Former Maryland running back Javon Leake turned heads with his wheels on Saturday night.
The Edmonton Elks’ running back finished with 169 rushing yards and three touchdowns on just 21 carries, including a 51-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter to seal a 42-31 win. It was on that run that Leake reached a top speed of 22.25 mph, a feat that no NFL player reached during the 2023 season as Seahawks’ receiver DK Metcalf led the NFL with a top speed of 22.23 back in week 13. Metcalf is one of three NFL players who topped the 22 mph mark last season, providing credence to Leake’s big play ability that he showed while in College Park.
Javon Leake was named the CFL Most Outstanding Special Teams Player in 2023 after recording over 1,200 punt return yards, the third-most in CFL history while setting a franchise record with four punt return touchdowns in his second season with the Toronto Argonauts. In his first season with Edmonton, Leake has posted 289 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 34 carries, along with 113 receiving yards and a pair of touchdowns on 15 catches.
He entered the season as the third-highest-paid running back in the CFL, earning a $20,000 signing bonus while playing under Elks assistant general manager Geroy Simon, a star receiver at Maryland in the late 1990s before playing in the NFL and CFL.
During his three-year career at Maryland, Leake finished with nearly 1,500 yards as a returner, nearly 1,200 yards on the ground and 20 total touchdowns before ending his career as the Rodgers-Dwight Big Ten Return Specialist of the Year.
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