Jonathan Forrest Continues New Rochelle’s Run Of Football Excellence

Some of Westchester’s best football players in the last decade have played for New Rochelle High School. Just being mentioned in the same conversation as those Huguenot greats is an honor, says Jonathan Forrest.

“I’m just trying to be like them—work hard, work on my game, and make a name for myself just like every single one of them did,” says the junior running back, who is attracting interest from such Division 1 colleges as Boston College, Northwestern, Pittsburgh, and Rutgers.

“After my JV season [in eighth grade], I wanted to play varsity as a ninth-grader, so I sat down with Coach D [Lou DiRienzo] and I attended all the workouts and went through all the summer stuff with varsity. Then I had a meeting with Coach D, and he said he wanted me up there because he saw some passion,” Forrest says.

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That passion has helped Forrest develop into one of the best players in New York as a running back and linebacker. “I think that I became more explosive and really worked on my acceleration,” Forrest says about his improvement in the last year. “As you can see, I was breaking longer runs this year, and that just shows from what I’ve done in the off-season.”

His off-season regimen includes speed-training in Connecticut and working out at New Rochelle. This summer, he hopes to raise his profile at college camps. “I think that I have a combination of speed and elusiveness and power,” he says, “and it allows me to do what I do best as a runner.” 

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