Custom-made suits and a mother’s love sparked this Boise State safety’s love of football
In a sea of blue-and-orange-clad fans who pack the stands in Albertsons Stadium for Boise State football games, a few stand out.
There are the Elvis impersonators, blue pompadours and all. There’s a couple who dress up like Fred and Wilma Flintstone, and a guy in a pimp costume, complete with a long fur coat, wide-brimmed felt hat, over-sized sunglasses and fake silver teeth.
And then there’s Boise State safety JL Skinner’s father, whose name also happens to be JL. He comes to every game in custom-made suits, complete with matching fedoras, custom canes and shoes and several gold chains, one of which is a large, diamond-plated zero — Skinner’s jersey number.
Mr. Skinner missed many of his son’s games in high school and his first two years of college while completing a 20-plus-year career in the Navy. He went to as many games as he could last year, but after retiring, he hasn’t missed a Boise State home game this season.
“When I first started showing up with my outfits, JL used to see me and turn away, like he was embarrassed,” Mr. Skinner said. “Now he looks for me in the stands.”
Mr. Skinner has a tailor who custom makes his game day attire. He has suits in several different shades of blue, an orange one and a couple variations of black. This year, he added a few new hats to his wardrobe and a new cane topped with a black stone. He has also diversified his collection of shoes, many of which are covered with metal spikes.
Mr. Skinner and his wife, Tonya, plan to be at Albertsons Stadium on Saturday when the Broncos host Fresno State in the Mountain West championship game (2 p.m., Fox), but he said he hasn’t decided which blue suit to wear.
“I just like to come out, show out, enjoy the game, enjoy the fans and be there to support my son,” Mr. Skinner said. “If I’m going to show up, I want to make sure he doesn’t miss me.”
Skinner said he makes a point of finding his dad in the stands on game day, and he said his mother, Thomasina Alexander, has been the driving force behind his football career.
“Having the support of my family is huge,” Skinner said. “It’s why I put so much work in.”
‘My mom is my rock’
Football was not Skinner’s first love.
He didn’t even really like the sport when he first tried it. He even quit playing flag football as a child when his family lived in Virginia Beach, Virginia.
Skinner’s interest was piqued after his family moved across the country to San Diego. He saw a flyer on the wall in middle school and decided to give football a try. There was just one problem. He didn’t know anything about the sport beyond what he’d seen on TV.
So, Skinner turned to the one person who he knew would do anything to help him succeed: his mother.
“My mom is my rock and my everything,” Skinner said. “Having her in my corner and keeping me level-headed has been huge.”
Alexander wasn’t exactly a master of the intricacies of the game, but she was determined to help her only son succeed. So, she started finding ways to study football.
“I had to study and watch what he needed to do because he was always the tall, skinny kid,” Alexander said. “I was scared he would get hurt, but that never slowed him down.”
Alexander said she would watch highlights from different levels of football to understand what Skinner needed to do. But she didn’t just make sure her son knew how to play the game. She also made sure he had the opportunity to play.
Skinner was too big to play with the kids his age in Pop Warner, and he was too young to play with the older kids. Faced with the decision of subjecting him to possibly getting hurt by older players or holding him back a grade to let the rest of the kids his age catch up physically, Alexander decided to go another route.
She helped start a whole new league so Skinner could compete against kids his age. The Point Loma Youth Football League was established in 2013, and it’s still going strong today.
Alexander started the league with the help of two youth coaches from the area. She had to do everything from enrolling and educating coaches to signing up players and guiding them through classes that taught safe tackling techniques. The experience took her football education to a whole new level.
“I literally had to learn football because I knew nothing about starting a league,” Alexander said. “I had to start from scratch. I was watching film and taking the same classes as the coaches and players, and I would go to different levels of youth games to see the differences.”
Alexander said she wanted Skinner to play a flashy position like quarterback, but he was enamored with the physical side of the game so he gravitated toward safety.
“He always liked hitting people,” Alexander said. “To tell you the truth, I think that’s part of why his basketball career ended. He was always hitting people like it was football and fouling out.”
A ‘natural’ on defense
Skinner played wide receiver and even a little wildcat quarterback at Point Loma High in San Diego, but former Pointers assistant coach Paul Lawrence said he was a natural fit on defense.
“I’ve seen JL play since he was 7 or 8 years old, and he was always aggressive,” said Lawrence, who is now the head coach at University City High in San Diego. “He was always skinny, but he still played linebacker, defensive end and running back in youth ball, and he just grew into a more polished player on defense.”
It’s safe to say Skinner’s decision to play safety at Boise State has paid off.
The 6-foot-4, 220-pound senior earned his second All-Mountain West honor this season. His 59 tackles and team-leading four interceptions earned him a first-team all-conference nod. He was a second-team pick last year after leading the Broncos with 92 tackles.
He proved last year that he can instill fear in opponents with a massive hit on Oklahoma State wide receiver Brennan Pressley, which made ESPN’s top 10 plays. His two interceptions in the span of barely a minute at the end of the Broncos’ win at Wyoming this year showed just how far he’s grown in his understanding of the game.
“JL understands what it takes to prep to be great,” Boise State defensive coordinator Spencer Danielson said. “I’ve seen him grow over the years from a really good athlete who can make plays to now he knows what’s coming.”
Skinner may not have always seen himself as a football guy, but there’s no denying how passionate he is about the game these days, Danielson said.
“He loves football, and he’s always flying to the ball,” Danielson said. “He loves watching film, he’s a student of the game and learning what it takes to play confidently is what I’ve seen him do over the years.”
Skinner is likely destined for the NFL after this season. He probably would have been drafted last year, but he decided to return to Boise State to win a Mountain West championship and graduate.
He’ll have a shot at completing his first goal against Fresno State on Saturday. He’s also on track to graduate this spring with a psychology degree.
Skinner will be just the fourth member from his mother’s side of the family to graduate from college, Alexander said. He said that’s important to him because he owes everything he has to her.
“She pushed me to be my best but also to be humble,” Skinner said. “She told me things aren’t always going to come to you. You have to go get it.”
FRESNO STATE AT BOISE STATE
When: 2 p.m. Saturday
Where: Albertsons Stadium
TV: Fox (Tim Brando, Spencer Tillman, Petros Papadakis)
Radio: KBOI 670 AM/93.1 FM (Bob Behler, Pete Cavender)
Records: Boise State 9-3, 8-0 MW; Fresno State 8-4, 7-1 MW
Series: Boise State is 17-7 all-time against Fresno State, including a 40-20 victory at home earlier this season.
Vegas line: Boise State by 3
Weather: High of 38 degrees, 24% chance of rain, 10 mph wind
This story was originally published December 1, 2022 at 4:00 AM.
