Leon Washington Jr.
ATH
5-8, 170 lbs
Tallahassee, FL
North Florida Christian High School
Florida Atlantic football got themselves an interesting commitment from Leon Washington Jr., who will make his way to Boca Raton as a part of the Class of 2024.
“The coaching staff has a great resume. With the guys they have coached, I know they can coach me to be better,” Washington Jr. said.
“Coach [Tom] Herman is very energetic, which I like; and my position coach, coach [David] Beaty, is a great guy and I’m a fan of him.”
He is the son of former two-time Pro Bowler Leon Washington Sr., who played as a running back and return specialist for eight years in the National Football League from 2006 to 2014.
Teams he was a part of include the New York Jets, Seattle Seahawks, New England Patriots, and the Tennessee Titans as he returned to the Jets to be their current assistant special teams coach.
Committing to the Owls on Thursday, Washington Jr. showcases an amazing skillset on both sides of the ball at North Florida Christian High School. As a running back and wide receiver, he accumulated 1,005 receiving yards and 378 rushing yards and a combined total of 25 touchdowns in 12 games for the Eagles last year.
On defense, he has a solid tackling ability as he made 47 tackles (30 solo). He also caught four interceptions, which he gained up to 138 yards.
His performances also garnered him some recognition from local media, particularly the Tallahassee Democrat.
They awarded him their Big Bend Preps Athlete of the Week last October following a marvelous performance against Maclay High School, where he put up 118 receiving yards and three touchdowns while recording 26 rushing yards and a touchdown in a 58-7 blowout victory for the Eagles.
His junior highlights from 2022 can be seen below:
Washington Jr. is now the 15th member of FAU’s expanding 2024 class. He chose the Owls over USF, Mississippi State, and Austin Peay as they were in his Top 4. Other programs who were interested in his services include FIU, FAMU, Jacksonville State, and Campbell among others.
“I feel like they can take me to the next level. I want to get drafted to the NFL and that’s the potential I see with them,” Washington Jr. said.
He is also the second player to join the Owls as an ATH next year, putting himself with recent commit Kyle Boylston of Jacksonville’s Trinity Christian Academy. Should he play as a receiver with Beaty as his position coach, he would be the first recruit at that spot when he arrives in 2024.