Parks helps set tone for A-State football ahead of bowl game

Senior linebacker provides leadership as Red Wolves prepare for Bowling Green clash

From Arkansas State University

astateredwolves.com

JONESBORO — While Justin Parks hopes to add one more victory to his career résumé, he’s confident he will leave Arkansas State football better than he found it.

Parks was among fourth-year head coach Butch Jones’ earliest recruits at ASU. On and off the field, the senior from Gardendale, Ala., has made an impact for the Red Wolves, who are preparing for a bowl game for the second consecutive season.

“I feel like it’s more competitive than it was when we first got here. There’s more accountability, it’s more playerled,” Parks said after Tuesday’s practice. “There are still some things we have to clean up, but that’s for the new leaders who are coming in this year. We just laid the foundation.

“Now the culture should just take off. It’s been good leading the guys through it. I appreciate all the people that helped me along the way.”

Parks became a leader not long after arriving on campus in 2021. According to ASU’s research, he was one of three current FBS players who were four-year team captains this fall, others being Utah’s Cameron Rising and Auburn’s Payton Thorne.

Rising and Thorne are quarterbacks. Parks asserted his leadership on defense, first at safety and then at linebacker this season, and also on special teams. Having been a leader on his high school team, Parks said he just picked up where he left off as his ASU teammates took note of his work ethic.

Jones made Parks one of ASU’s captains six games into his freshman season.

“Coach gave me that title at the Coastal (Carolina) game for the first time and I just ran with it. Everybody just listened to me,” Parks said. “I don’t just sit here and lead when it’s convenient. I just try to be me, and it felt like I was a leader. That’s how it went.”

Jones described Parks and Melique Straker, a linebacker who played in the Canadian Football League this year, as the “alphas” who helped establish team culture in tough times. ASU had a 2-10 record in 2021, then finished 3-9 in 2022.

“I remember Justin and Melique were kind of the oddballs,” Jones said before ASU’s regular-season finale against Old Dominion last month. “People looked at them and their work ethic was different. Their buy-in was different, the way they spoke in the locker room was different. The way they competed was different, the way they prepared each and every day off the field was different.

“They kind of set the tone of our expectations. They were individuals that we could rely on.”

Parks has also been a leader off the field in community service. During his ASU career, he has been nominated for the Wuerffel Trophy and for the AFCA Good Works Team.

Playing safety and on special teams, Parks helped the Red Wolves return to the postseason in 2023 as he made 44 tackles. ASU coaches had a different assignment for Parks this fall as he switched to the Star position, a linebacker/safety role.

Parks responded with 86 tackles, which is second on the team, and the first two interceptions of his career to earn honorable mention All-Sun Belt Conference honors.

“I moved to a new position, and I was kind of skeptical of how it would go, but it went way better than what I thought it would for sure,” Parks said. “It’s just a testament to my coaches believing in me and my teammates just holding me accountable and helping me with anything I need help on.”

Parks said some of his success

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stems from extra time studying opponents. “I stay up here pretty late at night watching film every week because I hate to be the reason we lose, giving up touchdowns,” he said. “I stay late at night, so I won’t have any mistakes. You’re still going to make mistakes, but not as many just by knowing what the offense does.”

Parks said finishing the season right is important to the Red Wolves, who will carry a 7-5 record into the 68 Ventures Bowl after ending the regular season with a loss to Old Dominion. ASU lost to Northern Illinois in last year’s Camellia Bowl.

“Obviously we had a tough game against ODU, but now in the bowl game, we want to finish off strong,” Parks said.

“I still think about last year’s bowl game. That’s one thing Coach Jones says, you always remember the bowl game for sure. I want to go off on the right note.”

Sophomore quarterback Jaylen Raynor said Parks’ younger teammates are eager to assist in that regard.

“Justin is a great leader. He pours everything into the team,” Raynor said. “You can tell he really cares. He loves us, he loves the team, he loves Jonesboro. You can tell just how passionate he is about football and his teammates.

“He’s been a great leader. We want to be able to send guys like Justin Parks out with a win in the bowl game.”