February 01, 2025
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High school football: 2019 Joliet Herald-News All-Area team

Meet the 2019 Joliet Herald-News All-Area team

By Steve Soucie

Keith Bronson, RB, Plainfield South: Bronson burst onto the scene in Plainfield South's opening game of the season by rushing for 200-plus yards in a win over West Aurora. The junior, a Southwest Prairie Conference pick, kept on going on his way to a 1,000 yard rushing season with 17 touchdowns.

Keith Bronson, RB, Plainfield South: Bronson burst onto the scene in Plainfield South's opening game of the season by rushing for 200-plus yards in a win over West Aurora. The junior, a Southwest Prairie Conference pick, kept on going on his way to a 1,000 yard rushing season with 17 touchdowns.

Kevin Countryman, DB, Providence: Countryman finished with six interceptions on the season, but more importantly delivered two of them in critical spots. Countryman collected an interception on Willowbrook's final drive in Week 1 to secure a victory and then later in the season snared an pick against St. Laurence on a 2-point conversion that would have led to a Celtic loss if completed.

Dale Dambek, LB, Plainfield East: Dambek, an Illinois High School Football Coaches Association Class 8A state pick, was a dominant defensive weapon. He led his team in total tackles with 120, establishing a school record for tackles in a season in the process. Dambek also netted eight tackles for loss and seemed to spend a ton of time in opponent's backfields.

Billy Dozier, WR/RB, Lincoln-Way West: Dozier was a wildly effective wide receiver for the Warriors, collecting 44 receptions for 672 yards on the season and was then pressed into duty in the backfield and also thrived gaining nearly 400 yards on just 65 carries including nearly carrying his team to an upset win over Phillips in the opening round of the Class 7A playoffs.

Dominic Dzioban, K/P, Lincoln-Way East: A specialist that was truly special Dzioban had the ability to severely alter games in his team's favor despite sometimes seeing very few actually plays. He booted two long field goals to account for half of Lincoln-Way East's scoring in the Class 8A championship, but often was even more dangerous as a punter often violently shifted field position in his team's favor. Dzioban was an IHSFCA Class 8A All-State pick.

AJ Henning, RB, Lincoln-Way East: The accolades have been rolling in for Henning and deservedly so. Henning recently picked up Gatorade's State Player of the Year honors, and the Michigan recruit was also an IHSFCA Class 8A All-State choice. Henning finished the season with 28 total touchdowns, while accounting for 667 yards rushing and 748 yards receiving.

Trent Howland, RB, Joliet West: Howland was an absolute monster for the Tigers ground game and had some truly gigantic games over the course of the season. Howland had a 300-plus yard rushing effort against Plainfield Central that included six touchdowns that earned him Chicago Bears Player of the Week honors in Week 9.

Trent Hudak, WR, Minooka: Hudak had quite the rapport with his quarterback Seth Lehr and always seemed to find a way to make a play when the Indians needed him to do so most. Hudak finished with 47 receptions for a whopping 884 yards and accounted for 11 Minooka touchdowns, many of them of a lengthy variety.

D'Mauryon Hunter, LB, Bolingbrook: If the Bolingbrook defense came up with a big play, and they came up with quite a few, it would not have been remotely surprising if Hunter were involved. He recorded 14 tackles for loss to go along with four sacks and two pass defenses and also had 113 total tackles.

Daniel Jezik, RB, Coal City: Jezik may have been the only running back in the state to surpass the 2,000-yard barrier for rushing yardage this season. But even if he wasn't the only one, he certainly deserves a place among the state's elite power runners. Jezik finished with 2,237 rushing yards with 25 touchdowns.

Antonio King, ATH, Bolingbrook: King was an Illinois High School Football Coaches Association Class 8A All-State pick and its easy to see why. King lined up in numerous spots around the field and was highly productive in all of those roles. King scored 13 touchdowns to lead his team (seven rushing, two receiving and four on returns).

Jake Kramer, LB, Lincoln-Way East: Other members of the vaunted Lincoln-Way East defense may have garnered more attention, but Kramer was the engine in the middle that kept things moving along. Kramer netted a whopping 156 total tackles including 85 solos. In the process, Kramer became the school's all-time leading tackler quite an accomplishment in a program with a history of sensational defensive players.

Seth Lehr, QB, Minooka: Lehr was an extremely productive and prolific passer for the Indians as he amassed nearly 2,000 yards passing despite missing almost three games due to injury. He also completed 70 percent of his passes while throwing just four interceptions over the course of the year. He also chipped in 356 rushing yards and eight rushing TDs.

Caleb Marconi, RB-LB, Lincoln-Way West: Marconi was an amazingly productive player for the Warriors often shouldering a heavy load for Lincoln-Way West's ground game. Marconi fell just short of 1,000 yards in an injury shortened season, but he routinely ripped off gains of 20-plus yards and scored 10 touchdowns on the season.

