Jordan's Road Trip: St. Francis Spartans Practice

Today on my Road Trip we’re taking a look at the St. Francis Spartans football team. I had the honor of being invited out to their practice so of course, I had to go take a look at their team. I knew a few names on the team from going to showcases and training sessions, but boy was I in for a treat when I got a chance to talk with the talent that they have in their program. Let’s get into it. <hr /> Overview: Starting off we’re taking a look at this coaching staff, this is one of the more impressive coaching staff that I’ve seen. Their D - Coordinator played at Michigan, their RB coach is currently awaiting to play in the CFL come May, their OL coach played at Northwestern under Coach Fitzgerald, their Strength coach played at Mizzo, and the list continues. These young men on St. Francis have a great opportunity to learn from former D1 athletes that went to prestigious programs and they’ve been taking advantage of it. Their program has been gaining traction as of late landing two Waubonsie Valley transfers, Downers Grove North transfer, and a North Central transfer as well. This attention is only going to help St. Francis moving forward as the interest to attend this school is at an utmost high which is going to be seen with their incoming freshman class. It will be the biggest class that they’ve had so far since their football program started. They have talented coaches and talented players, that being said let’s dive into the players to get a sense of who this team is and what they’re capable of. QB Carasol: Starting off let’s take a look at their QB situation. There’s no doubt about the talent of Mr. Rittenhouse as he’s committed to play FCS football for Illinois State in the fall. He has knowledge of the game, can throw on the run, and can make the proper reads resulting in a completion downfield. His playmaking ability is going to cause problems for opposing defenses as he can get it done in both the pass and run game. He’s going to be at the helm of this offense with weapons all over the field and looks to close out his senior season on a strong note. A very young QB that is an up-and-coming player for this school is Mr. Milivojevic. He’s starting his freshman season this spring where he’s looking to showcase his skills. He has the arm strength and velocity to make down-the-field throws. One aspect of his game that he’s looking to improve is his speed to get outside of the pocket and throw on the run. When watching him practice you wouldn’t think he was a freshman with his size and poise when running the offense. Mr. Millvojevic also has the advantage of being able to learn under Mr. Rittenhouse this season to pick his brain on the game which in turn will only improve his skillset. Overall, they have two talented QBs that are going to be playing on Saturdays after high school. Offensive Attack: Taking a look at their receiver core it’s astonishing the talent that is loaded here. They have Mr. Gerard a Dartmouth Commit, Mr. Criter who has FCS interest, Mr. Lee transfer from Waubonsie Valley, Mr. Dorsey transfer from Waubonsie Valley, Mr. Bishop. and that is just the start. They also have guys on their second-team offense that have the potential to play at the next level as well. All of these players have their own strength that together creates a dominant receiving core that can cause problems at the outside and slot by stretching the field vertically which in turn will open up the run game. Defensive Playmakers: Now let’s switch gears and take a peek at their defensive players. Starting off we have Mr. Griffin who has a PWO to TCU, Mr. Moore having interest from the next level, Mr. McMillen having FCS interest, Mr. Calcagno with interest from the next level and that’s only the beginning. They have speed at OLB positions to cover sideline to sideline, have heavy hitters at both safety positions that can lay the boom and can get pressure on the QB from the defensive line. This defensive unit is loaded with talent that is going to play on Saturdays in the future. Closing Thoughts: Overall, this St. Francis team is loaded with talent on both sides of the ball on Varsity and has young talent in their freshman class as well with having some of them start on varsity this season. This team is going to be one to keep an eye on this season and moving forward as they’ve been gaining traction in their program as of late. St. Francis is playing ICC Prep Friday 3/19 @ ICCP’s home field. This is going to be a great game to catch as St. Francis ended ICCP’s run of 3 straight titles in the IHSA State Playoffs last season. I look forward to seeing what this team accomplishes this season and I will be coming back Saturday, April 3rd for their game vs Aurora Christian. Last but not least, here are some of their players below with their Twitter and Highlights. Offense: [player_tooltip player_id="20220" first="Tommy" last="Rittenhouse"] 21’ QB <a href="https://twitter.com/TommyRitt">Twitter</a> <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/9843073">Highlights</a> [player_tooltip player_id="65256" first="Jackson" last="Gerard"] 21’ WR <a href="https://twitter.com/jacksongerard21">Twitter</a> <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/9843070">Highlights</a> [player_tooltip player_id="20886" first="Adam" last="Criter"] 22’ WR <a href="https://twitter.com/Adamcriter">Twitter</a> <a href="https://www.hudl.com/video/3/11496207/5dd9f26a2aa81e0d2c3ad1ac">Highlights</a> [player_tooltip player_id="65858" first="Tyler" last="Bishop"] 22’ RB/WR <a href="https://twitter.com/tylerbishop2232">Twitter</a> <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/2907936">Highlights</a> Elijah Lee 21’ WR/CB <a href="https://twitter.com/_elijahhh13">Twitter</a> <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/9461435">Highlights</a> Tyler Duzansky 21’ LS <a href="https://twitter.com/DuzanskyTyler">Twitter</a> <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/10443715">Highlights</a> Blake Lawson 22’ RB <a href="https://twitter.com/_blakelawson">Twitter</a> <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/11619267">Highlights</a> Ryan Calcagno 22’ WR/DB <a href="https://twitter.com/ryancalcagno1">Twitter</a> <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/6317158">Highlights</a> Cameron Engresser 23’ WR <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/14048564">Highlights</a> Amari Head 23’ RB <a href="https://twitter.com/AmariHead">Twitter</a> <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/13233487">Highlights</a> Brady Piper 23’ RB <a href="https://twitter.com/bradypiper20">Twitter</a> <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/13229869">Highlights</a> Connor Shields 23’ WR Twitter <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/13232662">Highlights</a> [player_tooltip player_id="121350" first="Alessio" last="Milivojevic"] 24’ QB <a href="https://twitter.com/alessiomilivoj1">Twitter</a> <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/11389492">Highlights</a> Jack Donovan 24’ C/G <a href="https://twitter.com/JackDonovan65">Twitter</a> <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/13391463">Highlights</a> Jack Anderson 24’ T Defense: [player_tooltip player_id="65539" first="Grayson" last="Griffin"] 21’ OLB <a href="https://twitter.com/gray1griffin">Twitter</a> <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/6100299">Highlights</a> John Moore 21’ OLB <a href="https://twitter.com/JohnMoore_6">Twitter</a> <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/9562332">Highlights</a> TJ McMillen 23’ DE/DT <a href="https://twitter.com/tjmcmillen44">Twitter</a> <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/13230004">Highlights</a> Dash Dorsey 23’ WR/CB <a href="https://twitter.com/DashDorsey">Twitter</a> <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/12151216">Highlights</a> Domenic Beres 24’ RB/LB <a href="https://twitter.com/DomenicBeres55">Twitter</a> <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/14727714">Highlights</a> <hr /> Thank you again, Coach McMillen and the whole St. Francis coaching staff for having me out on Wednesday. It was great being able to talk to your program and get to know the staff as well as the players better. I look forward to seeing what this team accomplishes and how they do in the coming years. Be sure to follow @jamaskane, @PrepRedzoneIL, and @PrepRedzone regarding news & information for Illinois High School Football.