ARVADA — In no way, shape or form is Justin Castor your stereotypical prep place-kicker.
He isn’t borrowed from Arvada West’s soccer team and doesn’t look ridiculous in shoulder pads and a helmet.
He won’t sprint to the sideline after he kicks off or punts to avoid contact. And he wasn’t a position starter asked to double as a kicker because no one else could do it. Actually, it was the other way around.
Castor has boomed PATs, field goals, kickoffs and punts while late-blooming into A-West’s main receiver.
“We really always felt good about him,” Wildcats coach Casey Coons said. “It’s because of his speed. He can run.”
Ultimately, Castor, 6-feet-4 and 180 pounds, will run to Kansas, the school he will sign with in February as a kicker, and probably say goodbye to receptions and rushing attempts — unless they’re on fakes. But he has at least one more opportunity to show off his all-around skills. He will begin by kicking off or starting at wideout Saturday, when Arvada West (11-1) visits top- seeded, undefeated and defending Class 5A champion Mullen in the semifinals.
Borrowed time or not, Castor gets his kicks and then some.
“I finally got my chance,” Castor said. “My main goal was just to help the team.”
Help the team? A patient Castor clearly has one of the state’s two best kicking legs, along with Minnesota-bound Kip Smith (Legacy). But after further metamorphosis, Castor has employed his other (left) leg and two hands to actually play football.
Admittedly “burned out” on soccer after seventh grade, Castor saw himself as a Wildcats wide receiver or tight end. As a freshman, he answered the program’s call for kickers, used his soccer experience and quickly became the starter. By his junior year, his playing itch grew like a weed if his receptions didn’t — he had all of one for 5 yards. It was a start. In 2009, Castor is the team’s leading receiver (29 catches, 596 yards, five touchdowns). He had a huge catch for a 36-yard touchdown the past week against Regis Jesuit and six more for 158 yards and a touchdown along with four PAT kicks and a 25-yard field goal against one of 5A’s other semifinalists, Pomona.
He has come further as a regular player than one of his kicking attempts. He was just 2-for-6 on field goals the past weekend, including a 69-yarder that made the end zone on the fly. But such is life in high school when you have length — missed field goals result in the opposing team taking over at the 20-yard line, or usually where they get it after one of his kickoffs.
“I’ve talked to him about it, that we’d try those types of things because he’s so long,” said Coons, pointing to Castor’s 14-of-24 mark on field goals. “You’ve got to use him.”
Castor’s foot hasn’t suffered despite wear and tear at receiver. He’s 45-of-47 on extra points and averages 42 yards per punt, many high enough to reach the giant screen in the new Dallas Cowboys stadium. “He’ll be a good weapon for KU,” Coons said.
Castor, also a basketball player and triple jumper, with a 3.8 grade-point average, said he has no qualms about only kicking in college. He will settle for a chance to kick or catch his way into the 5A championship game at Invesco Field at Mile High.
“We’re pumped up and ready to go,” Castor said.
Footnotes.
Since the beginning of the 2006 season, Class 1A Akron is 50-1. . . . All four semifinalists in 3A, which will crown a new champion, are undefeated. Mountain View, Pueblo Central, Steamboat Springs and Valor Christian are 12-0. “So whoever wins it will have beaten undefeated teams in the semifinals and championship,” Steamboat Springs coach Aaron Finch said. “That’s pretty good.” . . . In 1983, Pomona downed Fairview in the big-school quarterfinals on the way to finishing runner-up. The Panthers had a sophomore named Jay Madden, now the team’s head coach. . . . Since 4A has been the state’s second-highest level, Wheat Ridge, which faces Longmont on Saturday, has won a leading four titles, including the first (1994) and most recent (2008).
Neil H. Devlin: 303-954-1714 or ndevlin@denverpost.com
