West Boca star running back Javian Mallory won Palm Beach County High School Player of the Year on Monday night at the Lou Groza Awards in West Palm Beach.
The four-star running back, who has offers from Georgia, Ohio State, and FSU, among others, is the first West Boca athlete to win the prestigious award.
Mallory joins a special group of players who have won this award, including Lamar Jackson, Jordan Travis, Anquan Boldin, Jacoby Brissett, Fred Taylor, and many other stars who played high school football in Palm Beach County.
“I am very blessed to be in the position I am in now,” Mallory said after winning the award. “I worked very hard to get where I am now. I just want to thank my family, my coaches, my teammates, everybody that’s helped me.”
Deservedly so, the Lou Groza Award committee selected Mallory over Spanish River wide receiver Blake Wallace, Benjamin wide receiver Jacob Cosby-Mosley, and Jupiter quarterback Luke Douglas.
Mallory rushed for over 1400 yards (a school record) this season with 18 touchdowns. He also did damage through the air, hauling in 22 catches for 438 yards and six touchdowns.
Mallory really took Palm Beach County by storm against Blanche Ely when he rushed for a school-record 345 yards and three touchdowns.
“I felt like my season was good,” Mallory said on his performance this year, which helped the Bulls make the playoffs for the first time since 2013. “I put work in throughout the offseason to get where I am now. There’s always room to progress and I feel like next year will be even better.”
The selection process goes as follows, per the Lou Groza Award website:
“ESPN West Palm, who’s broadcast team covers the local football program all season, provides the nominees for each award. At the annual Lou Groza Awards banquet in December the top three finalists in each category are recognized and the winner is announced. The Palm Beach County Player of the Year Award is given out annually to the top prep football player in Palm Beach County. The award is open to players of all grade levels and school classifications.”
West Boca head coach Dylan Potts was also up for a Lou Groza Award (Palm Beach County Coach of the Year), but the committee chose Jupiter head coach Jason Kradman.
“Coach Potts really changed the program around,” Mallory said when talking about what Coach Potts meant to him and the program. “He had a dream, he had a vision. He told us last year that if we followed and trusted him, big things would happen. I feel like Coach Potts is the man that’s really behind everything. I’m just thankful to have Coach Potts in my life.”
West Boca last won a Lou Groza Award in 2013 when Alphonso Moran won Coach of the Year.
Mallory is only a sophomore (class of 2026), and he now has the chance to win Player of the Year two more times (three total), something that has never been done before.
