Our premier award is the Downriver League MVP; this year, that honor goes to Trenton’s Ashton Rooney. Rooney put together a record-breaking season; on breaking those records, he said, “I was really happy to break those records.” Those records he broke were school records for the single-season and career rushing records as well as the single-season and career total yards. On breaking the records, Rooney said, “I’m very blessed. “He would go on to say that breaking the records is more about his name being next to some of the great football players who came through the program before him.
The records were well deserved, as Rooney put up some great numbers this year. He showed that he was just about the only offense the Trojans needed, carrying the ball 141 times for 1361 yards and 15 touchdowns. That is a step up from last year, and as he said, “I grew a little bit more,” he continued by saying that doing agility drills also helped. Still, one of the key things that helped him was going against the guys on his defense, saying, “They like to hit,” Rooney would say, “That just made me a better player overall.”
Another thing that makes him a great player is being a multi-sport athlete, which we’ve seen in every award winner we’ve had. Other than football, Rooney also plays Basketball and Baseball. He did say playing those sports helps, saying, “It helps my footwork 100 percent. ” He would continue by saying, “Just moving in different ways that you normally don’t in football. I’m doing that in baseball at shortstop or in basketball as the shooting guard. Different things like that help.”
Opposing teams knew who they needed to key in on when they played Trenton, but even though everyone knew who they needed to stop, they couldn’t, and that was evident by Rooney having a record-breaking season. Getting out and being able to produce even when everyone is looking at you might be challenging, but Rooney said, “I just really think about it,” he would continue by saying, “I cleared my head and trusted my guys. I would find the hole they gave me and just hit it.” While Rooney is the one who put up the numbers, he didn’t take all the credit, saying, “It’s a team effort,”
While Rooney is more of an offensive threat, he was also a key member of his team’s defense. Being able to play at a high level on both sides of the ball is tough, but as Rooney would say, “We get pushed really hard at practice. ” He would go on to say, “Just the speed work every day helped with being able to play both sides of the ball.”
An underrated part of the game is going up against your own defense every day at practice, especially when you are going up against the guy who won the Defensive Player of the Year award. It’s tough, but according to Rooney, it helped him be the player that he was this year, saying, “Ansel reads the gaps like I haven’t seen in High School and you know just having to work around that and work around different guys who like to hit and fast guys it just helped me tremendously.”
Something that was tough was starting 0-2 on the season, and that, according to Rooney, changed the team’s mindset. with guys quitting after that 0-2 start, it put more on the plate of those who wanted to stay and make something of their season. According to Rooney, the guys that stayed put their heads down and went to work. Being 0-2 hurts, but that also made them the underdogs in some of their biggest games, and according to Rooney, they led teams to underestimate them. Still, they didn’t pack it up and go home as they were able to take it to Carlson and Allen Park. The Carlson game turned heads as Trenton handed Carlson their only loss in the regular season.
Rooney played a big role in that game as he rushed for 116 yards and two touchdowns in the upset victory. Going into that game, according to Rooney, the team’s mindset was different than any game they played all year; saying, “We were all hyped up on a different level,” He said, “We just wanted to punch them in the mouth.” They did just that, as they controlled the ball early in the game and scored on their first drive, which set the tone for Rooney and his teammates. That win over Carlson was their first win over Carlson since the 2022 District Finals.
Rooney took time to say that he was honored to be voted, saying, “A lot of hard work was done before and during the season to be at the top of my game, and it paid off,” football is a demanding sport, and the coaches and people around the league noticed how hard he worked this year. Rooney wanted to thank everyone who took the time to vote for him, saying, “This means a lot to have people believe that I was at the top of my game this season. “He also went on to say that he wanted to thank his mom, as she was very supportive during the voting process.
As a senior, this was Rooney’s last time putting on the uniform for his school on the gridiron. Rooney said he would take away from this experience the time spent with some of his best friends on the football field, saying, “Just going out on Friday night and playing the game everyone loves. I think that’s what I’ll take away the most from this.”