Rockwood Summit senior Aidan Amy will play football at Washington University in St. Louis this fall, picking the Division III Bears over an offer from MIT.

Amy, a defensive back, committed to WashU, where he plans to study marketing on a pre-law track. He chose the Bears — who went 8-3 last season — over the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, which also recruited him to play football.

The path to a college roster started in sixth grade. Amy and his family had just moved into the Rockwood School District, and he enrolled at Rockwood South Middle School. That's when he joined the Junior Falcons, the official youth feeder program for Rockwood Summit football that fields teams for grades 3-8 in the St. Louis Feeder League.

"Football really turned me into who I am today," Amy said in a Rockwood School District senior spotlight published Wednesday. "It was a really huge step in the right direction for me. It has fostered my relationships, confidence, skills, soft skills, things that I will use in the future."

Off the field, Amy has served on Rockwood Summit's Student Council for three years, volunteered as a referee for youth flag football games, and been involved with Special Olympics.

His academic plans are just as deliberate as his football career. Amy said he's drawn to pre-law because he's "very logically oriented" and enjoys debate, while marketing appeals to him as a practical, everyday skill.

"You have to be able to market yourself in job interviews or just to other people," Amy said. "Marketing is used in everyday activities people don't even realize."

Amy will join WashU's Division III football program this fall.