Ron Girault ‘04 was a major part of four consecutive state football titles.   He came into his own as a junior, rushing for 1,151 yards and 17 touchdowns, but had a monster year as a senior gaining 1,843 yards on 221 carries (an average of eight yards per carry) and 24 touchdowns.  

As a junior, he earned Second Team All-County and All-State honors; his team finished 9-3, won a state title and was ranked #10 in the state.  As a senior, he was First Team All-League, All-County and All-State honors for a Green Knights team that finished 10-2 and earned another state title.  

After rushing for three touchdowns against Holy Cross in the state semi-finals, Ron was the Record’s “Athlete of the Week” on December 16, 2003, rushing for 324 yards on 37 carries and scoring three touchdowns in SJR’s 34-14 state championship victory over Camden Catholic.  Coach Tony Karcich called Ronnie “the heart and soul of our team.  He excelled offensively as a tailback, but was equally accomplished on defense as a safety.  He delivered one of the most crushing tackles I ever saw in a game against Nutley and at Rutgers, he had a very successful college career as a defensive back.”

Coach Karcich went on to say, “Ronnie stood out like he did because of his leadership on and off the field.  He led by example.  He loved working with our younger players and having them watch what he did.    At the same time, he was a modest player, quiet and classy.  The combination of toughness and leadership, coupled with his academic achievements, made Ron an exceptional student-athlete.  He was exactly the sort of young man you wanted to see represent our program.”

Ron was voted Class Athlete by the SJR coaching staff in 2004, and Class Student-Athlete by his 2004 classmates.  He was also the recipient of Madison Square Garden’s Heisman High School All-Star Award.

Ron also represented SJR to the Rockland County community as well.  Devin McCourty, who will present Ron with his sweater tonight, credits him with paving the way for other student athletes from Rockland County to come to St. Joe’s for their high school years.  “My brother and I attended Chestnut Ridge Middle School with Ronnie and Stanley Julien,” Devin said, “and when we saw them at St. Joe’s, it was a big reason why we followed.”