October 18, 2018, published on BleacherReport.com
https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2801377-jj-arcega-whiteside-is-holding-court
He plays the position of receiver like he’s playing basketball, not football. His explosion off the snap is deceptive, like he’s crafting a route to the hoop, not showing his highest gear of speed until he’s already past you. At 6’3″, 225 pounds, he fights for a catch like he’s boxing out, establishing position in the post before leaping in the air. And he attacks the open space like it has wronged him, like a rebound is suspended there and he cannot wait for the ball to sail into his palms.
JJ Arcega-Whiteside is, as his quarterback at Stanford, K.J. Costello, calls him, “an outlier.”
“The way he runs routes, the way he operates,” Costello says, “is just not normal.”
Not for football, at least. But for Arcega-Whiteside, playing it any other way would be what defied norms.
The senior who’s become a highlight-reel regular and put up video game stats this season (226 yards in one game and eight touchdowns in Stanford’s first six games) maneuvers like a basketball player because that’s what he’s been all his life. Because he comes from a family that discussed offensive rebounds and fade screens and pull-up jump shots over dinner. (READ FULL STORY HERE).
Mirin Fader 