By Michael Letendre

How good was the Bristol Central football program this year?

Was the team one of the best ever Bristol units assembled by the school from up on the hill?

You can say yes to both those questions as the Rams had one heck of a season.

And despite the outcome of the final game, it was a year to remember by Central.

From the outstanding Victor Rosa to the defensive prowess of Dan Lauretti and Malachi Jones, that trio of captains led their troops into 11 battles this season that led to an outstanding 9-2 ledger.

Only a one-point loss at Bloomfield (7-6) to open the season on September 10, combined with the playoff setback against Maloney, were the only negatives this year.

Otherwise, the Rams made a ton of tremendous gains that will benefit the program for years to come.

Because a nine-game winning streak – with a historic scoring game in the mix – fueled Central to a 9-1 finish and the team’s third ever state tournament showing.

In the Class L field, No. 6 Bristol Central fell to No. 3 Maloney by a 49-14 final last Tuesday in Meriden but one game does not define what the team accomplished in 2021.  

Rosa was simply the best player in the state and trying to argue about someone else down from the shoreline area, in the NCCC or whatnot, it simply does not hold up.

The senior rolled up 361 combined yards on Thanksgiving and ended up just one rushing touchdown short of tying Central’s single season record by the completion of the playoffs.

The state’s leading rusher, whose made an official visit to the University of Connecticut this past weekend, had an incredible season for the Rams.

His stats includes 2,728 rushing yards, 41 rushing TDs, 849 passing yards, eight TD receptions, and 50 total tackles – including three for losses – underline what Rosa has accomplished over the nine-win campaign.

Rosa connected on 59-of-92 passes and for not being a traditional quarterback, he proved to everybody that he could do just about everything on the gridiron.

He also ran in 24 two-point conversions and was responsible for most of the 10 passing two-point makes for Central this year.

And don’t forget, Rosa was dealing with an injury during the middle of the season and wasn’t in every defense play.

However, we saw amazing defense from him as he tallied the game-winning tackle at the 52-48 victory at Hartford Public as the Owls were trying to steal the win at the buzzer.

Frankly, what a season by Rosa and the Central program.

Over the years, we’ve watched so many talented individuals come through the doors of the Bristol Central football program – whether talking about Timmy Washington, one of the Hernandez boys, or Matt Coyne.

And then another warrior came down the pike in the form of Rosa.

His 2,728 yards were the second most in a single season at BCHS while those 41 rushing touchdowns are only behind Timmy Washington’s amazing total.

In 2000, Washington raced for 3,005 yards while rushing in 42 TDs.

Rosa had a career-high 406 yards this season over a wacky 68-50 victory over Tolland on October 22.

It was only the third time a rusher from Central captured over 400 rushing yards in a game.

And Rosa’s 282 yards – on 28 carries – was the third most rushing yards ever in the Battle for the Bell showdown.

Again, there wasn’t a better north, south, east, or west runner than Rosa was this season.

The Central ground game, manned with a big and physical offensive line, was augmented by Tre Blair (38 carries, 342 yards, one touchdown), Justin Despins (43-202-2), and Damion Glasper (22-148).

That grouping of athletes (Rosa, Blair, Despins, and Glasper) combined to rush for 3,420 yards – a simply amazing tally.

Most of Rosa’s eight TD passes went to Glasper (26 catches, 417 yards) and Blair (16-302), each making three touchdown receptions apiece.

And when senior Jared Boxley came back from injury, Rosa found him for two big receptions and a touchdown this year.

Offensively, Central scored 392 points – good for a sterling 35.6 points-per-game average.

And the Rams’ defense – after a midseason blip on the radar – allowed just 21.5 ppg.

When your point-differential is over 14 points-per-game in the positive, that’s a winning formula.

And then there’s the outstanding coaching staff, led by Jeff Papazian – a former signal caller from his playing days at Central – who put all the schemes into play.

When it all comes down to it, the Central football program made its third ever postseason appearance in 2021, had the best athlete in the state frustrating opponents, and the Rams had a season the locals won’t soon forget. 

Senior members of the Bristol Central football program who played in their final game in the Class L quarterfinals on Tuesday were Jarrett Boxley, Ashton Zabka, Daniel Kitmanyen, Damion Glasper, Xavier Ramirez, Justin Despins, Zachary Vanasse, Gabriel Tejada, Aidan Willette, Dan Lauretti, Michael Thaxter, Malachi Jones, Jaden Goulbourne, Eric Bruno Jr., Zyren Collins, and Victor Rosa.

Bristol Central Football 2021 (9-2 overall – Class L State Tournament Quarterfinalist)

*September 10 (at Bloomfield) 7-6, L

*September 18 (vs. South Windsor) 21-0, W

*September 24 (vs. Wethersfield) 28-18, W

*October 1 (at Farmington) 35-29, W

*October 9 (at Hartford Public) 52-48, W

*October 22 (vs. Tolland) 68-50, W

*October 28 (at Edwin O. Smith) 44-8, W

*November 5 (vs. RHAM) 34-20, W

*November 12 (at Plainville) 46-0, W

*November 25 (vs. Bristol Eastern) 38-8, W

Class L – State Tournament

*November 30 (at No. 6 Maloney) 49-14, L