| Full stable of running backs returns for JCA |
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By TIM CLODJEAUX For Sun-Times Media
Joliet Catholic Academy football coach Dan Sharp really doesn't have to worry about how to motivate his team for their nonconference season opener at Memorial Stadium in late August.
"How often do you get to open the season against the team that beat you in the state championship game?" Sharp asked during last week's opening session of the USF 7-on-7 Passing Camp. "And we get them on our home field. It's the easiest motivator I have ever had in my coaching career."
The Hilltoppers will host Montini in their first game. The two teams played a thrilling 5A championship finale last November at Champaign, with Montini upsetting JCA 29-28 and denying the Hilltoppers and Sharp yet another state title.
The motivation is easy but the physical work to get ready for that opener is something that the Hilltoppers have to do on their own.
"The majority of our kids have done a great job with their offseason regimen," Sharp said. "They did the speed training and the weightlifting and all the other conditioning. Some played other sports but now that the summer is here they are focused on football and doing what we have to do to get back downstate once again."
The Hilltoppers had a young offense last season in the skill positions and played with a veteran offensive line. So, while most of the backs return and the top five pass catchers all come back, there will be new faces among the starters up front.
Topping the offensive returnees are backs Josh Ferguson, Malin Jones and Ty Isaac.
Ferguson, a senior, led a trio of rushers who each carried for more than 1,000 yards in 2009. He ran 178 times for 1,585 yards and a team-best 20 touchdowns. He averaged 113.2 rushing yards per game.
Jones, still only a junior, was right behind Ferguson with 1,284 yards on 159 carries and contributed 19 rushing touchdowns. He averaged just under 100 yards per game at 91.7.
The graduated Jordan Lyles was the third back to top the 1,000-yard mark. But Isaac, a freshman in 2009, added 621 yards on 75 carries and a half-dozen touchdown rushes.
Senior-to-be Alex Kolodziej was the Hilltoppers' top receiver with 25 grabs for 585 yards and 5 touchdowns. Ferguson (12-112), Jones (9-137) and Andrew Elliott (6-147) were next in line on the receiving list.
With all those yards and familiar faces returning, JCA is well experienced at the skill positions -- with one major exception.
Quarterback Anthony Maddie, who ran the offense as a sophomore a year ago, has elected to transfer and Sharp and his staff are working hard to determine his replacement. Senior Breshion Tucker, who concentrated on basketball last year and has not played football since quarterbacking the sophomore team in 2008, and fellow senior Chris Ator will likely battle for the starting job. Ator played sparingly last year and did not see significant time at quarterback.
"We obviously feel good about the talent we have returning in our backfield," Sharp said. "Ferguson, Jones and Isaac all had sensational seasons last year and give us a lot of weapons when it comes to running the football.
"And Alex Kolodziej had a tremendous offseason. He worked hard in the weight room and is coming back in great shape for what should be a very good senior season."
The quarterback spot is important, but Sharp has confidence in both of his potential signal-callers. "They both have the talent and the makeup to be excellent quarterbacks," he said. "Breshion is doing a great job in all the drills and is coming along nicely. It is tough when you take a year away from football but he is an exceptional athlete and is working hard to win the job."
One regular does return in the offensive line, senior right guard Kyle Rouse. While the rest of the linemen will be new to starting at the varsity level, Sharp is not worried about their ability to produce.
"Our guys in the line will do their job and give us room to run," he said. "They are good football players and take pride in the work they do."
Defensively, Sharp notes the return of key players such as safety Travis Jensen, middle linebacker Mike Mettille and lineman Austin Abel.
"When people talk about our team, they usually focus on our great running game and an offense that puts a lot of numbers on the scoreboard," Sharp said. "But our defense has been and will continue to be a strength. We held six teams to fewer than 10 points last year and three of those games were in the state playoffs."
Another new thing fans will immediately see when they attend JCA home games this fall is the new turf at Memorial Stadium. The Mondoturf surface was put in over the winter and spring and gives the venerable stadium a much more modern look. More importantly, the heavily used field (University of St. Francis and Joliet Junior College also play there, as well as the JCA sophomores) no longer will find itself depleted of grass after one early-season game played on a rainy day or night.
"The 'beach' at Memorial Stadium is a thing of the past," a smiling Sharp said right after his team finished play in the USF passing camp last Saturday at the stadium.
"This new surface is a wonderful addition to this fine facility.
"What it does is minimize the effects of the weather on the field. The surface will remain very playable even after a heavy rain. The condition of the field will no longer be an advantage nor a disadvantage. It will be very evident all season long and will be fair to both teams in the state playoffs.
"In the last couple of years we had to postpone several of our sophomore games and move them to other venues. That really wasn't fair to those kids and was a disruption for them and our entire coaching staff and all of their families and friends. With the new turf, we can keep all of our games on schedule and that will be a big help."
The schedule is a test for the Hilltoppers. In addition to the rematch with Montini, JCA travels to Muskegon, Mich., to play a highly rated Muskegon Heights team that played in its state final a year ago.
Montini, archrival Providence Catholic and East Suburban Catholic Conference foe Marist also are 2010 opponents that reached their respective state championship games in 2009.
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