{"id":474030,"date":"2026-10-23T01:50:09","date_gmt":"2026-10-23T01:50:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/474030\/"},"modified":"2026-10-23T01:50:09","modified_gmt":"2026-10-23T01:50:09","slug":"thomas-jeffersons-aaron-oliva-is-d-fws-unlikely-leading-rusher","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/474030\/","title":{"rendered":"Thomas Jefferson&#8217;s Aaron Oliva is D-FW&#8217;s unlikely leading rusher"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img alt=\"Thomas Jefferson running back Aaron Oliva poses for a photo during practice at Thomas Jefferson High School in Dallas, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026.\" loading=\"eager\" fetchpriority=\"high\"   style=\"aspect-ratio:3 \/ 2\" class=\"x100 y100 opc bgpc ofcv bgscv block bg-gray200 mnh0px fill\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Thomas Jefferson running back Aaron Oliva poses for a photo during practice at Thomas Jefferson High School in Dallas, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026.<\/p>\n<p>Juan Figueroa\/The Dallas Morning News<\/p>\n<p>Bobby Estes knew in February he wanted to change Thomas Jefferson\u2019s offensive scheme.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn-channels-pixel.ex.co\/events\/0012000001fxZm9AAE?integrationType=DEFAULT&amp;template=design%2Farticle%2Fplatypus_two_column.tpl\" alt=\"\" class=\"x1px y1px vh abs\" aria-hidden=\"true\" width=\"1\" height=\"1\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Coming off a 1-9 year, the head coach met with his staff and evaluated their returning players. With most of the offense graduating, Estes decided to put the ball\u00a0in the hands of running back Aaron\u00a0Oliva, a \u201ctough kid\u201d he thought had all the elements to be a workhorse.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Thomas Jefferson running back Aaron Oliva poses for a photo during practice at Thomas Jefferson High School in Dallas, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026.\" loading=\"eager\"   style=\"aspect-ratio:3 \/ 2\" class=\"x100 y100 opc bgpc ofcv bgscv block bg-black mnh0px fill\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Thomas Jefferson running back Aaron Oliva poses for a photo during practice at Thomas Jefferson High School in Dallas, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026.<\/p>\n<p>Juan Figueroa\/The Dallas Morning News<img alt=\"Thomas Jefferson running back Aaron Oliva runs with the ball during practice at Thomas Jefferson High School in Dallas, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026.\" loading=\"lazy\"   style=\"aspect-ratio:3 \/ 2\" class=\"x100 y100 opc bgpc ofcv bgscv block bg-black mnh0px fill\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Thomas Jefferson running back Aaron Oliva runs with the ball during practice at Thomas Jefferson High School in Dallas, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026.<\/p>\n<p>Juan Figueroa\/The Dallas Morning News<img alt=\"Thomas Jefferson running back Aaron Oliva runs with the ball during practice at Thomas Jefferson High School in Dallas, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026.\" loading=\"lazy\"   style=\"aspect-ratio:3 \/ 2\" class=\"x100 y100 opc bgpc ofcv bgscv block bg-black mnh0px fill\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Thomas Jefferson running back Aaron Oliva runs with the ball during practice at Thomas Jefferson High School in Dallas, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026.<\/p>\n<p>Juan Figueroa\/The Dallas Morning News<img alt=\"Thomas Jefferson running back Aaron Oliva runs with the ball during practice at Thomas Jefferson High School in Dallas, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026.\" loading=\"lazy\"   style=\"aspect-ratio:3 \/ 2\" class=\"x100 y100 opc bgpc ofcv bgscv block bg-black mnh0px fill\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Thomas Jefferson running back Aaron Oliva runs with the ball during practice at Thomas Jefferson High School in Dallas, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026.<\/p>\n<p>Juan Figueroa\/The Dallas Morning News<img alt=\"Thomas Jefferson running back Aaron Oliva poses for a photo during practice at Thomas Jefferson High School in Dallas, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026.\" loading=\"lazy\"   style=\"aspect-ratio:3 \/ 2\" class=\"x100 y100 opc bgpc ofct bgsct block bg-black mnh0px fill\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Thomas Jefferson running back Aaron Oliva poses for a photo during practice at Thomas Jefferson High School in Dallas, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026.<\/p>\n<p>Juan Figueroa\/The Dallas Morning News<img alt=\"Thomas Jefferson running back Aaron Oliva poses for a photo during practice at Thomas Jefferson High School in Dallas, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026.\" loading=\"lazy\"   style=\"aspect-ratio:3 \/ 2\" class=\"x100 y100 opc bgpc ofcv bgscv block bg-black mnh0px fill\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Thomas Jefferson running back Aaron Oliva poses for a photo during practice at Thomas Jefferson High School in Dallas, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026.<\/p>\n<p>Juan Figueroa\/The Dallas Morning News<img alt=\"Thomas Jefferson running back Aaron Oliva catches a ball for a photoshoot during practice at Thomas Jefferson High School in Dallas, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026.\" loading=\"lazy\"   style=\"aspect-ratio:3 \/ 2\" class=\"x100 y100 opc bgpc ofcv bgscv block bg-black mnh0px fill\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Thomas Jefferson running back Aaron Oliva catches a ball for a photoshoot during practice at Thomas Jefferson High School in Dallas, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026.<\/p>\n<p>Juan Figueroa\/The Dallas Morning News<\/p>\n<p>He was right. With three games left in the regular season, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dallasnews.com\/high-school-sports\/schools\/thomas-jefferson\/football\/\" data-link=\"native\" class=\"\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Thomas Jefferson<\/a> (3-4, 2-3 in 5-5A Division II) is in the hunt for a playoff spot, largely thanks to Oliva. The undersized back leads all Dallas-area rushers with 1,340 yards, the most for the program since at least 2000, his coach said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"uiTextSmall f aic jcc\">Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe question was how to best utilize his talent,\u201d\u00a0Estes said. \u201cHe\u2019s a big, strong kid who works hard, so we decided to toss it back to him and put as many people blocking in the hole, and here we are. \u2026 When you have a kid that works hard, you\u00a0gotta utilize your resources. He was our best resource.