St. Joseph Central Catholic's JJ Noriega not alone in juggling multiple positions
JJ Noriega is always in the middle of things.
The St. Joseph Central Catholic senior touches the ball on every snap on offense, would like to touch the ball more while chasing it on every play on defense and even has the ball in his hands before using his foot on special teams.
Nobody does all that. Noriega, however, is center for the offensive line, a defensive end/linebacker and a punter.
Coach Scott Knisely doesn't have the luxury of choosing which Crimson Streaks have a role on both sides of the ball. Noriega alleviates some of Knisely's concerns as the leader of two key position groups.
"He's always around the ball," Knisely said. "He never comes off the field. You don't see too many centers punt. He's a good punter."
Noriega's role was similar as a junior, but he wanted to take on as much as he could.
"He told me he wanted to be better," Knisely said. "He's showing it. He's taken steps to be more physical. He's blocking several guys at the same time. He put in the hard work. The more work you do, the more rewards and success you'll have."
SJCC quarterback Nick Anderson and Noriega are familiar with one another, enabling them to make adjustments.
"It's very important," Anderson said of chemistry. "He's good with snaps. He always blocks until the whistle. He never takes a play off. Each week, it's way more comfortable. Especially when we went under center, we get more comfortable each week."
Noriega, who was homecoming king, knows his window is closing on football and Knisely watched him mature and take ownership.
"The last two years coaching him has been fun and he leads by example for the younger kids," Knisely said. "They look up to him. It's nice to see the impact these guys have on the younger kids in the St. Joe community. He's taken a huge step from last year as a player and as a teammate.
"That's an example he and Jackson [Wright] set to work hard."
As one of 23 on the roster, Noriega is invaluable because of his multi-role reliability. The other 22 wear more than one hat as well.
"They never come off the field," Knisely said. "They play special teams and offense and defense. They don't complain. They tell me they don't want to come off the field. You only get a certain time to play football, they want to take advantage."
The Crimson Streaks try to establish a foundation for Knisely's second tenure with the program.
"We put in so much hard work," Anderson said. "We're not always successful, but we'll keep working hard. Not everybody believes in us, but all that matters is that we as a brotherhood believe in each other. That's all you need."
Saturday's Week 7 game
Hopewell-Loudon (4-2, 2-0) at SJCC (1-5, 0-1)
SJCC finishes the schedule with four straight games in the River Division. It allowed 43 points or more the last three weeks, including a 43-23 setback to Montpelier last week. Hopewell-Loudon, which lost 31-8 to Lima Central Catholic last week, scored at least 27 points and allowed no more than 13 in its wins. Hopewell-Loudon won the River Division last season, including a 37-0 victory over SJCC.
mhorn@gannett.com
419-307-4892
Twitter: @MatthewHornNH
This article originally appeared on Fremont News-Messenger: Noriega at center of things for SJCC offense, defense, special teams
