Batavia, Geneva busy on signing day
One big happy family of Bulldogs football players it was on Batavia’s National Letter of Intent signing day on Wednesday.
“It was awesome,” said Eastern Michigan-bound tight end Cole Gardner. “There were a bunch of us in there. They kind of did a team thing with some of the guys making decisions.”
Part and parcel with a 2011 season that rivals only Batavia’s 2006 campaign, early in the morning in the school’s Professional Development Center seven football players either declared their intentions, or decided to make a decision at a later date.
Along with Gardner, an Illinois High School Football Coaches Association Class 6A All-State selection, honorable-mention pick Alec Lyons signed his LOI to Indiana State, which Gardner had also considered along with Illinois State.
“I chose Indiana State because when I visited there I liked it a lot,” said Lyons, fourth on the team last season with 79 tackles and first in touchdowns with 13, all on the ground. He is Batavia’s all-time tackles leader with 153.
“I had a great time with the players,” said the 6-foot-2, 260-pound Lyons, who figures to fit in at one of the two positions he played in high school, fullback and defensive end. “I felt like those are the kind of people that I want to put myself around for the next five years.”
Gardner, who said teammate Austin Lewis’ father played at Eastern Michigan, figures to continue at tight end, where last fall he caught 30 passes for 442 yards and 7 touchdowns. Gardner also made 35 tackles on defense, with 5 sacks and 24 quarterback hurries. He finished tied for Batavia’s career lead with 20 sacks.
“I couldn’t let this opportunity go. The coaching staff, the competition, the people we get to play,” he said of 2012 opponents such as Michigan State and Purdue.
Lewis, a defensive lineman, declared for Augustana while All-State quarterback Noel Gaspari will play for coach John Thorne at North Central College. That’s the alma mater of Batavia coach Dennis Piron, his father and former Bulldogs coach Mike Gaspari, and defensive coordinator Matt Holm.
Sean Oroni, who set a Batavia record with 86 solo tackles, has yet to make a decision but Piron noted in an email he is siding toward Carthage College. Piron noted safety Kevin Schroeder was leaning to Coe College while receiver Evan Zeddies remains undecided.
Two other All-state quarterbacks, Geneva’s Matt Williams and Aurora Christian’s Anthony Maddie, stuck by their commitments to the colleges they decided on months ago. Williams signed his LOI to Northern Illinois University while Maddie stuck with Western Michigan University.
Geneva also will send a pair of receivers to the college ranks. Ben Rogers signed to Cornell and Tyler Hickey to Davidson on Wednesday.
Vikings coach Rob Wicinski had indicated tight end Connor Einck and offensive lineman Jake Mills will also be playing college ball but are still in play, which is also the status of Marmion lineman Ryan Glasgow.
Kaneland coach Tom Fedderly said three of his graduating senior stars, receivers Sean Carter and Quinn Buschbacher and lineman Ryan Noel, will play but their decisions are still pending.
West Aurora has a slew of collegiate prospects including All-Area offensive lineman Austin Beebe and unanimous all-DuPage Valley Conference nose tackle Javonta Black. Coach Nate Eimer said only quarterback Curtis Townsend has made a decision, to play for Olivet Nazarene in Bourbonnais.
St. Charles North coach Mark Gould didn’t note any Letter of Intent signings. St. Charles East coach Mike Fields said it’s a possibility running back Carter Reading could compete in either football or track at the U.S. Naval Academy, where he recently received an appointment.