Peyton Manning, J.J. Watt, Todd Gurley, Joe Burrow, Michael Thomas and George Kittle were among the NFL stars past and present who honored Marietta, Georgia, tight end Arik Gilbert with the Gatorade Male High School Athlete of the Year award via video on Friday.
“Welcome to the Gatorade Family,” Manning said to Gilbert in the minute-long clip.
Gilbert, who is bound for LSU, is the first tight end to win in the 18-year history of the award. UConn-bound basketball star Paige Bueckers was named Gatorade’s Female High School Athlete of the Year.
Gilbert, ESPN’s No. 1-ranked tight end prospect in the 2020 class, was a two-time All-State pick and led his Blue Devils to a 13-2 record and the Georgia Class 7A state title. His 2019 statistics included 105 receptions for 1,860 yards and 15 touchdowns.
Gilbert was in the middle of a tutoring session, he said, when his brother came upstairs to tell him they had to leave. He was stunned to see an entire room set up in celebration of the prestigious honor.
“I was not expecting it at all,” Gilbert said. “They sat me down and showed the video. I was just shocked. … It was awesome. They had a lot of NFL guys in there giving me congratulations — a lot of my favorite players, too.”
The first Gatorade Male Athlete of the Year award went to LeBron James in 2003. Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray won it in 2015.