BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- Bridgewater State University senior linebacker Michael Rosa has been selected to the 2020-2021 Academic All-District® One Division III Football Team by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).

Rosa and teammate David Coakley are the first members of the Bridgewater State football program to earn the CoSIDA Academic All-District® honor since Travis Bassett in 2015. All told, eight different football Bears have garnered the accolade since 2001 including Martyn Voorhis (2014), Alex Monteiro (2012), Justin Lima (2007, 2008), Russell Booth (2002, 2003) and Nicholas Bosh (2002).

Of the 17 District One honorees, Rosa and Coakley are the only two student-athletes from the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) to be voted to the team. District One is comprised of Massachusetts and Maine.

To be eligible for all-academic honors, a student-athlete must be a starter or a key reserve, maintain a cumulative grade point average of 3.30 on a scale of 4.00, have reached sophomore athletic and academic standings at his/her current institution and be nominated by his/her sports information director. First-team Academic All-District® honorees advance to the CoSIDA Academic All-America® ballot. First and second Academic All-America® honorees will be announced in early July.

A native of Uxbridge, Massachusetts, Rosa just wrapped up his final semester as an undergraduate student at Bridgewater State with an overall grade point average of 3.48. He earned a Bachelor of Science in exercise science and will attend the BSU graduation ceremony in late July at Gillette Stadium. Michael was named to the Dean's List six times at Bridgewater State and is also a four-time MASCAC Fall/Winter All-Academic Team selection.

Rosa, who transferred from the University of Rhode Island, started ten games for the Bears in 2018 and recorded 70 tackles (44 solo), 2 1/2 sacks, 5 1/2 tackles for loss and one interception to go along with one forced and one recovered fumble. He earned All-MASCAC Second Team honors in 2018 and helped the Bears post a record of 8-3 including a 34-19 victory over Salve Regina University in the New England Bowl.

Rosa is expected to return to the Bears' lineup this coming fall as a graduate student. He missed the 2019 season due to a knee injury, while the 2020 campaign was cancelled as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

2020-2021 CoSIDA Academic All-District® Division III Football Teams (PDF)