The Permian coaching staff wanted running back Juzstyce Lara on the football field.
Lara, without a doubt, wanted to be there.
His hamstring said not so fast.
Lara runs track in the spring, competing in the 100-meters and as part of the 400-meter relay team.
But he pulled a hamstring during the 2022 track season and was forced to the sideline from February through June after trying to come back too quickly and turning the pull into a full tear.
“There was a lot of stress,” Lara said. “I was always thinking about whether I was going to be able to run like I used to.
“It was when I started doing the speed and strength training in the summer, that’s when I started to feel more comfortable.”
When the 2022 football season started, Lara, a junior, was on the field, splitting time with senior running back Jonathan Viscaino behind quarterback Rodney Hall.
That changed Week 3 on a little trip to face Amarillo Tascosa.
“At the beginning of the year, the hamstring was a concern and Jonathan got the majority of the reps,” Permian head coach Jeff Ellison said. “In the Tascosa game, Juzstyce got the majority of the reps.
“We knew just from last year that he was going to get the majority of the carries, he just had to be healthy. We had our eye on him because he played a little his sophomore year.”
The 2021 season was a dress rehearsal for Lara, who had a limited number of carries (65) through the first eight games before injuring his collarbone and missing the rest of the season.
Add in the hamstring injury just three months later and it was a year to forget for the Panthers’ sprinter.
When he did get the chance this season to take on a starring role in the backfield, he grabbed it and ran … literally.
Lara became the workhorse for the Permian offense, with nearly 200 carries for 1,034 yards and 23 touchdowns.
Those stats are the best for a Panthers’ running back since Brandon Bailey’s stellar 2015 season.
Numbers that, along with his blocking ability to help spring Hall on long runs on the option, earned Lara the selection as the Odessa American’s 2022 Newcomer of the Year.
“Really, he did what we were hoping he was able to do,” Ellison said. “He’s a hard runner, a good blocker and we had seen his potential.
“Because of that we did some different things offensively. He does a great job with ball security, too; he only turned it over once all season.”
That is a badge of honor for Lara, who likes to carry the football, a lot and credits the competition with Viscaino in helping to prepare him to compete on every play.
Lara admits, however, that it takes a while for him to get warmed up at the beginning of the game, but the more times he touches the football, the better he gets.
That was evident throughout the season as the Panthers would take time-consuming drives down the field of more than 10 plays on numerous occasions and Lara was right in the middle of them as the featured back.
“The more I get the ball, the stronger I get,” Lara said. “The competition with Jonathan; I knew that he was going to go hard every play and I needed to go harder to get the starting spot.
“I was ready for that (Amarillo Tascosa), had been waiting for that all season.”
While Lara has the speed to get to the corner and outrun defenders to the end zone, much of his success comes between the tackles.
One reason is the dominant offense line the Panthers put on the field each season, taking pride in moving opponents off the line of scrimmage.
Another is Lara’s mentality of doing the dirty work to gain the yardage needed to keep drives alive on key third- or fourth-down situations.
“Just being able to get that extra yardage that we need to keep drives going,” Lara said. “If it’s third-and-3 or third-and-4, even fourth down, I know I can get those yards.”
That confidence is something that Lara and the Panthers’ offense is going to have to rely on next season as there will be numerous changes on that side of the football because of graduation.
Lara already understands what his role will be in 2023.
“To be more of a leader and to push my teammates,” he said. “We have come underclassmen coming up, so we need to build a bond and come together as a team.”
>> Follow Lee Scheide on Twitter at @OALeeScheide
JUZSTYCE LARA, RB
PERMIAN, 5-9, 160, JR.
Key stats: 200 carries, 1,034 yards rushing, 23 touchdowns; three catches, 31 yards
Coach Jeff Ellison says: “Juzstyce, really, he did what we were hoping he was going to be able to do. He’s a hard runner, great blocker and we could see his potential.”
SUPERLATIVES
>> Dec. 20: Matthew Rosas, McCamey, Utility Player of the Year
>> Dec. 21: Juzstyce Lara, Permian, Newcomer of the Year
>> Dec. 22: Defensive Player of the Year
>> Dec. 23: Offensive Player of the Year
>> Dec. 24: Coach of the Year
>> Dec. 25: Player of the Year
