At the end of each calendar year, Servite Athletics presents four special awards to student-athletes who excel in the classroom (Scholar-Athlete of the Year), on the field of play (Athlete of the Year), in the community (Frank Ryan Service Award) and personally (Sherer Courage Award). These awards are given out at our annual Hall of Fame Dinner and All Sports Banquet held at the Orange Hill Restaurant.
The Athlete of the Year is someone who excels in athletics in addition to providing service to the community while maintaining the high academic expectations set at Servite. This year our pool of applicants was incredibly deep, the talent displayed by members of the Class of 2022, was record-breaking to say the least.
Tetairoa McMillan, our 2022 Athlete of the Year, is truly a generational talent. He earned 9 varsity letters during his high school career playing football, basketball and volleyball both his freshman and sophomore year, football and volleyball his junior year and football his senior year. He earned All-Trinity League and All-CIF recognition in two sports while also setting school records in both football and volleyball.
In football, he was a 3x 1st Team All-Trinity League selection, 2x 1st Team All-CIF honoree, 2x All-Orange County athlete, 3x All-State wide receiver and the Trinity League Overall MVP and CIF Division 1 Offensive Player of the Year his senior season. He was named Player of the Year by 7 different organizations in 2022 including being Servite’s 1st ever Gatorade State Player of the Year and a National Finalist being recognized as one of the top 3 football players in the nation! He was also the first Friar to earn CalHi Sport’s Mr. Football recognition, awarded to the top football player in the state.
Beyond that, he was a 3x All-American while being selected to play in both the Army All-American Bowl and Polynesian Bowl. He set new Servite career records for receiving yards, receiving touchdowns and receptions while setting the single season and single game record for pass receptions. A two-way starter, he helped lead the team to the CIF D1 finals his senior year and a No. 3 ranking in the national composite rankings. In volleyball, he won a Trinity League Championship and led the Friars to the CIF Semifinals his junior year, in which he set a school record for kills in a match. For his accolades in both sports, he earned OC Register Overall Athlete of the Year honors in 2021.
Academically, he graduated early and enrolled at the University of Arizona with a 4.23 GPA earning Principal’s High Honor Roll all seven semesters. He was also recognized with the National Football Foundation Orange County Scholar-Athlete Award. In addition, he served as an Admissions Ambassador at Servite, volunteered with Operation Christmas Child and worked as a youth football coach.
To add to his already impressive resume, he was recently awarded Trinity League Male Athlete of the Year and the Orange County Athletic Director’s Association’s Athlete of the Year honors.