Schmit: Local NFL draft picks savor a special moment

Cole Kmet fans have their pick of favorite memories of the local hero.

Some involve his days at St. Viator High School, others from the University of Notre Dame. And they especially love seeing the tight end’s signature home run swing celebration whenever he catches a touchdown pass for the Bears.

My favorite Kmet moment, however, exists in a gap.

When he became a second-round draft pick of the Bears in 2020, we were at the beginning of the COVID pandemic and the accompanying social isolation. There was no giant party at the Kmet home in the Northwest suburbs, just a small family gathering.

Friends and neighbors, though, improvised under unique circumstances. They organized a parade of cars to drive by Kmet’s house, honking their horns to celebrate in a strange new world.

The parade lasted about 45 minutes. It remains an unforgettable memory.

The Kmet “experience” came to mind last weekend as three of our area alums enjoyed their own NFL draft moments. Willowbrook graduate Enrique Cruz Jr., Antioch’s Athan Kaliakmanis and Tanner Koziol, who attended Lake Park, were all selected on Day 3 of the draft.

Now they’re basking in the glow before the real work begins.

Cruz was selected in the fifth round by the San Francisco 49ers as an offensive lineman out of Kansas. Willowbrook honored Cruz this week by dedicating each school day to a different spirit theme involving his career path.

Monday, students were encouraged to wear the red, white and blue of Kansas. Wednesday was devoted to the orange of Syracuse, Cruz’s previous school. A day for the red and gold of the 49ers and another for Willowbrook gear capped the festivities.

Like with previous Willowbrook NFL draft picks Tom Hicks and Matt Roth, the Warriors were thrilled to take pride in one of their own.

We didn’t have Koziol in the area for long, but we’re claiming him anyway.

The receiver transferred from Lake Park to Nazareth, and then finished high school in Indiana. Koziol first attended Ball State before briefly heading to Wisconsin and finally settling at Houston, where last season he piled up 74 catches for 727 yards.

A fifth-round pick by Jacksonville, Koziol celebrated his selection right back where it all began — at home in the Chicago suburbs.

My favorite draft story of last weekend involves Kaliakmanis. The quarterback out of Rutgers was picked in the seventh round by Washington.

Antioch Mayor Scott Gartner posted a congratulatory note to Kaliakmanis on social media, noting his journey as “a testament to hard work, resilience, and believing in yourself. It’s not every day we get to say an Antioch quarterback is heading to the NFL, this is history for our town.”

Gartner closed with a reminder about Antioch’s strong history of football talent. His list of greats included Jim McMillen, who played for the Bears in the 1920s and later became mayor of Antioch.

“Not bad company to be joining,” Gartner wrote.

“And if you ever decide to come back and run for Mayor … just know your current career path might pay a little better.”