Saya Alvares and Dana Hathaway

Sports and Editorial Editors

As the Los Gatos Varsity Football Team closes off their season, senior Emiliano Mejia is working hard to ensure he leaves a mark on Helm Field. The star running back tops off statistics for the team this season with 17 touchdowns and an average of 98.7 rushing yards per game. His success is largely due to experience, support from friends and family, and an unmatched grind. 

Mejia is no stranger to the game of football. Beginning with Pop Warner in fifth grade, Mejia has not stopped playing since, only improving his athleticism by running track and field in the offseason. He fully credits his inspiration to his father, LGHS alumnus Dion Mejia, explaining, “My dad was the reason I started. He played football here at Los Gatos 30 years ago… I’ve just been playing everything similar to him, the same number and position.” Sharing this connection with his dad makes playing the position of running back and offseason training much more unique. Specifically during the pandemic, Mejia worked hard to stay in shape, explaining he would either be “working out at [his] house with [his] dad and going to the field as well as with some friends; that was pretty much a daily routine.” 

The mindset that Mejia values is the driver of many of his accomplishments. He believes, “Everyone’s got to have that grit to fight through pain or adversity. Taking accountability is also a big thing, each person has to play their role in the team and being a team player is more important than trying to be a big player individually.” As a senior, Mejia often serves as a role model to the younger players, and smoothly steps into leadership on offense as a starting running back. In addition, Mejia highlights several other seniors who are role models for younger players such as Luchi Casale and Ethan Currie, he claims that, “They’re really leaders on the team, and obviously Jake Boyd…I really look up to them just because they do a lot of stuff that doesn’t get recognized.” On the field, Mejia calls out Currie for “making his job a lot easier,” and the running back coach for “giving lots of pointers and helping [him] improve every time [they] talk.”

The Varsity member hopes to be recruited as his senior year continues, and mentioned that he’s currently “talking to a few coaches.” His drive to improve and his deep dedication to the sport of football put his goals of continuing on to the college level right within reach. After an outstanding season and performance till the very end, it is clear that Mejia has proved his dedication on Helm Field and has left an important legacy of hard work and determination to classes below.