Gross On Finalist List For Gaziano Award

Bucksport High School lineman David Gross has been selected as one of three finalists for the Gaziano Award for top Offensive Lineman in the state.

The winners (Offensive/Defensive Lineman) will be announced January 25th with the winner receiving a $5,000 scholarship and the two runners-up receive $1,000.

Gross helped the Golden Bucks complete a Class D North/LTC title and a spot in the state title game. He swept the LTC major awards, winning Player of the Year as well as Offensive and Defensive Player of the Year.

Check out the three finalists for each award...

OFFENSIVE LINEMEN

David Gross, Bucksport High School

Gross has been named a First Team All-Conference player since his freshman year, winning offensive and defensive lineman of the year awards in the PTC, as well as Little Ten Conference (LTC) Player of the Year honors (2019). He earned LTC All-Academic honors in 2018 and 2019. For the past two years, he has been a captain for both the football and wrestling team at Bucksport High School. He has been on the honor roll every quarter since his freshman year and recorded his highest GPA in 2019. He is a member of the National Honor Society and student council and is a Boy's State delegate. His work in the community includes more than 100 hours volunteering to support youth football and wrestling programs, as well as assisted living residences.

Riley Parmenter, Leavitt Area High School

Parmenter is a four-year starter for the Hornets. He was the team captain the past two seasons and led Leavitt to a state championship in 2019. This season, he recorded 85 tackles, including four sacks and 11 tackles for loss. As a guard, the Hornets won 30 of the 40 games he started and the team threw for more than 2,000 yards. In addition to being named to the All-Region team the past three years, he was a member of the All-Conference team in two of his four seasons. He received All-Academic Campbell Conference honors in 2019 while taking several AP classes. He is consistently among the school's top students and has served as class president the past two years. He is a member of the Hornets track team, is involved in the Big Brother mentoring program and volunteers for the Red Cross, Dempsey Challenge and other community camps and events.

Jack Rogers, Thornton Academy

Rogers has been on the honor roll at Thornton Academy since his freshman year. As an SMAA Conference All-Academic Team member, he has several academic achievements including in geometry and physics. His honors on the football field include a state championship in 2018, as well as being named to the Class of the State team the same season. He has captured several all-star accolades from Maine newspapers and was named to the All USA Maine Football team in 2018. This past year, he was named a First Team Offensive Lineman in Class A. He is a member of the Thornton Academy Interact Club and volunteers for several organizations, including the Saco Food Pantry, Windows for Poverty, and the Saco Junior Trojans programs.

DEFENSIVE LINEMAN

William Horton, Bonny Eagle

Horton has been on the honor roll for several trimesters, including the high honor roll this year. He has received the Career and Education Award for financial literacy, is a STEM Endorsement Diploma candidate and is a member of the SMAA All-Academic team. He has been a captain for Bonny Eagle the past two seasons and was named to the First Team All-Conference, First Team All State and First Team USA Maine and the Class A Coaches All-State team as part of his role in the Scotts state championship title. He participated in the SMAA Sportsmanship Summit this year and is a classroom assistant for the Bonny Eagle Special Education Department. He also spends time volunteering for youth football clinics, the Special Olympics, and Furniture Friends of Greater Portland.

Camden Jordan, Leavitt Area High School

Jordan has been on the honor roll since 2016 and is a National Honor Society nominee. He is a four-year starter and three-time selection to the Campbell Conference all-star team. This year, as a captain of the Hornets, he led the team to a state championship, was named to the Campbell Conference All-Academic team and named conference player of the year, and was also a semi-finalist for the Fitzpatrick Award. In 2019, he had 112 tackles and 37 tackles for a loss, including 21 sacks. In addition to football, he is a member of the track team and participates in unified sports. His community work includes volunteering for the Dempsey Challenge and youth sports camps and raising funds for a terminally ill teacher.

Nathan Mars, Scarborough High School

Mars has been a member of the National Honor Society the past two years and is an AP scholar. He is a United States Coast Guard Academy AIM Program graduate and member of the SMAA Fall Sports All-Academic team, ranking in the top 20% of his class. He has been a two-year captain for the Red Storm football team and won the 2019 Gerry Raymond Award as the best lineman in the SMAA. He was was named to the SMAA All-Conference team on both sides of the ball. He was part of the Scarborough High School championship team in 2017 and has several other athletic accolades in track and field. He was elected to student council for a two-year term through his senior year and also serves as treasurer. In the community, he delivers meals for Project GRACE, volunteers with the Scarborough Police Explorers and Scarborough Youth Football and many other local organizations and events.