PSJA North senior Leroy Palacios primarily played safety during his senior season, but that didn’t stop him from leaving his imprint on the game in all three phases as a consistent contributor on both offense and special teams, too.
Palacios, The Monitor’s All-Area Utility Player of the Year, tallied 52 tackles, three for a loss and was a ballhawk in the Raiders’ secondary. He finished with five interceptions, two passes deflected and two fumble recoveries. He also added 370 all-purpose yards with 107 total yards and one touchdown on seven touches on offense, 101 punt return yards, 57 kickoff return yards and 105 yards on interception returns.
Palacios, a four-year letterman, even lined up at punter during PSJA North’s biggest regular season game of the year against Edinburg Vela.
“I’ve been doing this for four years, I know the atmosphere, so I just went out there and played ball,” Palacios said.
He finished his career with 11 interceptions and played a key role in PSJA North capturing back-to-back district championships in 2022 and 2023, and winning eight playoff games during his four years suiting up for the “Blackshirt Defense.”
