NORFOLK, Va. — Every word that comes out of Virginia Tech coach's mouths about Jadan Blue is overwhelmingly positive.
"He's been awesome, he's been an awesome mentor for those guys in the room, he's been an awesome leader, he's showing guys how to practice," wide receiver's coach Fontel Mines says he leans on Jadan to guide a young position room. He calls Blue the most resilient kid he's ever met.
That resiliency shines through on the football field, where Blue was one of the best receivers in the nation as a redshirt sophomore at Temple. Blue says he had his sights set on going pro after his junior year, but over the course of the next two seasons Temple's offense deteriorated. Jadan says that throughout the process he made a point of hiding his frustration.
"I always made sure that I handle myself very responsibly. I made sure that guys didn't see the frustration on my behalf because at the end of the day that would only make things worse," says Blue, giving insight into how he found his way to Virginia Tech.
It's off the field, however, where his resilience suddenly became undeniable and unequivocal.
On January 25th James Blue, Jadan's father, was murdered while sitting in his car in southeast Baltimore.
Jadan left the team to grieve with his mother and two siblings.
"You were the greatest, you are the greatest, you always made us feel safe," Jadan wrote in a testament to his father posted on a Go Fund Me page for the family.
In his return to the team, he shocked Mines with his attitude and his openness. "To be able to deal with it, handle it with such grace, to be able to talk about it, I think that's super important and I can't sit here and say that I could be the same person that he is right now," says Mines, learning day by day that Jadan Blue is the most resilient kid he's ever met.