One of the toughest players in the state of Georgia has to be Zion Custis. The 5’7″, 180-pound senior running back takes and delivers more punishment than almost any other athlete in the state of Georgia. His motor just never seems to stop, and last season the Lovejoy running back rushed for 1467 yards and 12 touchdowns, earning him All-State honors on our website.
After a long dedicated offseason on improving his craft, it looks like this fall will be no different for Custis. “I had a great offseason. I got stronger and faster by adding on 6-8 pounds of muscle. My weight room stats improved too. My bench went up to 315 lbs, squat went up to 415 lbs, and power clean went up to 285 lbs.”
He also competed at the Nike Combine where he scored one of the highest SPARQ ratings at the Atlanta event. In fact, his 104.85 score was the highest of any running back that went to the heavily attended combine. Custis also went to Cam Newton’s 7v7 event to go along with Spalding High School’s camp.
Custis has ambitious goals once again this year, both on the field and in the classroom. “My 1st goal for this upcoming season is to continue to excel in the classroom.” He continued, “My next goal is to do everything I can on the gridiron to help my team win a state championship! Also, I want to rush for +2,000 yards and +20 touchdowns.”
Last season, Custis had the best rushing effort against Tucker where he ran for over 250 yards, including his season long 72-yard touchdown run. His play usually does the talking, but heading into his senior season he wants to grow into a vocal leadership role for Lovejoy.
There has been plenty of preseason buzz circling around the senior running back. He was selected by our website and the Atlanta Journal Constitution as Preseason All-State player. The AJC also selected him as one of the top 10 backs in the state of Georgia. His high school career has been extremely productive and he has amassed 3976 rushing yards, 375 receiving yards and 39 touchdowns.
Looks like he will have a busy fall on the recruiting trail as well. He has visits planned to Western Carolina, East Carolina, UT-Chattanooga, The Citadel, Georgia State and North Carolina A&T. From watching his preseason film against Woodland, it looks like Custis has increased his acceleration from last fall. Right when he gets the ball he shows an athletic burst, and his low center of gravity allows him to keep his balance for additional yardage after a tackle attempt.
He will once again be the workhorse in Lovejoy’s offense, and a 2000 yard season could very well be in the books. The only way to know is to stay tuned to @RecruitGeorgia on Twitter, as we will be posting his most recent Friday night film each weekend of the season.
