“Adapt” has been a salient word for Whiting senior Romeo Rosario.
To new roles. To new positions. To new coaches.
Through it all, Rosario has stuck with it.
“It’s been a good four years,” he said. “Things have been kind of rough for Whiting the past four years, and people don’t think we’re that good. But no matter what the outcome is, just being on this field, playing with these guys, it’s a good feeling.
“It’s something you’re probably never going to get back, but it’s always going to be in your mind, what type of game this was and who you played with. It’s something I’ll never forget. Never.”
Rosario has a good feeling about the Oilers’ direction under first-year coach Adam Hudak, who is the seventh person to lead Whiting since Indiana Football Hall of Famer Jeff Cain stepped down in 2018 after 24 seasons.
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Formerly the coach at Hammond Central, Wheeler and Lake Station, Hudak spent last season as Crown Point’s special teams coordinator. It didn’t take long for Rosario, a 6-foot-3, 225-pound linebacker/fullback, to make an impression on him.
“Rome, he’s an emotional leader of our team, and he never leaves the field,” Hudak said. “He’s one of those guys that never leaves the field, and he’s been a great leader on and off the field. Any time I need help in the community, he’s always there. He’s been like that since I got the job in January. In the spring, I needed people to go do stuff, and he was always, always, always there to lend a hand. He’s been great.
“And little by little, I’ve been giving him the ball more and more on offense, and he’s loving that. It’s a process, but he’s been great. He’s been great for us. He’s one of those kids that you want to rush the process a little bit for so they can have some success. You can’t change everything overnight, but you wish you could, especially for kids like him.”
Rosario has been doing his part for the Oilers (2-2, 0-1) as they prepare to play a Greater South Shore Conference North game against Lake Station on Friday. Their last winning season came in 2018, when they went 12-1 under Cain.
“We still want to win the conference, and we definitely want to have a winning season,” Rosario said. “Whiting hasn’t had a winning season in a while, so we definitely have to somehow find a way to get a winning season.
“I’ll definitely do everything I can for this team, everything I can to make these boys believe we can win. Just putting this team on my back, making tackles, getting in the end zone, making big plays — I would definitely do that for this team. I want them to know that I’m always going to be the one to do that.”
In his third season starting at linebacker, Rosario has a team-high 26 tackles with three for loss and an interception. Also a tight end last season, he has shifted to the backfield, and he has contributed 176 yards and a team-high six touchdowns on 22 carries.
“It’s a good position for me, a blocking back and then carrying the ball,” Rosario said. “Coach saw me, and he moved me, and I definitely think that was a good thing for the offense. I’m definitely one of the guys people want to run behind, creating holes and gaps for these boys to run through.
“Then definitely carrying the ball, I’m a pretty big boy, and it’s hard for me to get brought down, so I can make some plays too.”
Indeed, Rosario took the first carry of his career 59 yards for a TD during Whiting’s season opener against North Newton.
“It was a great feeling to score, make sure these boys know we’re here and we’re here to win,” Rosario said. “That play, I visualized it.
“Before the game, that Wednesday, I told Hudak, ‘You know, coach, I’m going to visualize myself going for a 30-yard run,’ and after I took off for that 59-yarder up the middle, I was like, ‘I told you. I told you.’ And he was like, ‘Yep, you told me,’ and he was telling everybody what happened. I knew it was going to happen.”
It has still been a learning experience for Rosario and his teammates.
“We definitely had to adapt to a new offense, what he brought to the table,” Rosario said of Hudak. “But he’s a great coach, and he’s always ready to go. He’s trying to work and invest in this program. He came in as a new guy, and we didn’t really know him, but he came in and was like, ‘OK, let’s do this. Let’s get ready to work.’ And we got straight to work.
“Having a new coach every year, it’s hard to deal with because these guys get the mindset like, ‘It’s a new coach. He’s just going to leave us next year.’ But as a senior myself, it’s like no matter who the head coach is, no matter who walks in the building, you always have to adapt and be coachable and never get an attitude and always be ready to work because they’re trying to help you win. It’s definitely been weird these last few years with all these new coaches, but I’m always going to adapt to whoever is on my coaching staff. I really feel like Hudak is going to be here for these younger guys and really try to build something here.”
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Rosario has built his career from the ground up.
“Freshman year, I really didn’t even touch the field,” he said. “When you’re a freshman, that happens sometimes. I was just another player on the team. But I took it personally, and I was like, ‘Yeah, I’m going to get better.’ And then my sophomore year, I adapted and earned my starting spot as a linebacker, and from then on, I just became one of those guys. And then junior year, I finally got on offense and adapted to playing offense too.”
Rosario, who averaged 6.9 points as a starter for Whiting’s boys basketball team last season, has earned the respect of teammates like senior offensive lineman Sean Steele.
“He’s a leader, really vocal,” Steele said. “He lets everybody know what they’re doing, what they need to be doing. He’s an all-around athlete, plays two sports, and he’s good at both of them. He just makes sure he’s the hammer, not the nail.”
Rosario already has nailed down an offer from Calumet College, which is slated to transition from sprint football to NAIA in 2027. He hopes to add more offers as the season continues.
Rosario, who has an eye on becoming a physical therapist, also has been considering enlisting in the Marines, which would “follow the generations” after his father and grandfather served.
In the meantime, Rosario is enjoying his last season with the Oilers.
“These boys work hard,” he said. “It doesn’t matter if we’re a small 2A school or it’s just local kids from the neighborhood. Everybody puts in their work here — weight room, on the field. Everybody here loves this game. We may not be one of the top teams in the Region right now, but we’re one of the hardest-working.
“I love the game, these boys love the game, and I’m glad they’re willing to work no matter what the outcome is.”