by Malcolm Butler
They were happy tears.
As Brooke Preaus St. John sat and listened to the kind words spoken about her son, Blake, during a signing day ceremony held at Cedar Creek School Wednesday afternoon, she showed a wide range of emotions.
And understandably so.
Her youngest son fulfilled a lifelong dream in front of family, friends, coaches, administrators, and teammates as he put his signature on a national letter of intent to play college football at Grambling State University.
Blake said the why GSU part was easy.
“It’s close to home so my family, the people that support me the most, will be able to see me play,” said Blake. “It just feels right. It feels good.
“I loved my visit with Coach (Mickey) Joseph. We get along so well. There is just something about him that makes me want to play for him.”
It’s been a journey — a tough, emotional one at times — for Blake, Brooke and his Jeff over the past 18 months since the death of Blake’s older brother, Owen.
But according to Brooke, Blake has used the tragedy to only motivate him.
“When we talked after Owen’s death, I told you I didn’t want (Owen’s death) to define Blake,” said Brooke. “I didn’t want it to bring him down or hinder him in any way. I really think Blake has done the opposite. He has taken his brother’s memory everywhere.
“So for him to be able to play close to him … it’s a blessing. I always told him, ‘Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.’ That’s what He is doing. When I hugged Blake on the field after his final football game (at Cedar Creek), he said, ‘Mama, why are you crying? I have four more years.’
“But in my heart, I was thinking that we didn’t know that for sure. But Blake did. He has said all along that he was going to play for Grambing. And he is.”
According to Brooke, Blake has had Grambling pillows, and flags since last summer, well before the Tigers made the scholarship offer.
It’s that level of confidence and belief that Blake has utilized on the football field since a very young age.
Cedar Creek head football coach Jacob Angevine talked during Wednesday’s ceremony about the first time he met Blake a decade ago.
“What an incredible opportunity this is for Blake,” said Angevine. “Ten years ago when I got to Cedar Creek, Blake was a pee wee football player at the time. I remember one of the first things he ever said to me at practice was, ‘Oh great. We are on defense. I get to hit somebody.’
“I knew then that Blake loved football. Over the years that has been his passion. It’s been his dream. It’s cool to have been able to see him grow up and live out his dream.”
Blake has been a three-year starter for the Cougars and has racked up some impressive numbers and honors along the way, including over 220 tackles and a school record 22.5 sacks. He is a three-year all-district honoree, a three-year all-Lincoln Parish Journal member, and an all-state honoree.
Jeff said having a front row seat to Blake’s prep career has been rewarding.
“Watching your children’s dreams come true and everything come to fruition is the greatest thing I have been a part of secondly to them being born,” said Jeff. “Grambling made this very simple for him. We visited with Coach Joseph back in the summer. Brooke, and I and Blake had an hour long visit with him, 15 minutes about football and 45 minutes about life.
“We walked out and Blake said, ‘I want to play here and I want to play for him.’ He made us feel like family immediately.”
Family. It’s something that is very important to Blake and to Brooke and to Jeff … whether it’s their immediate family, the Cedar Creek Family, or the Grambling State Family.
And it’s a support system that will have in his own backyard as he prepares to play for the Tigers in the near future.
“The fact that Blake gets to live out this dream locally, with his family right down the road, is really cool,” said Angevine. “And Blake, I know you know, we all know it, Owen is going to have the best seat in the house.”
