MacArthur HS senior football linebacker Gian Villante has captured both the Tom Thorp Memorial Award and the Bill Piner Outstanding Linebacker Award, two coveted honors in the world of high school football. His outstanding record leading to these awards included 907 rushing yards, 105 tackles, 13 touchdowns and 5 sacks.

Villante, who lives in Wantagh with his mom and three siblings, credits the success he has achieved to the support of the Levittown community, especially the fans whose cheers spur him on, and his coaches who have devoted hours to providing him the best instruction and opportunities they could offer and, as he puts it, "keeping me straight." He modestly maintains that " ... there are other kids as talented as I am but they didn't have the support that I had." Growing up in Bellmore, Villante played for the Bellmore Braves but his admiration of a family friend, Pete Kouvatsos, a MacArthur alumnus, led to his desire to play for MacArthur. Kouvatsos, an outstanding and respected athlete who passed away tragically in 1998, had become a role model for Gian, leading to his interest in a second sport - wrestling.

When Gian isn't on the gridiron or the wrestling mat, he can be found reading about health and fitness issues, as he absorbs all the information he can get. Gian is currently considering his college choice, and he numbers Hofstra, the University of West Virginia, the University of Connecticut and Syracuse University among the possibilities. His future plans include a career in either education as a physical education teacher or in law enforcement. One plan is certain: he would like to coach sports since he loves working with children. One can easily see Gian established as a role model, as he once followed other role models before him. That is, after all, the Levittown way.