Meet The News-Gazette's 88th All-State Football Team
Nov. 23—First Team
Quarterbacks
Athlete School Yr. Ht. Wt.
Robert Battle East St. Louis Sr. 6-0 180
Continuing long line of playmakers for the Flyers, Battle has thrown for 2,026 yards and 26 touchdowns to go along with 734 rushing yards and eight scores .
Ryan Boe Batavia Sr. 6-3 190
North Dakota State's quarterback room will soon include a signal-caller that threw for 2,977 yards and 33 touchdowns against just three interceptions .
Jake Curry Edwardsville Sr. 6-0 185
Curry won't go far to play for Southern Illinois after completing 136 of his 217 passing attempts for 2,232 yards and 29 touchdowns for 10-win Tigers.
Bradyn Little Quincy Jr. 6-0 195
Little completed 71 percent of his passes for 3,422 yards and 45 touchdown while leading the Blue Devils to Class 7A state quarterfinals and 11 wins.
Alessio Milivojevic Wheaton St Francis Sr. 6-3 215
The Ball State commit led the Spartans to 10 wins and spot in Class 5A state semifinals after throwing for 3,408 yards and 40 touchdowns.
Blayne Sisson Mt. Carmel Sr. 6-2 190
Illinois walk-on has 51 touchdowns, having thrown for 1,762 yards and rushed for 2,081 yards in carrying Mt. Carmel to Class 3A state title game.
Running backs
Athlete School Yr. Ht. Wt.
Gage Dunker Lena-Winslow Sr. 6-1 210
Playing for powerhouse program that will try to win its fourth straight Class 1A state title on Friday, Dunker has rushed for 2,492 yards and 41 touchdowns .
Darrion Dupree Chicago Mt. Carmel Sr. 5-10 195
Wisconsin commit has rushed for 1,056 yards with 16 touchdowns and has 704 receiving yards and eight touchdowns for Class 7A state finalist.
Alex Marre Montini Sr. 5-8 180
Offensive MVP of the Chicago Catholic League's White division, Marre is a Northern Illinois recruit who totaled 2,143 all-purpose yards with 21 touchdowns .
Jake Melion York Sr. 5-10 180
Rushed for 1,785 yards and 18 touchdowns , earning Player of the Year honors in the West Suburban Silver Conference for Class 8A state semifinalist.
Tight ends
Athlete School Yr. Ht. Wt.
Christian Bentancur Marian Central Sr. 6-5 240
Clemson commit — who caught 21 passes in a Class 4A first-round playoff game — chose the Tigers over offers from a myriad of Power Five schools
Grant Stec Jacobs Sr. 6-6 220
Stec helped the Golden Eagles to the Class 7A postseason and committed to Wisconsin above offers from the likes of Illinois, Michigan State and Penn State.
Wide receivers
Athlete School Yr. Ht. Wt.
Carson Grove Hersey Sr. 5-10 170
Grove caught 64 passes for 1,435 yards and 16 touchdowns, with the Northwestern commit adding five interceptions and 32 tackles for a 10-win team.
I'Marion Stewart Kenwood Sr. 5-10 180
Stewart helped the Broncos to an 8-4 record and elected to play collegiately at Michigan over offers from Illinois, Wisconsin and Georgia.
Cam Williams Glenbard South Sr. 6-2 195
Williams will play college football at Notre Dame over offers that included Illinois after helping the Raiders to a 9-2 record during his senior season.
Offensive line
Athlete School Yr. Ht. Wt.
Marques Easley Kankakee Sr. 6-5 335
A Georgia commit, Easley was a key part of a Kankakee offense that averaged 43.5 points per game, recorded a single-game school record of 81 points .
Brandon Hansen Mundelein Sr. 6-6 290
Hansen, an Illinois commit, started 27 games for the Mustangs and only allowed one sack at left tackle during his senior season.
Jacob Katauskas Lemont Sr. 6-4 295
Katauskas averaged five knockdowns per game as a senior and will continue his career at Coastal Carolina after three years as Lemont's starting left tackle.
Bodey McCaslin St. Charles East Sr. 6-5 270
McCaslin will play college football at Iowa after choosing the Hawkeyes over offers that included Colorado, Purdue and Wisconsin.
Will Nolan Hersey Sr. 6-6 275
An Army All-American committed to Iowa, Nolan didn't allow a sack and totaled 74 pancake blocks in 10 appearances at left tackle as a senior.
Defensive line
Athlete School Yr. Ht. Wt.
Gabe Kaminski Nazareth Jr. 6-3 215
Only a junior, the three-time all-Chicago Catholic League selection holds offers that include Notre Dame, Tennessee and a myriad of Big Ten schools.
