Rockefeller Earns Defensive Player of the Week Award

Evan Rockefeller has battled injuries the past two seasons, but when he is in the Winthrop lineup, it’s abundantly clear that he is one of the best all-around players in the Northeastern Conference.

Rockefeller, one of the team captains along with Robert Rich, Ryan Harris, and Donovan Cassidy, made nine tackles at middle linebacker in the Vikings’ 39-22 victory over North Reading, earning the Vikings’ Black Shirt Defensive Player of the Week honor.

Beyond his stellar contribution on defense, the 6-foot-2-inch Rockefeller excelled at tight end on the opposite side from Dan Thomai, giving Winthrop a terrific two-tight end set.

Head coach Jon Cadigan said Rockefeller is a true “difference maker” when he is on the field.

“Evan came back versus Peabody and played primarily defense,” said Cadigan. “He got hurt in practice and returned for the Fairhaven game and played a little bit of offense and some on defense. This past week Evan started on defense and played a lot at tight end. You could see the difference. Three of our five touchdowns [versus North Reading] came out of double tight-end sets, which is something we wanted to do all season.”

Rockefeller’s contribution to the victory brought joy to Cadigan.

“I feel great for the kid,” said Cadigan. “Injuries hampered his junior and senior seasons. But he really is a very good football player. He’s just been snake-bitten by injuries. Having him at middle linebacker – you can see that he’s a difference maker.”