Suburban Life notes: Glenbard South’s Joey Villa grew up a QB, now he’s a ‘game changer’ at multiple positions

By this point of his career, Glenbard South senior Joey Villa thought he would be slinging passes all over the field.

At 6-foot-4 and 205 pounds, Villa has the ideal size to go with plenty of years of experience playing quarterback. But there was a slight problem in Villa’s plan. The Raiders were already set at quarterback with Michael Champagne running the offense.

“I’ve been a quarterback going all the way back to fourth grade, when I first started playing tackle football so four about seven years,” Villa said. “I’ve taken many snaps in high school on the junior varsity in my freshman year until getting pulled up my sophomore year to the varsity.”

With Champagne, a multi-year starter, in place at quarterback, Glenbard South coach Ryan Crissey had an outside-the-box idea how to get Villa on the field.

“After we bring him up to the varsity, he was backing up Michael during his sophomore and junior year at the beginning of it,” Crissey said. “He’s a very dynamic kid who plays baseball and basketball. I just told him that he’s too good of an athlete, so let’s give linebacker a try. He said he hadn’t tackled anybody since seventh grade, but I told him, ‘let’s see what you can do, Joe.’”

Villa admitted the possible switch from a glamorous position to the defense caught him by surprise, but he wasn’t afraid of the challenge.

“I remember during our summer camp before my junior year, right before our 7-on-7 at Naperville North, my defensive coordinator Coach (Ted) Monken walked up to me and asked me how I felt about playing SAM linebacker for this scrimmage,” Villa said. “It was truly unexpected. My first thought was has anyone ever went from a quarterback to a linebacker position. But it was so fun to hit some people for once instead of being the one getting hit. Following that first scrimmage, I got the starting job and was excited to help out on defense.”

Villa said one of the first things he did last season upon being shifted to linebacker was pack on some extra pounds.

“With the weight I put on and hitting the weight room five days a week over the offseason, I went from 170 pounds to 205,” Villa said. “That certainly helped me make the move to outside linebacker a lot easier. Some of the things I love about playing linebacker is the chance to be all over the field in multiple positions. For example, some plays I line up at defensive end, across a wide receiver or tight end, or traditional linebacker formation. Being involved in the action every single play is great. Also, I take pride in Coach Crissey naming me one of our captains on defense and being accountable for play calling and communicating coverages.”

This season, Villa is one of the leaders on the Raiders (4-2, 3-1) in their quest to win the Upstate Eight East Conference. Villa, who also plays running back, has 13 solo tackles, seven assisted tackles, a sack, three tackles for a loss and an interception.

“He’s a game changer for us,” Crissey said. “In fact, we’re expecting him to shut down half of the field. He’s an absolute animal. He’s limited to those fun stats because he’s containing the ball and making sure teams don’t pass to the flats. He does a lot of unsung things, but he does incredibly well. He can also run and catch and we feed him the rock like [former Florida and NFL quarterback] Tim Tebow. The sky is the limit for him.”

Villa, who has an offer from Drake, said he’s adapted to playing on defense.

“I’ve had a strong start through the halfway point of the season,” Villa said. “It’s pretty insane to think how all of this came about over one season…l’m hoping our team finishes strong and makes a successful run in the playoffs. I’m very excited to show college coaches my athletic abilities in the last half of the season.”

Glenbard West’s O’Connell taking big strides

Glenbard West senior offensive lineman Mike O’Connell is still learning the ins and outs of his position.

The Northwestern recruit is considered one of the top linemen in the state. The 6-foot-7, 296-pounder is a massive presence on the Hilltoppers O-line, blasting holes for their stable of running backs with his size and strength.

“I wanted to have fun in my senior year and play free,” O’Connell said of his summer commitment. “My season is going good. I’ve gotten better at staying low, pad level and on guys. My junior year I would have a pretty good strike but I would come off, so to stay on guys and finishing blocks has improved for me.”

Glenbard West coach Chad Hetlet said O’Connell is scratching the surface of his potential after just picking up the sport last season.

“He helps us in a big way,” Hetlet said. “He’s a very big athlete who can do multiple things and move well. A lot of guys like that big can’t move like him. He really helps us move the ball. He never played football before last year. He was a golfer who played basketball and was an elite swimmer. He’s still figuring it out. He will be a special one.”

Extra points

Glenbard East (5-1, 3-0) leads the UEC East Division but closes the season against West Chicago, Glenbard South and Riverside-Brookfield…Downers Grove South has rebounded from back-to-back tough losses to win three straight to take over first place in the West Suburban Gold. The Mustangs (4-2, 3-0) defeated Hinsdale South 31-28 last week… Fenwick also has reeled off three consecutive wins heading into Friday’s game at Benet.