From ward of state to Notre Dame: An Asbury Park triumph

EATONTOWN - Namir Argilagos talks about his life experiences analytically, as if solving a math problem, which happens to be something he’s quite good at. But it’s the subtle inflections in his tone and his delivery that speak volumes about his incredible journey.

Like the joy that subtly seeps into his intonation as Argilagos, an Asbury Park resident who attends the prestigious High Technology High School in Lincroft, talks about the events of last Dec. 1, when he found out he was getting a QuestBridge Scholarship to attend Notre Dame.

And two days later, when he and his Asbury Park High School teammates won the NJSIAA Central Group I football championship, beating Keyport as Argilagos ran for 188 yards, scored three touchdowns -- including the game-winner in the fourth quarter -- and spearheaded a late defensive stand.

And when the subject shifts to his experiences growing up in a city that has swallowed up more than a few young men just like him, there's an underlying pain that's barely perceptible. But it's undeniable when the subject shifts to his mother's arrest and incarceration on drug charges when he was in seventh grade, and how a year-and-a-half later he became a ward of the state of New Jersey when his father was jailed.

Read more: http://www.app.com/story/sports/high-school/football/2017/03/17/edelson-namir-argilagos-tuggle/99201778/