Dan Stickradt
Sports Scene
Dan.Stickradt@northoaklandsports.com
Twitter: @LocalSportsFans
DeJuan Jones has grown up in a different era for youth soccer players in the state of Michigan.
With many of the state’s top players being involved with the U.S. Soccer Academy, Jones has taken the old-school approach to his development., and it has worked for him.
He was recently named the 38th Mr. Soccer, a prestigious title given annually to the state’s top high school soccer player by the Michigan High School Soccer Coaches Association.
“It is quite an honor,” said Jones. “I had thought about winning it. But the main goal this season was winning another state championship.”
This season, Jones led the Trojans’ potent attack with 25 goals, one hat trick, 15 assists, and 65 total points. He earned the Lansing Area Player of the Year Award as both a junior and as a senior, was all-state first team Division 2 as a junior and senior, and was named to the 2014 all-state Dream Team for the first time this fall.
He became the Trojans’ highest-ranked player to date. “We’ve had a some great players over the years, and certainly DeJuan ranks right up there,” said veteran East Lansing coach Nick Archer, who began the school’s soccer program back in 1977 when only 20 schools in the state sponsored the sport. “But he’s our first Mr. Soccer — and he’s definitely worthy of the award.”
After his team was upset in the regional final by Petoskey as a sophomore, Jones led East Lansing to a 2-0 win over Spring Lake in the 2013 Division 2 state final. This season, he spearheaded a comeback which ended in a 4-3, double-overtime victory over Cranbrook Kingswood in the final — the school’s fifth state title in seven trips.
“We have won state championships before. We have a lot of history, but we never won two in a row until this year,” offered Jones. “We wanted to become the first [class] to do that .”
Jones said he had he option to take the U.S. Academy route. The Academy became a 10-month commitment in 2012, causing many of the state’s elite to leave the high school scene. Jones did not make that choice. “I didn’t want to give up playing for Coach Archer and East Lansing with my friends,” he said. “This was something we dreamed about growing up, winning a state championship. Now we’ve won back-to-back [titles]. I didn’t want to give that up.
“I also didn’t want to give up playing for my club team, TNT Dynamite. We have a really good club team with a lot of talented players on that team,” said Jones. “I really like playing with some of the best [in the Lansing area].”
Jones grew up playing soccer and running sprints in track and field. He ran for East Lansing for two years — but opted to concentrate on soccer when conflicts with games, meets, and practices arose. “It got to be too much,” he said.
The speedy Jones was also selected to compete in the NHSSCA All-America contest in Raleigh, N.C., Nov. 11-13, where he suited up for the West squad. He was one of 44 players selected for the annual classic. It was an opportunity for him to play with some of the best soccer players in the country, and he was honored to be chosen to participate.
DeJuan Jones made a decision and stuck with it., and now, he is reaping plenty of awards — even if he did choose to go against the grain.