SAN DIMAS/LA VERNE – The Bonita High School football team, fresh off an undefeated regular season and ready to compete in the CIF Southern Section Division 3 playoffs, could not contain their enthusiasm, stamping their feet and whooping it up, while watching star linebacker Noah Mikhail be presented his official Navy All-American Bowl Game jersey by principal Kenny Ritchie, capping a prep football career that established Mikhail as one of the top high school football players in the country.

Mikhail, who has already committed to play collegiate ball at Texas A&M, is one of 100 players selected to play in the annual high school all-star matchup, to be held Jan. 11 at the Alamodome in San Antonio, and televised nationally on NBC.

The All-American Bowl traditionally showcases the top emerging talent in college football, with nearly 600 All-American alumni drafted into the National Football League, 93 Super Bowl champions, 247 Pro Bowl selections, and 18 Heisman Trophy finalists.

“This is a blessed opportunity for me to be in this position,” Mikhail said. “It is very much an honor. Not very many high school players get a chance to play in such a prestigious game.”

During the ceremony, held Nov. 4 in the Bonita High gym, Mikhail was cheered on by his family, including older brother Kalim, who plays linebacker for Mt. San Antonio College; father Karim, a former offensive guard who played on Azusa Pacific University’s 1998 NAIA championship football team; and mother Lynsey, who played volleyball and track for the University of La Verne.

“Noah got his size from dad and his speed from mom,” Lynsey Mikhail said.

Mikhail, who is also an academic leader at Bonita High with a 4.1 GPA, was named the San Gabriel Valley’s defensive player of the year as a sophomore, and has been a San Gabriel Valley all-area selection for the past three years. Mikhail was also one of the most highly recruited players in the country, and the fifth-ranked player in California before committing to Texas A&M.

“I chose Texas A&M because I felt really comfortable when I visited the campus,” Mikhail said. “I like that they have a defensive-minded head coach, and I was very impressed by the linebacker coach. I believe I will have my best opportunity to grow playing for the Aggies.”

The upcoming 2024 playoff run will serve as Mikhail’s farewell to the Bearcats and his Bonita High teammates and friends. Mikhail will travel to Texas A&M the first week in January to start his college career, then head to the Alamodome on Jan. 6 to meet his all-star teammates and prepare for the bowl game.

“This is super exciting, kind of surreal,” Karim Mikhail said. “We are excited for Noah, but it’s also a bittersweet moment, since he will be moving far away from home. We feel blessed that we can watch our child grow up and get an opportunity to enjoy a sport that he loves. We’ll miss his personality. But this is his next chapter and we are proud to see him growing into a young man.”

Academically, Mikhail is looking to major in either business or finance at Texas A&M.

“Noah is not just a once-in-a-lifetime athlete, he is an extraordinary student who is very humble,” Ritchie said. “Noah is our first-ever high school All-American, and we are so proud of him. We can’t wait to see Noah channel his Bearcat spirit into his collegiate career and wish him the very best in all that he does.”

PHOTO:

BUSD_ALLAMERICAN: Surrounded by his family, Bonita High School senior Noah Mikhail proudly shows off his exclusive All-American jersey during a presentation in the Bonita High gym on Nov. 4, honoring the school’s star linebacker, who will play in the prestigious Navy All-American Bowl Game on Jan. 11, 2025, at the Alamodome in San Antonio.