Sean McLaughlin, DL, Lincoln-Way East: The Northwestern bound McLaughlin made a living in the backfield of opposing offenses helping not allow many ground attacks to get past the first level. Despite drawing extra attention from offensive lines, McLaughlin recorded four quarterback sacks and nine tackles for loss.

Marcellus Moore, ATH, Plainfield North: Teams frequently schemed specifically for the Purdue-bound speedster and even then had a hard time figuring out a way to keep the Tigers from utilizing him. Moore finished with 34 receptions on the season and added another 200 yards rushing to the equation.

Brandon Phelps, RB-LB, Morris: Phelps rarely left the field for Morris this season, serving as the team's second leading rusher and the team's leading tackler. Phelps accounted for over 1,000 yards of total offense and stacked up a total of 113 tackles. He was also an Illinois High School Football Coaches Association Class 5A All-State choice.

Al Pontrelli, LB, Lemont: Pontrelli was a total force for the Indians defense, netting a number of plays behind the line of scrimmage. He finished with 20 tackles for loss and recorded nine quarterback sacks. In addition, he forced four fumbles and earned honorable mention Class 6A All-State status.

Austin Pullara, TE, Coal City: Pullara has been a dominant force for the Coalers for several season. His ability to contribute on both sides of the football was limited by a hand injury, but still was something of a wrecking ball on defense, leading a very strong defense with 96 tackles including 51 solos. He also recorded eight tackles for loss.

Ernesto Ramirez, DB, Minooka: Ramirez was supreme playmaker in the Minooka secondary, recording 42 total tackles which included 27 solo stops. He also snared eight interceptions which established a new school record for picks at Minooka. He also chipped in five pass break-ups in keying a Minooka secondary that was not thrown against very effectively.

Jake Renfro, OL, Providence: Renfro has been absolutely critical to the success of the Celtics offensive line unit over the past three seasons. A University of Cincinnati commit ranks as one of the school's best ever at the position. Renfro, a two-time All-Conference selection in an elite league, is also a top notch long snapper for kicks and punts.

Anthony Sambucci, WR, Lemont: The Western Michigan recruiting averaged well over 100 yards receiving this season and seemed to have an absolute affinity for finding his way into the endzone for the Indians, as he scored 19 touchdowns (16 receiving, two punt return, 1 kickoff return). He also returned over 20 kicks for an average of nearly 30 yards per return.

Jake Shipla, OL/DL, Minooka: Shipla was a rare player for the Indians, so much so that they couldn't afford to have him leave the field as he played every snap both ways for the past two seasons. On defense, he netted 83 total tackles with nine sacks and 16 tackles for loss while he anchored an offensive line that ran the ball with authority all season.

Jaylon Tillman, WR, Plainfield North: Tillman was a master of the big play. He averaged nearly 30 yards per reception and managed to find the endzone 11 times. Tillman also established a new school record for Plainfield North for snagging four touchdown receptions in a game.

Elias Valdez, DL, Providence: Valdez drew plenty of attention from opposing offensive lines, routinely drawing double teams, because it was required. Even with that attention, Valdez provided 31 quarterback pressures, six sacks, nine tackles for loss and 52 total tackles. Valdez was cited as the Chicago Catholic League Green Division Most Outstanding Defense player.

Justin Walters, DB, Bolingbrook: Opposing offenses often paid Walters a high compliment by simply not wanting anything to do with him. Walters was a lock-down coverage player and that hasn't gone unnoticed by the near 20 Division I schools the junior currently holds offers from.

Jabril Williams, DB, Joliet Catholic: An Illinois High School Football Coaches Association Class 5A All-State pick, Williams was a big part of what turned out to be a very sturdy Hilltoppers defensive unit. Williams finished with 56 total tackles and few teams made the mistake of throwing in his general direction.

John Williams, OL, Bolingbrook: Williams was an anchor for what proved to be a top-notch offensive line for the Raiders. When Bolingbrook's ground truly got going it was usually sparked by Williams blowing open holes for the Raiders running backs to run through.

Kenyetta Williams, RB, Joliet Catholic: Williams competed a remarkable revolution from overcoming an ACL injury that wiped out his entire junior season. Williams was a durable runner who racked up over 1,000 yards rushing, but also became an extremely viable weapon in the receiving game and finished with 17 total touchdowns.

