Newsday's Athlete of the Week is Central Islip's Jimmy Gaston Jr.
Jimmy Gaston Jr. has 260 yards and 3 TDs for Central Islip (2-0). Credit: Michael A. Rupolo Sr.
At 5 years old Jimmy Gaston Jr. had no desire to play football. His mother, Tawanda, told him to stick with it and “keep on working.”
For the Central Islip senior, that push into football led him to discover his “why” and his purpose.
“If she didn’t keep pushing me, I don’t know where I’d be right now,” Gaston Jr. said.
It’s fair to wonder where the 2-0 Central Islip football team would be as well, and whether it would be enjoying its best start to a season since 2001 without Gaston Jr. The senior ran for 140 yards and two touchdowns against Bay Shore before following it up with 120 rushing yards and a score against Riverhead on Saturday.
Gaston Jr., Newsday’s Athlete of the Week, also forced three fumbles as a linebacker Saturday and had the game-sealing pressure alongside teammate Camari McDonald Jr. to deny a two-point conversion that could’ve won the game for Riverhead.
“I was coaching everyone up, saying, ‘We got one minute left, let’s play with our entire heart and let’s do it. Let’s win this game,’ ” Gaston Jr. said.
“It’s the kids who buy in, do it and put their life, heart and soul in to compete in the game,” first-year coach Sean Christie said. “I was just unbelievably happy.”
Combined with a dual-threat quarterback in Elijah Wellington, there’s a lot to like with the Musketeers. Gaston Jr. was quick to credit his coaches and offensive linemen for his impressive start this fall, coupled with the desire to show Suffolk this isn’t the same Central Islip team that struggled in years past.
It’s another example of the “senior leadership” Christie said he’s seen from his star running back/linebacker and fellow upperclassmen.
“We’re going to be a program that you’re going to have to respect now,” Christie said. “We’re a completely revitalized program, and a lot of that comes down to senior leadership. Those seniors are setting the example and standard, and taking ownership over the program that all the younger kids will follow.”
Gaston Jr., who holds a sterling 3.8 GPA, plans to study physical education in college to stay close to sports. The same could be said of the parents who raised him, a source of motivation and pride for Gaston Jr. each time he steps out on Central Islip’s turf.
“They support me no matter what, good game, bad game, they always have my back,” Gaston Jr. said. “ . . . My dad, he’s a hard-working man. Sometimes he’s at my games, sometimes he’s not because of work.
"But I always know he’s always rooting for me, he’s always cheering me on. I’m just trying to keep the legacy up with Jimmy and have the name out there.”
Michael Sicoli covers high school sports for Newsday. He graduated from Quinnipiac in 2022 and left with a master’s degree in sports journalism in 2023.