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Coach Bobby Estes shares a laugh with Thomas Jefferson running back Aaron Oliva during practice at Thomas Jefferson High School in Dallas, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026.\" loading=\"lazy\"   style=\"aspect-ratio:3 \/ 2\" class=\"x100 y100 opc bgpc ofcv bgscv block bg-gray200 mnh0px fill\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Coach Bobby Estes shares a laugh with Thomas Jefferson running back Aaron Oliva during practice at Thomas Jefferson High School in Dallas, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026.<\/p>\n<p>Juan Figueroa\/The Dallas Morning News<\/p>\n<p>The 5-6, 175-pound Oliva has carried the ball 216 times and scored 13 touchdowns. His workload jumped significantly from last season, when he had just 236 rushing yards on 91 carries. In the two seasons before that, Oliva totaled 242 yards on 60 carries.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The senior admitted the increased production affected him at the start of this season, but summer workouts\u00a0\u2014 particularly the weight room and conditioning\u00a0\u2014 ultimately paid off, building the stamina and strength that made him harder to tackle.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBack in my freshman year, it wasn\u2019t looking anything like this,\u201d Oliva said. \u201cBut I always had high expectations for myself, so I knew that one day I would have success. \u2026 It\u2019s all about execution and discipline to really get into it. You gotta have a growing mind because you never know what you\u2019re capable of. Just do everything harder, and that\u2019s it.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"uiTextSmall f aic jcc\">Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n<p>With the help of Thomas Jefferson\u2019s senior-led offensive line,\u00a0Oliva is averaging 6.20 yards per carry. His best performance came <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dallasnews.com\/high-school-sports\/football\/game\/2026\/165264\/molina-vs-thomas-jefferson\/\" data-link=\"native\" class=\"\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">in a 34-27 win over Molina<\/a>, when he amassed 338 yards on 39 carries and scored four touchdowns.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Thomas Jefferson running back Aaron Oliva runs after completing a pass during practice at Thomas Jefferson High School in Dallas, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026.\" loading=\"lazy\"   style=\"aspect-ratio:3 \/ 2\" class=\"x100 y100 opc bgpc ofcv bgscv block bg-gray200 mnh0px fill\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Thomas Jefferson running back Aaron Oliva runs after completing a pass during practice at Thomas Jefferson High School in Dallas, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026.<\/p>\n<p>Juan Figueroa\/The Dallas Morning News<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAll I do is keep working hard every day and every morning with the team,\u201d\u00a0Oliva said. \u201cI really appreciate the linemen in front because I can\u2019t do anything without them.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Estes puts Oliva in some rare company among the all-time top 10 players he\u2019s coached, including several who played in the NFL. Former <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dallasnews.com\/sports\/texas-longhorns\/\" data-link=\"native\" class=\"\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Texas<\/a> linebacker Sergio Kindle rushed for 5,627 yards under Estes at Woodrow Wilson in the early 2000s.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAaron\u2019s definitely a college football player somewhere,\u201d Estes said. \u201cHe\u2019s just a hard-nosed high school football player.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"uiTextSmall f aic jcc\">Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n<p>Oliva hasn\u2019t received any college offers, but he\u2019s hopeful about the possibility.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s what I\u2019ve been wanting to do since I started in seventh grade,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019ve been really working hard for it, and I\u2019m prepared for what the next level is; if it\u2019s a shot, it\u2019s a shot. I\u2019m waiting.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In the meantime, he\u2019s set his sights on hitting 2,000 rushing yards before the regular season ends, starting with Thomas Jefferson\u2019s home game against Samuell on Friday night. He\u2019s close\u00a0\u2014 if he maintains his average over the first seven games, he\u2019d reach 1,914.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t doubt anything this kid says he wants to do,\u201d Estes said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"uiTextSmall f aic jcc\">Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Thomas Jefferson running back Aaron Oliva poses for a photo during practice at Thomas Jefferson High School in&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":474031,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[102,104,103,300,90417,152586],"class_list":["post-474030","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-dallas","tag-dallas","tag-dallas-headlines","tag-dallas-news","tag-football","tag-tp-high-schools","tag-tp-thomas-jefferson-school"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/474030","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=474030"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/474030\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/474031"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=474030"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=474030"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=474030"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}