Re: High School Football 2021
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O. Smith
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Date: June 04, 2021 04:21PM
Oscar Smith’s Ethan Vasko is the Abe Goldblatt All-Tidewater Player of the Year
By Larry Rubama
757Teamz
Jun 04, 2021 at 10:08 AM
Oscar Smith's Ethan Vasko sneaks away for a touchdown during the first half of their game against South County at Oscar Smith High School in Chesapeake, Va., on Saturday, May 1, 2021.
Oscar Smith's Ethan Vasko sneaks away for a touchdown during the first half of their game against South County at Oscar Smith High School in Chesapeake, Va., on Saturday, May 1, 2021. (Kristen Zeis/The Virginian-Pilot)
Ethan Vasko felt a wide range of emotions, from disappointment to anger, after Oscar Smith’s one-point loss to South County in the 2019 Class 6 state championship game.
He used all of these feelings as motivation as he went back to work to get ready for the following season. And when the season was pushed from fall to spring because of COVID-19, Vasko didn’t stop working.
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“It was non-stop,” he said recently. “I would lift, then go to speed drills and then I would throw.”
Eighteen months after that 13-12 loss to South County, Vasko helped the Tigers get revenge as they dominated South County 62-21 to win the Tigers’ third state title last month.
Oscar Smith's quarterback Ethan Vasko falls just short of a touchdown during their game against South County at Oscar Smith High School in Chesapeake, Va., on Saturday, May 1, 2021.
Oscar Smith's quarterback Ethan Vasko falls just short of a touchdown during their game against South County at Oscar Smith High School in Chesapeake, Va., on Saturday, May 1, 2021. (Kristen Zeis/The Virginian-Pilot)
“It was an awesome game because everyone played well,” said Vasko, who finished with 246 passing yards and three touchdowns, and also rushed for 173 yards and three more scores. “There is no other way to go out than that.”
Vasko is the Abe Goldblatt All-Tidewater Player of the Year, becomingthe Tigers’ sixth honoree, and the program’s fourth quarterback to win the award.
“I’m always confident in what I can do and confident in what I did,” said Vasko, who accounted for 2,230 total yards and 34 touchdowns — and no interceptions. “I definitely thought I had a chance to win it, and I’m excited that I was able to get it.”
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Vasko, a junior, becomes just the second Tigers quarterback to win a state a state title and the coveted award in the same season. The other was Jaylian “J.J.” Williamson in 2011. Phillip Sims, who led Oscar Smith to a state title in 2008, didn’t win the award until 2009.
“There have been super talented, record-breaking quarterbacks at Oscar Smith,” Tigers coach Chris Scott said. “Obviously with Phillip Sims and Shon Mitchell, just to name a few. ... Now Ethan gets to put his name amongst that list as a state champion and All-Tidewater Player of the Year.”
Prior to this season, Vasko had just three college scholarship offers. Now the 6-foot-4, 210-pound dual-threat quarterback has picked up seven more, including those from Virginia Tech, Buffalo, Connecticut and William & Mary.
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Oscar Smith quarterback Ethan Vasko throws the ball during the Class 6 state championship game on May 1. Kristen Zeis/Staff file (May 1, 2021)
Oscar Smith quarterback Ethan Vasko throws the ball during the Class 6 state championship game on May 1. Kristen Zeis/Staff file (May 1, 2021) (Kristen Zeis/The Virginian-Pilot)
And last month, he participated in the Elite 11 in Nashville. The three-day event brings in the top rising senior quarterbacks to receive one-on-one tutoring, with on-field drills, off-field development and classroom instruction in a highly competitive setting. Elite 11 event alumni include 24 of the 32 current NFL starting quarterbacks, and 13 of the past 14 quarterbacks who have hoisted the Heisman Trophy.
“It was an awesome competition with some of the best quarterbacks in the nation out there,” said Vasko, rated a three-star prospect by 247Sports. “So, I felt I competed well.”
With all of the attention, Vasko hasn’t let it distract him as he prepares for his senior season.
He and Scott can’t wait to see what next season holds for Vasko and the Tigers.
“When you have your starting quarterback returning, you know you always have a chance to be in it,” Scott said about trying to repeat next season. “Hopefully he’ll have a chance to put together a full collective season. It’s going to be pretty exciting to watch.”
Added Vasko, “Hopefully we can do it again next year,” he said. “I can’t wait to get back at it.”