By Michael Letendre

FARMINGTON – Bristol Central’s football team won its showdown at Farmington on Friday evening, downing the River Hawks by a 35-29 final on the road.

The home team trailed by nearly thirty points during the encounter before making a furious comeback, falling in the end by six as the Rams moved to 3-1 on the season.

Farmington (0-4) remains winless in 2021 though it gave Central a run for its money in the end.

Central’s defense held late but offensively, senior sensation Victor Rosa bullied the River Hawks for over 300 yards on the ground.

It was a historic tally by Rosa as his 324 rushing yards – leading to five touchdowns – was the tenth highest single-game rushing total in program history.

And he needed just 20 carries to tally that amazing yardage.

Rosa joins the likes of Garry Pearson, Dathan Hickey, Tyler Burrow, Karl Hall, and Timmy Washington as players who rushed for 300-plus yards in a game for Central.

Rosa’s career-high was just nine yards off the seventh best mark in program history.

Back in 2017, Hickey raced for 333 yards in Central’s Thanksgiving Day victory over rival Bristol Eastern which is the seventh highest tally for the Rams.

Central is hitting its peak already in 2021

The Rams are truly rolling through the season, winning three straight games, and is firmly in the Class L playoff mix.

Through four games, Central is in the top-10 of the postseason standings and as of Sunday morning, the Rams are tied for tenth place along with  Windsor and Masuk of Monroe with 440 points.

Only a 7-6 setback at Bloomfield during Week 1 has kept Central from an undefeated ledger.

Rosa’s numbers

It’s so easy to focus on the UCONN bound Rosa every week but anyone who has watched Central play this year understands that the program is an outstanding overall unit.

And whether it’s a big reception by Damion Glasper, a PAT from Zach Telke, or a huge stop by the Rams’ defensive front line, there’s no denying that the program from Bristol is legit.

But Rosa is the leader of the crew and has been absolutely sensational to date.

Here’s his rushing totals through just four games:

Week 1 (at Bloomfield) – 21 carries, 99 yards, TD

Week 2 (vs. South Windsor) – 20 carries, 239 yards, 3 TD’s (1 passing TD)

Week 3 (vs. Wethersfield) – 26 carries, 240 yards, 4 TD’s

Week 4 (at Farmington) – 20 carries, career-high 324 yards, 5 TDS

Totals to date: 87 carries, 902 yards (10.4 yards-per-carry), 13 rushing TDS.

Rosa needs less than 100 yards to break 1,000 for the season is on pace for a 2,000 yard campaign. That’s an incredible tally for any athlete on the gridiron.

He’s also six rushing TD’s away from tying his single season career-high of 19 – tied for the 10th highest mark in Central football history. 

Next Week…

Central is back in action this Saturday as the Rams travel to Hartford Public at 1 p.m. in a CCC cross-tier event (or however Dave Greenleaf would frame it…).

After a perfect start by the Owls, the program lost their last two games as Public (2-2) fell to Tolland by a 39-28 final this past Saturday in Hartford.