Marquise Lightfoot Kenwood Sr. 6-5 220
Lightfoot's visits included Illinois, Miami, Ohio State and USC before the Kenwood standout elected to commit to continue his career with the Hurricanes.
Joe Reiff York Jr. 6-5 235
Reiff has verbally committed to Notre Dame after he registered 60 tackles, 11 sacks, 16 hurries and three forced fumbles for 11-win team this fall.
Justin Scott St. Ignatius Sr. 6-4 310
The News-Gazette's All-State Player of the Year is committed to Ohio State after three seasons of using elite size and strength to turn into a five-star recruit.
Eddie Tuerk Lyons Sr. 6-5 285
Future Illini got after quarterbacks at high rate this fall for Lions, posting 37 tackles, including 12 for loss, to go with eight sacks and 53 quarterback pressures.
Linebackers
Athlete School Yr. Ht. Wt.
Domenic Beres Wheaton St. Francis Sr. 5-9 190
Beres holds offers from Valparaiso, Upper Iowa and Roosevelt after collecting 164 tackles, 10 tackles for loss, six hurries and two sacks this fall.
Cael Brezina Downers Grove North Sr. 6-3 200
Downers Grove North is within one win of a Class 7A state title thanks in large part to Brezina, the Iowa State commit with 100 tackles and 61/2 sacks .
Parker Startz Chicago Mt. Carmel Sr. 6-3 225
Startz committed to play at Ohio and is a key cog on a powerful Caravan defense with 82 tackles, 2 1/2 sacks and a forced fumble for Class 7A state finalist.
Defensive backs
Athlete School Yr. Ht. Wt.
Austin Alexander Marian Catholic Sr. 6-1 165
Kansas commit tallied 64 tackles and two interceptions while breaking up four passes as a senior, helping the Spartans to a 5-5 record in the process.
Leontre Bradford East St. Louis Sr. 6-0 190
A critical piece of East St. Louis' high-flying defense, Bradford committed to Purdue over offers from Illinois, Indiana and Minnesota, among several others.
KJ Parker IC Catholic Sr. 5-11 165
Parker committed to Iowa over offers that included Cincinnati, Iowa State and Wisconsin and helped the Knights to a 9-3 record during his senior season.
Luke Williams Naperville North Sr. 6-1 175
Key piece of the Huskies' five win season with five interceptions, Williams committed to play at Purdue over offers from Illinois, Minnesota and Wisconsin.
Specialist
Athlete School Yr. Ht. Wt.
Ethan Head Wheaton Academy Sr. 6-1 175
Head is among the country's elite kickers, having totaled 5,228 yards on 84 kickoffs, converted 50 of 55 extra-point attempts and hit for a 46-yard field goal.
Special Mention 100
Quarterbacks
Athlete School Yr. Ht. Wt.
Kellen Creviston Routt Jr. 6-1 165
Ryan Fitzgerald Loyola Academy Jr. 6-3 190
Colin Hayes Bloomington Central Catholic Sr. 6-6 235
Cooper Hoffman Du-Pec Jr. 6-0 165
Logan Malachuk Nazareth Academy Jr. 5-11 185
Cale McThenia Marian Central Sr. 6-3 215
Gary Rutherford Peoria Sr. 6-3 200
Tyler Shaner Dixon Sr. 6-0 175
Logan Smith St. Joseph-Ogden Sr. 5-11 160
Drew Wichtowski Westville Sr. 6-0 195
Bo Zeleznik LeRoy Jr. 5-9 175
Running backs
Athlete School Yr. Ht. Wt.
Brady Anderson Morrison Sr. 5-10 165
Hudson Ault Prairie Central Sr. 5-11 185
Aaron Ball St. Laurence Sr. 6-0 200
Camren Bigard Athens Sr. 5-6 165
Tommy Davis Normal Community Sr. 5-9 185
Kyle Farrell Wilmington Jr. 5-10 180
Tysean Griffin Morgan Park Sr. 5-11 165
Myson Johnson-Cook Decatur MacArthur Fr. 6-3 205
Tyler Lofton Marian Catholic Jr. 6-0 215
Kainon McQueary Washington Sr. 5-9 175
Myles Mitchell Oak Lawn Richards Jr. 5-10 190
Owen Mulder Forreston Sr. 6-0 175
Tony Phillips Kankakee Sr. 5-6 170
Andrew Prio Cary-Grove Sr. 5-8 165
Aaron Stewart Warren Township So. 5-8 170
Connor Vanselow Wauconda Sr. 6-0 170
Evan Wells Roxana Sr. 6-2 215
Erimus Wright Hillcrest Jr. 6-0 185
Jaydon Wright Bishop Mac Sr. 6-0 220
Wide receivers
Athlete School Yr. Ht. Wt.
