CHICAGO – The postseason awards coming the way of Bristol Central football sensation Victor Rosa proved – once and for all – that the senior was the best player in the state in 2021.

And on Tuesday, Gatorade joined that parade in honoring Connecticut’s top football talent.

In its 37th year of recognizing the nation’s best high school athletes, Gatorade today announced that Rosa is the 2021-22 Gatorade Connecticut Football Player of the Year. 

Rosa became the fourth Gatorade Connecticut Football Player of the Year to be chosen from BCHS, a standard dating back twenty years.

“Beyond blessed!” said Rosa via Twitter on Tuesday. “Put my heart n soul into this!” 

Tim Washington (running back, 2001), D.J. Hernandez (quarterback, 2003), and Aaron Hernandez (tight end, 2006) have all won the award under the Bristol Central football banner.

The Gatorade award, which recognizes not only outstanding athletic excellence, but also high standards of academic achievement and exemplary character demonstrated on and off the field, distinguishes Rosa as Connecticut’s best high school football player. 

He is also a finalist for the prestigious Gatorade National Football Player of the Year award to be announced later in December.

The student athlete has maintained a weighted 4.34 GPA in the classroom and verbally committed to play football on scholarship at the University of Connecticut next fall.

But on the scholastic field, Rosa did not have a one-on-one athletic equal this year.

The 6-foot, 195-pound senior quarterback and free safety rushed for 2,728 yards (on 279 carries) and 41 touchdowns this past season, leading the Rams to the Class L state quarterfinals and a 9-2 ledger. 

Only Washington (3,005 yards, 42 rushing touchdowns) had better single-season totals than Rosa did.

Rosa ran for more than 200 yards nine times which all came during Central’s nine-game winning streak.

He put together an amazing 406-yard rushing effort, along with eight TDs, in a 68-50 victory against Tolland back on October 22. 

The 406 yards is a top-20 all-time mark in the state and his eight touchdowns were tied for the third most ever scored in a Connecticut scholastic game.

Showing ability at quarterback, Rosa made 59 passes for 849 yards and eight TDs. 

The senior also rushed in 24 two-point conversions which is one of the best ever totals in the state.

Defensively, Rosa collected 50 tackles, three tackles-for-losses, and forced two fumbles.

The Class L state champion in the 200-meter dash as a junior, Rosa has volunteered locally with the McCabe Waters Little League and the Bristol Central High Boosters Club. 

And he’s earned the respect of opposing players and coaches all over the state.

“Victor Rosa is an absolute monster on the field,” said Farmington football coach Chris Machol. “What makes him good is that he has a combination of breakaway speed, power, agility and vision. He is one of the better players I have coached against in my 12 years here.”

The Gatorade Player of the Year program annually recognizes one winner in the District of Columbia and each of the 50 states that sanction high school football, girls volleyball, boys and girls cross country, boys and girls basketball, boys and girls soccer, baseball, softball, and boys and girls track & field, and awards one National Player of the Year in each sport. The selection process is administered by the Gatorade Player of the Year Selection Committee, which leverages experts including coaches, scouts, media and others as sources to help evaluate and determine the state winners in each sport.

Rosa joins recent Gatorade Connecticut Football Players of the Year Wilfredo Aybar (2020-21, Cheshire Academy), Jack Wallace (2019-20, St. Joseph High School), Cornelius Johnson (2018-19, Brunswick School), and Spencer Lockwood (2017-18, Killingly High School), among the state’s list of former award winners.

NOTES…After an official visit to the University of Connecticut this past weekend, Rosa has made a commitment to the school. He will be signing his National Letter of Intent to play for the Huskies on Wednesday, December 15.