc in his back. He was injured during training camp and then returned to the lineup in the fourth game of the year. After the season, he took some time off to rehab the injury and make sure it was 100 percent healed before he started working out in the spring for this season.

"I wrestled in my sophomore year, but didn't want to risk re-injury so I quit last year," said Jura. "I just basically went to therapy and rested until it was completely healed and strong again. Then I started lifting weights and conditioning in the spring, so once training camp hit, I was ready."

This winter, he plans on wrestling again and will most likely drop back down to 189 pounds.

STRENGTH IS STRENGTH: Although Jura has plenty of athletic ability, his best attribute is his physical strength and size. He runs the 40 yard dash in 4.6 seconds, but he gets many of his yards by lowering his shoulder and crushing people. He recently participated in a liftathon and bench pressed 315 pounds.

"He's a beast," said Thomas Jefferson coach Bill Cherpak. "He is so big and strong, he doesn't need much of a hole to make some yards."

FUTURE PLANS: Jura has a 3.8 GPA and carries advanced placement classes in physics and history, but he is undecided about what he wants to pursue in college. He is hoping to attend an Ivy League or Patriot League school and play football. His older brother, Mike, is an outside linebacker and 4.0 student at Carnegie Mellon University, which is an option that Tom is considering.

"He is such an outstanding student that he is in a unique situation," said Cherpak. "He could play at a lot of places, but he wants to make sure that he gets the best education possible because that is his priority."