Jay Turnsek, a former standout West Ferris football player, has been named St. Francis Xavier football team’s rookie of the year for the 2019 season.
Turnsek started every game for the X-Men at either the safety position or as the strong-side linebacker. He also was a regular on the punt and kickoff teams.
“My main concern is preparing for next season, but it felt good to win the award, knowing that all of the hard work paid off,” said Turnsek when asked about the honour.
Turnsek finished the season with 38 total tackles which was good enough to land him tenth overall on the Atlantic University Sports tackling statistics chart.
“Jay was an outstanding player for us, who from day one embodied what our program is all about; hard work, accountability and selflessness,” said Trojan head coach Mark Robertson,
“He was the only player we’ve coached that we named a captain in his rookie year,” added Robertson.
Turnsek’s best game was likely his week six game, a loss to Bishop's, where he had 4 special team tackles, along with 6.5 total tackles. He also successfully executed a fake punt and rushed for a 20 yard first down on a key third-quarter play.
He also had a fantastic outing during the schools' homecoming game against Acadia where he led the team with eight total tackles.
Turnsek is in his first year at the university studying Business.
