Fremd's Lombard honored to compete in All-American Bowl
Some random ramblings while waiting for the latest snowstorm of the century to finally end -
Star search for Lombard: Most of us probably wish we were in San Antonio right now. Fremd senior Christian Lombard has been fortunate enough to be there all week preparing for Saturday's 10th annual U.S. Army All-American Bowl, which features 100 of the country's top senior football players.
The Notre Dame-bound offensive lineman will be wearing No. 75 for the East squad in a game televised live at noon on NBC from the Alamodome.
"I got nominated a year ago so for it to finally be here, it's crazy," Lombard told former Daily Herald sports writer Pete Sampson of IrishIllustrated.com on Thursday. "To play in the this game, I'm representing my whole town, the town of Palatine, I'm representing the state of Illinois, I'm representing the Midwest. It's a huge honor."
It has also been more than just a chance for Lombard to showcase the skills that made him one of the top offensive linemen in the country.
"I get to meet all these soldiers, these heroes, these guys that put their lives on the line for us," Lombard said. "I'm just completely honored."
Lombard's teammates include Proviso West wide receiver Kyle Prater (Southern California), Johnsburg tight end C.J. Fiedorowicz (Iowa) and Loyola defensive end Chance Carter (Northwestern).
"Absolutely," Lombard said of having butterflies Saturday. "Coming from high school, we played in front of 1,000 or 2,000 fans, now it's going to be like 30,000 or 40,000.
"You're probably going to hear it rumbling in the locker room before. Of course I'm going to be nervous."
The recruiting game: One part of Saturday's U.S. Army All-American Bowl will be what has become a traditional dog-and-pony show of sorts of players announcing their college choices during the game.
Some kids will make their verbal commitments by holding a bunch of hats and then putting on the one of their school of choice. In many ways, it's not unlike a shell game on city street corner.
But the difficulty of projecting the future will also be on display Saturday and in a month when football signing day finally arrives. Some of these kids will never be heard from again for all kinds of reasons.
That's why it was fun Wednesday night to see Central Michigan quarterback and Benet product Dan LeFevour lead the way to a dramatic double-overtime GMAC Bowl victory. LeFevour went from a recruiting afterthought in high school to a bona-fide NFL prospect and NCAA record-setter.
Super changes: The supersectional sites for boys and girls basketball were finally released by the IHSA this week with some big changes.
Seven of the 16 supersectionals for boys and five of 16 for girls will be played in high school gyms. Last year, all but one of the boys and two of the girls supers were played at college sites or in arenas.
"There are some venue charges that are a little steep," IHSA assistant executive director Kurt Gibson told the Daily Herald's John Radtke earlier this week. "This will give some of our member schools a chance to share in the revenue of hosting a supersectional."
That figures to keep the trend veering toward more supersectionals in high school gyms. Elgin and Hinsdale Central will host 4A boys supers and Hoffman Estates will host a 3A super.
"There was a time when there was a certain mystique about playing on a college court before getting downstate," Gibson said, "but it's become an old argument because kids are playing on college courts more and more during the season."
But quite often those games don't mean a lot before a smattering of fans. There is something special and rewarding about playing the game to get downstate at places such as Loyola's Gentile Center, Northwestern's Welsh-Ryan Arena or Northern Illinois' Convocation Center or old Chick Evans Field House.
One high school gym it is good to see have a super again is Hinsdale Central. One of the great old gyms in the Chicago area is a great setting when fans are packed in behind the baskets in the balconies.