AJ Abrams Blue Island Eisenhower Sr. 6-0 175
Kyan Berry-Johnson Bolingbrook Sr. 5-10 160
Sencerre Brown Normal West Sr. 6-0 185
Patrick Clacks Kenwood 6-1 Sr. 185
Athlete School Yr. Ht. Wt.
Austin Cummings Tuscola Sr. 5-8 155
Mar'Quan Gary Normal Community Jr. 6-0 170
Darrion Gilliam Chicago Mt. Carmel Sr. 6-5 200
Tykell Hammers Quincy Jr. 6-1 180
Ayden Ingram Bismarck-Henning/Rossville-Alvin Sr. 6-3 160
Luke Mailander York Sr. 6-0 175
Coy Taylor St. Joseph-Ogden Jr. 5-11 170
Brayden Trimble Mt. Zion Jr. 6-2 170
Jesse Watson East St. Louis So. 5-8 155
Tight ends
Athlete School Yr. Ht. Wt.
Julian Johnson Waubonsie Valley Sr. 6-5 210
Eric Karner IC Catholic Sr. 6-5 205
Patrick Schaller Glenbrook North Sr. 6-6 235
Offensive linemen
Athlete School Yr. Ht. Wt.
Caleb Apodaca Wauconda Sr. 6-2 230
Noah Bass Clinton Sr. 6-3 275
Zac Clarke Oswego Sr. 6-6 260
Jared Claunch Byron Jr. 5-11 240
Ty Dykes Metamora Jr. 6-0 245
Kaden Garland Oak Park Sr. 6-4 290
Josh Janowski Lincoln-Way East Sr. 6-2 270
Lane Mahnesmith Triad Sr. 6-7 315
Dominic McKibbin Bloomington Central Catholic Sr. 6-4 245
Payne Miller Princeton Sr. 6-2 290
Luke Nelson Rowva/Williamsfield Sr. 6-2 255
Chris Peura Seneca Sr. 6-0 230
Mick Ranquist Montini Sr. 6-2 260
Tommy Roath South Elgin Sr. 5-11 275
Defensive linemen
Athlete School Yr. Ht. Wt.
Ethan Aghakhan Stevenson Sr. 6-3 245
Joe Barna Wheaton North Sr. 6-4 250
Jack Barnhart Centennial Sr. 6-3 240
Andy Burburija Crystal Lake South Sr. 6-2 265
William Depaepe Moline Sr. 6-6 225
Grant Ellinger Naperville Central Sr. 6-4 270
JC Hayes Montini Jr. 6-2 255
Athlete School Yr. Ht. Wt.
Carlos Hazelwood Tinley Park Sr. 6-4 255
Iose Epenesa Edwardsville Jr. 6-3 230
Tanner Kempel Lena-Winslow Sr. 6-3 240
Dillan Johnson Joliet Catholic Sr. 6-2 280
Dexter Niekamp Normal Community Sr. 6-4 225
Karter Reiss Rochester Sr. 6-2 285
KeShawn Wiley Joliet West Jr. 5-10 195
Linebackers
Athlete School Yr. Ht. Wt.
Kennarius Chandler Kankakee Sr. 6-3 215
Caden Considine Byron So. 6-0 205
Carson Cooney Oswego Jr. 6-3 215
Ben Cooper Maine West Sr. 6-3 195
Jase Harlan Washington Sr. 5-9 180
Zac Johnson Wauconda Sr. 5-9 160
Brayden Leathers Athens Sr. 6-2 190
Chase Litwiller Olympia Sr. 6-4 195
Brett Michel Morton Sr. 5-11 200
Cole Ostendorf York Sr. 5-11 210
Paulie Rudolph Jacobs Sr. 5-11 210
Brock Suding Unity Sr. 6-0 205
Connor Sullivan Casey-Westfield Sr. 6-2 220
Defensive backs
Athlete School Yr. Ht. Wt.
Peace Bumba St. Thomas More Sr. 6-1 205
Brady Clodfelder Villa Grove Sr. 6-3 175
David Coffey De La Salle Sr. 6-2 190
Zack Garifo Huntley Sr. 5-11 170
Lebarion Gilmore Stagg Sr. 6-2 175
Brett Kasper Wheaton Academy Sr. 5-10 150
Andre Lovett Blue Island Eisenhower Jr. 6-2 170
Eric McClain Glenbard East Sr. 6-0 175
Drew Paben Camp Point Central Sr. 5-9 145
Taylor Powell East St. Louis Sr. 6-4 185
Specialists
Athlete School Yr. Ht. Wt.
Mike Baker Loyola Sr. 5-9 175
Nathan Blazewski Lockport Sr. 5-10 160
Braden Clark Kewwanee Sr. 6-3 175
