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PARKERSBURG - While celebrating its silver anniversary of honoring the nation's best high school athletes, the Gatorade Company went red and white in choosing the representative from West Virginia.

On Thursday, Parkersburg High School running back Allan Wasonga was named the state's Gatorade Football Player of the Year for 2009-10. The 5-foot-10, 200-pound junior becomes the third Big Red to be chosen, with the most recent being current West Virginia University offensive lineman Josh Jenkins.

The award, which recognizes not only outstanding athletic excellence, but also high standards of academic achievement and exemplary character demonstrated on and off the field, distinguishes Wasonga as West Virginia's best high school football player.

Wasonga led the Big Reds to a 6-5 record and a berth in the Class AAA state playoffs. Also recognized as the 2009 Mountain State Athletic Conference Player of the Year, Wasonga carried the ball 215 times for 2,142 yards and 28 touchdowns. He rushed for more than 100 yards in 10 of 11 games and topped the 200-yard mark six times.

Wasonga has maintained a 3.12 grade-point average in the classroom. An active member of his church community, he has volunteered locally at the YMCA and as a guest speaker at youth football camps.

Now a finalist for the prestigious Gatorade National Football Player of the Year award - which will be announced later this month, Wasonga joins an elite alumni association of past state football award winners, including Mark Sanchez, Wes Welker, Terrell Suggs, Anquan Boldin and Jerome Bettis.

Recent winners at the state level includes South Charleston's Aaron Slusher (2008-09) and Wheeling Central Catholic's Brandon Tucker (2006-07).