PALM BEACH GARDENS – As a freshman, Tyler Aronson got a lot of things done at Benjamin.
In just six games played this past season, the 6-foot-2, 200-pound quarterback has grown by leaps and bounds as the Buccaneers team leader. He played a few good-to-great games, but none of them was arguably better than when his team went on the road to face Gulliver Prep (Miami) on Oct. 17, 2020.
Even though it was a 40-28 loss to the Class 4A powerhouse, Aronson dug deep within himself to help his team battle back in the second half. The freshman turned a 23-7 halftime deficit into a game that resulted in him throwing for 270 yards and three touchdowns.
“We were down big at the half and we came back,” Aronson said. “I felt like me and my whole team overcame adversity and performed very well. We made it a really close game.”
Coming from a freshman who only played two high school football games prior to that one, it was easy to select Aronson as our 561 Private Breakthrough Player of the Year. He beat out fellow nominees Jaylan Leggett (St. John Paul II junior wide receiver), Vinkevus Pierre (Cardinal Newman sophomore athlete), and Bobby Salla (American Heritage-Delray Beach senior defensive back).
“It feels really good, especially with all the work I’ve put in the weight room and with my wide receivers,” Aronson said. “Without my defense, lineman, wide receivers and running backs, none of this would be possible. And Coach [Eric] Kresser is making me better every day.”
Aronson finished his freshman season with 1,020 passing yards and 11 touchdowns. Two of his other standout games were in Week 4 against Archbishop McCarthy (194 passing yards, two touchdown passes; 49-0 home win) and in Week 9 against Westminster Christian (57-yard touchdown pass to sophomore wideout Darrell Sweeting; 20-13 home win to reach Class 3A-Region 4 quarterfinal round).
Outgoing senior running back Khani Johns has been instrumental in Aronson’s development as a leader. He has been impressed with the quarterback’s level of growth in a short amount of time.
“The kid has heart, a lot of it. He’s cold for his age, and he’s only going to get better,” Johns said. “He’s taking the leadership role more seriously now as that’s his job as the quarterback. He’s learning fast. I can’t wait to watch him grow into something special and dangerous.”
