Antonio Rosales was having a forgettable Thursday.
"I walked into our locker room, and when I'm having a bad day, I have my headphones on and don't talk to anyone," the Tucson High School offensive lineman recalled of May 10.
"I was just sitting there with my head down."
The forgettable day turned into an unforgettable one seconds later.
Tucson coach Justin Argraves walked out of his office and told Rosales he needed to see him.
The 6-foot-5-inch, 250-pound left tackle settled into a seat, looking his coach in the eye.
"You just got your first scholarship offer," Argraves told Rosales.
"Excuse me?" Rosales asked, with his frown turning to a smile.
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"San Diego State offered you a scholarship today," Argraves went on.
Rosales couldn't stop smiling and a "frustrating day at school" was in the rear-view mirror.
The lineman, who will be a senior next season, was a second-team All-Southern Arizona pick by the Star and is firmly on the radar for college recruiters.
The Aztecs are the only school to offer, but that's likely to change over the next few months. Idaho was at practice this week for the second time to look at Rosales, and Boise State, UNLV, San Jose State and California are all expressing interest, as well.
According to Argraves, Rosales is attempting to become the first Tucson High product to earn a Division I scholarship since Tremaine Cox signed with Arizona 12 years ago.
"When you first look at him, he's an opposing figure, but he has great athleticism, and it shows on film," Argraves said. "The great thing about Tony is he's a yes sir/no sir guy, sitting with a 3.2 grade-point average."
Rosales would like to visit San Diego State and tour the campus but said he's going to take his time with the recruiting process. He has relied heavily on his parents and Argraves and is going to savor the next few months.
"My mom used to get so mad at me for running around the house, pretending to be Ray Lewis, breaking stuff and putting holes in the wall," Rosales said. "I've always wanted to be a football player, and I'm going to do keep doing everything I can to play in college."
Next-level news
• Palo Verde softball player Janese Timmons is headed to Eastern Arizona. She didn't strike out once during her senior season and had 37 stolen bases, according to her coach, Mario Gastellum.
• St. Augustine's Marissa Romero signed with Holy Names University in California earlier this month to play softball. She leaves the school with 23 career triples.
• Amphitheater state wrestling champion Floyd Jones signed with Northwest Kansas Technical College.
Sabino claims Cup
Sabino won the first-ever TUSD Superintendent's Cup on Monday night at a ceremony at Catalina.
Schools in the district accumulated points based on state tournament participation and results, team grade-point averages, pursuing victory with honor (TUSD's sportsmanship program) and individual and team postseason awards.
Based on those criteria, Sabino took home the award, finishing with 317 points. Sahuaro finished second with 270. The other two finalists were Palo Verde and Catalina.
Player, budget decisions loom as roster transition heats up for Arizona basketball
