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Beck leaves lasting impression on Pac-10 coaches


By RON GUILD, Sports Editor

Story Published: Nov 24, 2009 at 12:35 PM PST


One of the great individual seasons in the City Section football history came to an end Friday.


It didn’t go unnoticed, either.


With college coaches Pete Carroll of USC and Washington’s Steve Sarkisian on the sidelines, Jordan High School senior Deshawn Beck exhibited his immense all-around skills by completing 16 of 29 passes for 120 yards, rushing 25 times for another 120 yards and catching a pass for 10 yards in a 33-0 loss to Narbonne in the first round of the City Section Division I playoffs.


The two Pac-10 coaches had to be impressed with the unsigned Beck, who is being recruited as an athlete for the next level. At this point, Arizona is tops on his list, although things could change as the recruiting process heats up over the next couple of months.


“The kid had a phenomenal all-around year and got a chance to show it front of Pete Carroll and Steve Sarkisian,” Jordan coach Elijah Asante said. “He did it all with his running, passing and receiving.”


A four-year starter and one of only five seniors on a young Bulldog team, Beck carried them to a 6-5 record, remarkable considering the caliber of schedule they faced. They opened with neighborhood rival Locke, then followed with games against such powers as Esperanza, St. Bonaventure and Mater Dei.


“That’s only going to help Deshawn in college because he’s never going to be overwhelmed by the caliber of competition he faces,” Asante said. “In the preseason we always look for the highest-ranked opponents we can find.”


Narbonne coach Manuel Douglas made no bones about his team’s area of focus while preparing for Jordan.


“Our goal was to corral him by keeping him in front of us,” Douglas said. “Deshawn Beck is a dynamic player, no doubt about it. He’d be one of the top players in our league (Marine) and he’s one of the top players in the City.”


Asante is expecting Beck, a certain All-City selection, and sophomore defensive back Patrick Wooten to earn all-state honors. Beck has already been selected the Eastern League MVP for this year.


Wooten, All-City as a freshman, recorded 106 solo tackles and assisted on 46 others. His 152 total tackles this year go along with his City-leading 150 a year ago.


Here are Beck’s final numbers for 2009:

Passing: 82 of 145 for 1,166 yards, 6 TDs

Rushing: 172 carries, 2,031 yards, 9 TDs

Receiving: 14 catches, 181 yards, 2 TDs

Kickoff returns: 14 for 412 yards, 29.4 avg.

That works out to 3,790 yards and 17 TDs. He also played defensive back and handled punting duties.


Source: WaveNewspapers.com