Washougal football’s Jones took opportunity, ran with it

WASHOUGAL — Royce Jones is living proof that it’s never too late to find your niche.

The Washougal senior entered this fall as one of the team’s starting receivers and cornerbacks on the depth chart, in addition to backup running back.

But it’s the latter position where Jones has emerged as a game-changer for the 2A Greater St. Helens League champion Panthers, bringing a physical, explosive and elusive style to the team’s backfield.

Despite starting the season in a fill-in role, Jones is now Southwest Washington’s leading rusher through eight weeks, with 1,198 rushing yards and 19 touchdowns on the season.

“If you watch Royce,” Washougal coach Dave Hajek said, “his first three steps, once he gets the ball, he hits the hole so hard.”

Multiple injuries in Washougal’s offense pushed him into a workhorse role back in Week 2 against Prairie. Jones took the opportunity and ran with it, literally, rushing for 254 yards and two touchdowns.

Though the Panthers lost the game, they struck gold for the rest of the season thanks to a performance that surprised many, Jones included.

“It was crazy. I definitely had to step up to that a little bit,” Jones said. “I was surprised my body was able to go for that long, play after play. … But pushing through, that just helped me realize that I was able to be physical like that, like a running back.”

Realizing that potential on the field came after a productive offseason in which Jones and many of his Washougal teammates were diligent in their commitment to weight room sessions, and speed and agility training.

Jones, who now stands 6-foot-1 and 195 pounds, took it one step further.

“I was like, this is my last year, I’m not letting this summer slip away from me,” Jones said. “So, we’d go to the beach, we’d go (on) vacations and I’d be out in the dark, in the sand on the beach doing plyometrics and stuff. That’s where a lot of confidence comes from, because knowing I put in work in times like those, when I probably should’ve been relaxing.”

Jones also had to relearn the running back position, which he initially played as a freshman before he lost most of his sophomore season to a broken arm and switched to receiver as a junior.

That early exposure to the position proved helpful in his return. He thought back to grueling extra conditioning sessions led by running backs coach Chase Lawrence, and how Jones learned to become a physical player during that first year.

“That’s where I kind of learned to push myself mentally farther than I thought I could during those strength workouts,” Jones said. “And that kind of changed my mindset for how to attack football.”

In his 20th year as Washougal’s head coach, Hajek has seen a lot of talented athletes come through the program, some of whom discovered a new position, like Jones, and thrived.

Last year, it was senior safety Elijah Franco who began taking quarterback snaps in the team’s Wildcat offense at midseason, which helped the Panthers hit their stride on offense.

What sets individuals like Franco and Jones apart, Hajek said, is their willingness to fulfill any role that best suits the team.

“They’re kids that do whatever it takes for the team to be successful,” Hajek said. “I think that says a lot about the kids, and the fact that they work hard.”

Last week, Jones rushed for 204 yards and four touchdowns in a 48-27 win over Columbia River to clinch the 2A GSHL title, the Panthers’ first since 2022 when Jones and company were freshmen.

They can finish the league slate undefeated with a win Friday at Hockinson.

It’s a special achievement for the Panthers’ senior class, a tight-knit group that Jones joined after moving to Clark County from Alabama as a 7-year-old.

“We kind of helped lift each other up, we have a pretty good community going here and I love it,” Jones said.

“We hear of success in past years, like we always talk about the big 2019 team (that reached the 2A state quarterfinals). … We’re like, all right, it’s time to do that for ourselves, like, we don’t need to reference that, we want to make our own thing this year.”

Jones’ lofty goals go beyond high school. A member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Jones will serve a two-year mission before completing his education at a four-year university, with the ultimate goal of becoming a pilot and getting his commercial license.

He’s also leaving the door open to play college football if the right opportunity presents itself, in part because of 2025, a season that Jones officially arrived as a star running back and put everyone on notice.

“I’m a little later to the game because I kind of didn’t expect this whole thing to be happening, I’m gonna be honest,” Jones said. “But I’m really excited it is. So, I’m trying to get on top of it, get film sent out to different places and I’m excited to see what happens from there.”