Editorβs note: Over the next three weeks, the Star is counting down the top high school football players in Southern Arizona. Up today: Marana quarterback Elijah Joplin.
Name: Elijah Joplin
Rundown: The 6-foot-1, 180-pound Joplin will start at quarterback for Marana.
Who he is: The blueprint to becoming a great quarterback at Marana High School was created by former Tiger Trenton Bourguet, whoβs now a walk-on-turned-scholarship quarterback for the Arizona State Sun Devils.
Bourguet, who was named the Starβs No. 1 Southern Arizona high school football player entering the 2018 season, amassed 7,612 yards and a Class 5A state record 89 touchdowns. During his junior season, Bourguet threw for 2,984 yards and 38 touchdowns. His touchdown mark in 2017 was more than Kedon Slovis (USC), Jack Miller (Ohio State), Tyler Shough (Texas Tech), Jacob Conover (BYU) and Jack Plummer (Purdue), when they were some of the most well-regarded prep players in Arizona.
Long story short, Bourguetβs stat-stuffing, eyebrow-raising career may never be replicated again, but Maranaβs newest star quarterback Elijah Joplin is hoping to have a similar career trajectory.
βI try to model my game after him. Heβs been a mentor,β Joplin said of Bourguet. βHeβs such a great leader on and off the field. He would always rally everyone together and always make it about the team.β
Unfortunately for Joplin, once he found a groove as a sophomore starting quarterback, the 2020 season was shuttered for COVID-19 concerns.
Joplin wasnβt always the guy at Marana. He was the backup quarterback to begin the season and was installed in the game during the second half of the season-opening 18-6 loss to Maricopa. The following week, Joplin completed 19 of 27 passes for 282 yards, two touchdowns and an interception, while rushing for two touchdowns.
βI thought it was in the best interest for the team to give him an opportunity. β¦ I just wanted to give the offense a spark, and Elijah came in and got us in the end zone with a touchdown to Isaiah Roebuck,β said then-head coach Louie Ramirez, whoβs now an assistant coach at Scottsdale Saguaro.
βBeing a weird year that it was, I gave Elijah the green light and we scored 35 points against Walden Grove with Elijah at the helm. He just gave another element to our offense.β
In a 32-27 win over Tucson High, Joplin went 10-for-11 passing for 122 yards and a touchdown.
Playing quarterback wasnβt always Joplinβs aspirations during his youth football days. Unlike his father Lee Joplin, who was a standout linebacker at Amphitheater, Elijah wanted to be a running back or a wide receiver, but since he was the βonly player on the team who could throw the ball,β he was βthrown intoβ playing quarterback. He loved every aspect of the position.
βYou control the game and youβre the guy, which I like,β he said.
Now the leader of Maranaβs offense with a full season to look forward to, Joplin is adjusting to new head coach Philip Steward, a former standout linebacker at the University of Houston, and his offensive system, which Ramirez expects to be a trouble-free transition.
βIβm just excited to see him flourish and develop in Coach Stewardβs offense, and just continue to develop as a player as he transitions going into his junior year, because the skyβs the limit for him with the offensive weapons he has surrounding him at Marana,β Ramirez said.
Proof heβs good: Not only is Joplin a star quarterback at Marana, heβs also a member of the Tigersβ basketball squad and a high-jumper for their track and field program.
Heβs also tough as nails.
βFirst time playing quarterback, he takes a sack and tries to catch himself rather than taking the hit and falls and breaks his finger,β Ramirez said.
βHe comes out of the game and says, βCoach, I think Iβm good for the next play.β He hands the ball off and then comes to me and says, βCoach, I canβt even grip the ball right now.β So, seeing him do that, going 11-for-12 (passing) and putting us in the end zone, taking command of the huddle β those two-and-a-half games really just showed that the future is going to be bright for Marana, knowing what heβs been able to do thus far.β
He said it: βElijah is a leader, guys look up to him, guys respect and listen to him, heβs extremely decisive and he can command a huddle with his presence. Heβs got that swagger to him and is very even-keeled. I think a big part of that is his basketball background. I mean, heβs a hooper. Heβs got that ice-in-his-veins-shooter mentality and he translates that to the football field, which I love.β β Ramirez
