Inductees

Athlete Bio

---

Jeff Blackburn

Class of 1987

A three-sport standout who earned 10 varsity letters in football, basketball and tennis, Jeff Blackburn was a state champion doubles tennis player and went on to play college football at Dartmouth.

Born in Maryland, Jeff spent time in New York before landing with his family in Concord at age five. He attended Willard and Sanborn Middle School, honing his tennis game at the old Thoreau Tennis Club on Old Marlboro Road, and following in the footsteps of older brother Dave ‘85, a CCHS football and lacrosse standout.

When Jeff entered CCHS in the fall of 1983, the football program was starting to soar again under the direction of Hall of Fame Coach Al Robichaud and his long-time assistant, Dick DiMare. After playing a year of freshman ball, Blackburn and his deep and talented classmates (including Hall of Famers Willie Hicks, Ricky Mullins and Nick Boynton) made an immediate impact, and by junior year were competing for a DCL title in a memorable Saturday clash with rival Lincoln-Sudbury. A two-time DCL All-Star, Blackburn also captained the 1986 squad that lost just twice and narrowly missed going to the Super Bowl.

“Jeff was a very cerebral athlete, and was always in a position to do the job because he prepared and knew what he was doing,” says Robichaud. “He played mostly defensive end for us, and was a player our opponents had to account for and rarely ran his way. One thing I will always remember about Jeff is that he played hard, and was re- spected by his teammates for how hard he worked. Jeff was truly a great leader, teammate and integral part of some very successful and enjoyable teams to coach.”

Winter found Blackburn on the hardwood of Hayes Gymnasium playing under the watchful eye of long-time coach John MacNamara. A true power forward and tenacious rebounder, Blackburn started for three years and was a senior captain of a squad that advanced to the North Finals before bowing to rival Wayland.

Blackburn transitioned to tennis in the spring, and was a four-year mainstay under long-time teacher/coach Bob Horne. Along with classmate Jeff Greene, the two formed a 6’ 4” duo known as the Twin Towers, steamrolling the competition and reaching the State Finals in doubles as juniors in 1986. They went one better in ‘87, winning the state title and earning All-Scholastic honors in recognition.

After graduating, Blackburn was lured to Darmouth College by legendary football coach Buddy Teevens. Blackburn had a standout career for the Big Green, starting every game for all three years at Outside Linebacker. As a senior, Blackburn captained the squad to an Ivy League title and was named All-League for his play, also participating in the Epson Bowl in Japan vs. a team of Japanese collegians.

“Ever since I was a little boy, I’ve loved to compete and been energized by the team aspect of sports,” said Black- burn. “At CCHS, was very fortunate as I was offered opportunity to do that in Football, Basketball and also Tennis - no seasons off. I’m very grateful for that and think it helped me be a better college athlete. I played with incredibly talented players for coaches who challenged me and made me better. From the big football games vs. LS to bas- ketball battles with Wayland to the state doubles championship with my great friend and partner Jeff Greene, I truly loved every minute of my time at CCHS.”

Jeff resides in Seattle with wife Anne and his two daughters. He is currently Senior Vice President of Business Development and Digital Entertainment at Amazon.com. He continues to play 40+ tennis for the Seattle Tennis Club, and last year his USTA team won the Seattle area sectionals, the Pacific Northwest championship, and went on to the USTA Nationals at Indian Wells, CA.