The best high school soccer player in the United States is right here in our city of Dearborn. The award to Dearborn High senior Soony Saad as the Gatorade National Boys’ Soccer Player of the Year was made Thursday in the gym of the high school.

The Dearborn Press & Guide reports that Saad, who won the state coaches association Mr. Soccer Award at the end of last season, was selected the best of over 380,000 high school boys who played the game nationwide.

The paper says that Saad joins an elite list of athletes honored by Gatorade over the past 25 years that includes Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning, former Dallas Cowboys running back Emmitt Smith, Cleveland Cavaliers star LeBron James, New York Yankees star Alex Rodriguez and current Tigers pitcher Rick Porcello.

“What’s astonishing is the company he’s with,” Dearborn High coach Sean Gordon told the Press & Guide. “He’s recognized by coaches all over the country and he’s on a fast track to great things.”

Saad scored a state-record 76 goals last year and finished his career with 172, which is also a state record.

Saad told the Press & Guide he plans to attend the University of Michigan in the fall and join his brother, Hamoody, on the Wolverines soccer team.

This entry was posted on Friday, May 21st, 2010 at 3:14 pm and is filed under Around Town. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.