2019 Friday Night Drive Offensive Player of the Year: East St. Louis' Tyler Macon

Tyler Macon missed a wide-open receiver early against Prairie Ridge and immediately realized what he had done.

"The first play, my eyes weren't on my read," the East St. Louis junior said. "I was looking at the linebacker when I was supposed to be looking at the safety and deciding if I was supposed to throw my receiver across the field or up the field."

East St. Louis' electric quarterback didn't make the same mistake when the opportunity presented itself again on the Flyers' opening drive of the second half.

Macon stepped up and hit Dominic Lovett in stride for a 66-yard touchdown to catapult their team into the lead and spark East St. Louis' 43-21 victory in the Class 6A state championship.

Head coach Darren Sunkett had witnessed those types of in-game adjustments from his star quarterback all season.

Macon's brilliant junior season helped the Flyers complete a perfect 14-0 season and made him the perfect candidate to be named the 2019 Friday Night Drive Offensive Player of the Year.

"Tyler's definitely a gifted kid," Sunkett said. "He's put in a lot of work during the offseason to get to this point. He's definitely one of the hardest workers on our team."

Macon, who has offers from Illinois, Iowa State, Iowa and nearly a half dozen other Division I programs, threw for more than 4,000 yards and rushed for 829 more this fall.

As a team, the Flyers averaged 51.1 points per game. In 14 games, they scored at least 60 points four times and at least 50 nine times.

East St. Louis had notable regular-season wins against Batavia, Neuqua Valley, Edwardsville and Naperville Central. In their final two playoff games before facing Prairie Ridge in the championship, the Flyers defeated terrific Hillcrest and Chatham Glenwood teams by a combined score of 110-28.

"We've talked about this since middle school," Macon said of winning a state championship.

The dual-threat QB doesn't have much experience with losing since middle school.

"He's shown that he's a winner from the time he's strapped on a helmet," Sunkett said. "He never lost a little league game. Coming into high school, he didn't lose at all as a freshman on the freshmen level."

Macon stepped into the starting varsity role as a sophomore, but the Flyers were bounced out of the playoffs with a 29-19 loss to Mount Carmel in the Class 7A quarterfinals.

Sunkett said Macon spent the offseason focused on getting better with his receivers, which include Lovett, his teammate since seventh grade, and Keantez Lewis, his friend since the pair were 6 years old.

"He's the type of kid that doesn't miss a day throwing the football," Sunkett said. "Whenever he has the opportunity, he's outside, he'll get his wideouts together and those guys will do their own thing. He's the ultimate worker."

Macon's work ethic, ability to make in-game adjustments and a skill set that includes a big-time arm continues to draw interest from colleges.

Macon said he is taking his time to work through his options. Meanwhile, Sunkett is thrilled to have one more season with his star quarterback.

"He's got a bright future," Sunkett said. "It's going to be up to him to make the decision of what college he wants to attend from the offers he has. I definitely believe that wherever he goes, he's going to do the same things he's done for us. He's going to lead his team to a lot of wins. He's going to break some records."