Benicia’s Boone is the Male Athlete of the Year
Powerful linebacker also led running game for Panthers
When he was 5 years old Janari Boone played youth soccer with a group called “The Cubbies.”
Only problem was — the youngster picked up the soccer ball and chucked it with his hands, negating the rules of the sport.
“My dad said ‘You know what? You need to go into football,’” Janari recalled.
Janari can thank his father for getting him into the sport. And now, Benicia High School can thank Johnny Boone as well.
Even though his dad passed away in December of 2019, Janari still feels his presence every day.
“Every day he just motivates me to get up and go and work out,” he said. “Everything I do, he’s always on my mind. It’s like he’s still here. He just pushes me to go on and on and keep me motivated.”
Boone, 17, was not just an inspirational story for the Panthers. He was a monster on the field for the abbreviated fivegame spring football season. He is the 2021 Times-Herald Male Athlete of the Year winner.
The then-junior finished with seven of the team’s 11 touchdowns as he was almost always the team’s pick at the goal line. Defensively, he was even better, finishing with 39 tackles, two fumble recoveries while causing two fumbles and wreaking havoc for opposing quarterbacks.
He played middle linebacker, outside linebacker and safety and was impressive wherever he went on the field. He was named all-Bay Area News Group all North Coast Section by Prep2-Prep.
Boone beat out fellow running back/linebacker Ezekiel Anderson from American Canyon as well as St. Patrick-St. Vincent basketball player Jaden Alexander and Bruins baseball player Stefan Foley Jr. for the award.
The Benicia Unified School District did not allow conditioning until just before the season in March due to the pandemic, so Boone took it upon himself to stay in football shape during the
time away from the field.
“I just worked every day,” he said. “During COVID, I knew other players were going to be working, and I didn’t want anyone to get ahead of me. I always want to be on top of everybody.”
Defensive coordinator Scott Swartz said the players ran what he calls “The Hill” overlooking the city of Benicia. It’s a grueling run to the top but features a picturesque view of the city.
“The players ran it to get ready for the season but Janari would even run it after practice,” Swartz said. “He would send me a photo of himself on Snapchat on top of the hill.”
Boone carried the ball just 11 times as a sophomore so his heavy workload on offense was a major difference for him.
“My goal on offense is really just to help my team out,” he said. “Every time I got the ball, I tried to make sure I got positive yards.”
Boone was valuable both offensively and defensively to Benicia so coaches made sure to manage his time effectively. Swartz called him “an alpha male” who was a leader by his words and by example.
Swartz thought Boone’s final game of the season, a 13-7 overtime win over host Las Lomas, was his best of the year. Las Lomas handled the Panthers 35-0 two seasons ago when both schools were in the Valley Division.
“Las Lomas had beaten us pretty good so that was one of those revenge games,” Swartz said. “I think that was one of Janari’s first-ever games (at varsity). That may have been his best overall. He had a pick at the goal line to set up a touchdown and then he scored the winning touchdown.”
The Panthers finished 3-2, a pedestrian record but moved to the DAL’s Foothill Division, which featured three ranked teams — Campolindo, Acalanes and Las Lomas. It was a fivegame season but it may have felt like 10.
Benicia’s coaches had to manage Boone’s time wisely but he wasn’t a player who took a lot of plays off.
“We only took him out if he was really gassed,” Swartz said. “He usually wanted to stay in there. He’s really competitive. He was responsible for our defensive checks so pulling him out is sort of like pulling your quarterback out on offense.”
Offensive coordinator Ryan Richardson acknowledged that time management is always a concern for players, but Boone was one of the top conditioned players on the field
“For the most part, we let him manage his snaps,” he said. “I think he knew how much gas