HS football player of the week: Mica Mountain DE, TE Jimmy Leon leads championship-hungry Thunderbolts

Mica Mountain two-way star Jimmy Leon rarely leaves the field for the undefeated Thunderbolts.

Leon, 6-4, 245-pound senior tight end and defensive end, has been a leader for a Mica Mountain (7-0) team that’s in position to contend for a Class 4A state championship.

In a rematch of the state semifinals, Mica Mountain thrashed defending state champion Canyon del Oro 50-6 last Friday night. The Thunderbolts have outscored their opponents 272-28 this season.

Leon — who also has scholarships to play football at Arizona State, Portland State, Northern Arizona and New Mexico State — had three catches for 57 yards and two touchdowns to go along with a sack and a forced fumble in Mica Mountain’s most recent triumph, a performance that propelled him to become our latest high school football player of the week.

This season, Leon has 15 catches for 208 yards and eight touchdowns, along with six sacks. Last season, Leon had the third-most sacks (17) in the entire state.

Ahead of Mica Mountain’s road battle at Sahuaro on Friday, Leon joined ESPN Tucson’s “Spears and Ali” to talk about his season and the Thunderbolts’ championship aspirations.

What has been the key to Mica Mountain’s undefeated season?

A: “I think we’ve just been working hard. We know what happened last year in the semifinals, and we have a pretty big amount of seniors and guys coming back, so we have that chip on our shoulder and know what it takes to win the big game and get over that hump that we’ve had. I think it’s just the weight room. We take the weight room very seriously, and that has translated to the field. We just keep that going as much as we can and try to remember the pain we felt last year when we were sent home early.”

How satisfying has it been to see Mica Mountain evolve into one of the top programs in Southern Arizona in the early stages of the school?

A: “It feels great being one of the first full graduating classes that built this program into what it is today and will continue to be. Just looking back in a couple of years, I can say that my teammates built that program.”

How does Mica Mountain balance the one-game-at-a-time approach while also striving to become the first MMHS team to win a state championship?

A: “Just have to take it week-by-week and just control what we have right now in the week that we’re in. Eventually, it will lead us to a state championship. State championships are the end goal, but we have a short-term goal and long-term goal. Our short-term goal is to win the game in front of us and keep what’s in front of us, in front of us and look too far forward. Balancing that has been pretty easy because of the short-term goals as a team and school.”

Back to homepage

Subscriber Login

Keep reading with a digital access subscription.

Subscribe now

What led you to start playing football?

A: “My dad was a baseball guy and my mom played basketball. I didn’t really like baseball, there’s too much standing around. I eventually started watching football and fell in love with it and started playing when I was 4 (years old). Haven’t missed a year.”

Who is your favorite football team and who are some players you idolize?

A: “My favorite team is the 49ers. I love the Niners. I loved watching J.J. Watt with the Houston Texans, Myles Garrett, Nick Bosa. I like watching (Rob Gronkowski), George Kittle, Travis Kelce, all of them I look up to and admire.

“I’ll watch their pass-rush moves and what they’re best at. I’ll try to mimic that a little bit and translate that into my game and how I can make my pass-rush moves better.

“Just watching their film. They’re the best guys in the league, so why not try to be like them?”

What’s better, a Y-option touchdown pass or sacking the quarterback?

A: “I love defense. Just knowing that you can get the quarterback and give the ball back to your offense. It’s one of the best feelings, knowing it’s going to be a pass.”

What do you like to do outside of football?

A: “I just like hanging out with my family and friends, going to the field and getting some work in and relaxing when I have a chance to, because there’s not a lot of free time I have in season. I play basketball for Mica, so just going out and shooting a couple of shots with my brother.

“Going out with my family and friends, I really enjoy that.”

Have you thought about what you want to pursue outside of football?

A: “Wherever I decide to go for football, I’m going to study business and the end goal is own my own business. That’s what I want my career to be.”