Adrian Wilson, DL, Lincoln-Way East: Wilson was big part of what proved to most formidable defensive unit in the state. Wilson, a Bowling Green recruit, made life difficult for opposing quarterbacks. SECOND TEAM Sam Amponsah, LB, Plainfield East Jordan Anderson, RB, Joliet Catholic Zach Barlev, OL, Plainfield East Trevor Borland, TE, Bolingbrook Hunter Brooks, OL, Joliet West Brett Carberry, LB, Lincoln-Way West Payton Collins, OL, Lockport Kevin Conway, QB, Providence Brady Crawford, DL, Coal City Billy Doyle IV, OL, Lockport Hunter Doherty, TE/DL, Wilmington Noah Ellens, RB, Minooka Tom Faron, DL, Lemont Jalen Hacha, SS, Lincoln-Way East Jaron Hacha, DL, Lincoln-Way East Martin Hoban, OL, Lincoln-Way East Jaquan Howard, TB, Bolingbrook Jamal Johnson, RB, Lincoln-Way East Matt Kordas, FS, Lincoln-Way East Conor Kovas, OL, Joliet Catholic Kevin Kuchta, OL, Lincoln-Way East Tyler McLaurin, LB, Bolingbrook Joey Morgan, QB, Plainfield East Cameron Nagel, DB, Lemont Danny Nuccio, LB, Plainfield North Zack Orr, LB, Lincoln-Way Central Zach Reddinger, QB, Morris Jake Rodawold, RB/LB, Wilmington Nate Simpson, RB, Plainfield North Ben Stoner, DB, Joliet Catholic Pat Strocchia, DE, Joliet Catholic Aiden Tonarelli, WR, Plainfield East Aaron Vaughn, RB, Providence Devean Washington, DB, Jolliet Catholic Devon Williams, RB, Lincoln-Way East THIRD TEAM Ovahdyah Ben-Israel, DT, Morris Chris Bornhoeft, OL, Plainfield South Larry Burks, DB, Lincoln-Way East Asa Cooper, RB-DB, Coal City Joey De La Rosa, SS, Romeoville Donovan Dehoyos, TE, Romeoville Jaylon Givan, DB, Plainfield North Logan Heflin, LB, Peotone Payton Hutchings, QB, Coal CIty Griffin Kettelaar, LB, Lincoln-Way West Matt Labluzek, OL, Lincoln-Way West Cole Laurie, WR/DB, Morris Jake Leggero, OL, Lincoln-Way Central Javen Mays, WR, Plainfield East Wilbur Milhouse, DB, Lincoln-Way East Antonio Orozco, FS, Romeoville Payton Orth, LB, Lincoln-Way East Mark Orzulak, K/P, Lemont Lucas Porto, WR, Providence Anthony Prucha, LB, Providence Malik Rainey, DB, Bolingbrook Zack Richter, DL, Lincoln-Way East Ison Robinson, DL, Bolingbrook Collin Schmutzler, RB/LB, Lockport Kinsyn Shelby, DB, Joliet West Joe Suchorabski, LB, Lockport Devyn Suggs, QB, Bolingbrook James Thompson, DE, Plainfield East Max Tomczak, WR, Lincoln-Way East Kyle Zabinski, WR/DB, Lincoln-Way Central HONORABLE MENTION Bolingbrook: Zahary Jefferson, Caleb Kelley. Coal City: Jack Bunton, Jacob Jasnosz, Blake Strnad. Dwight: Carson Crouch, Sam Edwards. Joliet Catholic: Lavarion Logan, Michael Rouse. Joliet Central: Jayden Perez, Jaren Smith, Key'von Webb Joliet West: Josh Escobedo, Tom Luedke, Anthony Petersen, Da"Narius Poole. Lemont: Luke Bailey, Mike Bulanda, Mike Ciesla, Jake Konieczka, Maddox Swanson, Alex Tagler, Kyle Zator Lincoln-Way Central: Colin Bockover. Lincoln-Way East: Mason Pierre-Antoine, Josh Paliga, Ryan Stewart, Josh Vargas Lincoln-Way West: Cole Horvath, Matt Nevin, Danny Sorreghan. Lockport: Joe Fiorillo, Donovan Kot, Marcos Voulgaris. Minooka: Tommy Burrs, Ryan Doody, Steven Gonzalez, Michael Susnar. Morris: Robert Bates, Tyler Davis, John Landers, Jorge Loza, Zach Romak, Nolan Swartz. Peotone: Sam Biedron, Max Gesswein, Cam Hartsfield, Jack Lally Plainfield Central: Quinn Krawiec, Chris Leto, Bruce Pendleton. Plainfield East: Connor Bright, Angelo Mondia, Usman Naviwala, Nick Smith. Plainfield North: Chris Lynch, Aiden McCarthy, Uchenna Udeogu. Plainfield South: Jaylin Eison, Chris Garrett, Jaquan Johnson, Paul Seibert, Ahmad Thompson. Providence: Adam Banathy, Michael Chamot, Oliver Cox. Reed-Custer: Evan Pickard. Seneca: Brock Moore, Ryan McAuley, Gavin Roberston, Trey Thorsen, TJ Van Ness, Wilmington: Cam Holman, Keaton Hopwood, AJ Meyers, Dave Schnittger, Trey Shaw.

Steve Soucie

Steve Soucie

Steve Soucie is the Managing Editor of Friday Night Drive for Shaw Media. Also previously for Shaw Media, Soucie was the Sports Editor at the Joliet Herald News. Prior to that, Soucie worked at the Kankakee Daily Journal and for Pro Football Weekly.