It wasn’t just that Anthony Bonamico rushed for more than 2,000 yards this year, was named the captain of the Class AA All State offensive first team, won the Frank Loria Award and was one of the top five players in the state of West Virginia that was a big deal. The big deal was that the Bridgeport High School senior often made it look easy a year after the future of his playing career was still in jeopardy.

 

Today, with his senior season and a Class AA state championship in the rearview mirror, Bonamico’s future was far from uncertain. In fact, he set the course for at least the next four seasons by officially signing to continue his playing career with West Virginia Wesleyan College and Coach George Shehl. Bonamico was surrounded by his family, coaches and members of the BHS administration in the school’s library.

 

“He was special as a sophomore and then the incident as a junior really put a damper on things,” said BHS coach Josh Nicewarner.

 

The incident occurred in the first game of the year and on the first defensive series. Bonamico would break his foot and a promising junior season – barring a late return – consisted almost exclusively of him standing on the sidelines watching.

 

“I think what happened made him hungry and as hungry as any kid I’ve ever had,” said Nicewarner. “I never want any of my kids to get hurt, but the fact that he had to watch on the sidelines for a majority of the year is what made him so hungry. He worked harder this past offseason than he did for any of the other seasons that he came into while with us.”

 

And Bonamico said the work ethic was a result of having the game taken away from him by injury.

 

“Sitting out most of my junior year, honestly, was one of the most difficult things I had to do … It made me want to make an impact this year,” said Bonamico.

 

Saying Bonamico made an impact on the 13-1 Indians is an understatement. By the time the season ended, Bonamico had ran for 2,180 yards on just 205 carries for an incredible average of 10.5 yards per rush. He also scored 32 times this year. Four times he rushed for more than 200 yards and in every game but one – 92 in a season-opening blowout of Buckhannon-Upshur – he ran for more than 100 yards. He also became the Tribe’s leading scorer for his career with 250 points since 1997.

 

“We actually expected big things out of him. If I was a gambling man I would have bet the farm that he could have gotten 2,000 plus yards,” said Nicewarner. “The big thing that Anthony did was answer our biggest question as was that was could he carry the load this year. He showed us he could and carried us to a state title. He was just phenomenal.”

 

Now, he’ll be taking that show to West Virginia Wesleyan. Although Bonamico was a standout at defensive back as well, he’ll be penciled into a position at slot receiver. And unlike a receiver for BHS, West Virginia Wesleyan is pass happy and will likely throw more passes in one game than BHS will throw in most seasons.

 

“They throw the ball 90 percent of the time and I really want to be able to make the most out of the wide receiver position,” said Bonamico. “I think it’s going to be exciting and new to me. The way Coach Shelf presented it made I t should like it’s going to be fun.”

 

Bonamico, who had a good frame for receiver at 6’1 and 175 pounds, knows that the same hard work that made him a success this year will have to be taken up a notch in order to get playing time.

 

“I’m going to have to work to get better. Even though this is Division II, it’s so much higher than high school. I’m going to have to perform on the field and in the classroom in order to succeed,” said Bonamico, who plans on studying criminal justice.

 

Bonamico, who made his announcement roughly 30 minutes after his teammate Anthony “A.C.” Caldera made his today to also attend WVWC, also made his decision to attend the Mountain East school shortly after Caldera decided. Regardless of when the decision was made, he’s glad to have his friend with him as he takes a new step on the athletic and academic ladder.

 

“It makes it more comfortable to be there with one of my buddies that I’ve been friends with my whole life,” said Bonamico. “ … I think it’s awesome that we’re going to going to continue our football careers together.”

 

With the new career in front of him, the tailback who never seemed to take a direct hit and was able to cut on a dime said he’ll never forget his time with the Tribe.

 

“I’m going to miss it, but I’ll never forget it. I’ll always be a Bridgeport Indian at heart,” said Bonamico.

 

Click HERE to read about another BHS football player signing today.

 

Editor's Note: Top photo, front row, show Bonamico surrounded by his father Nunzio and mother Petrina, while brother Dante is on the right. Back row shows BHS administration and coaching staff. All action photos by Ben Queen of www.benqueenphotography.com.