Every year, we see dozens of player seemingly come out of nowhere to have spectacular seasons. Or players who had good seasons but were maybe overshadowed by great talents a year or two ahead of them.
But this is their year.
Here are some names you should remember for the 2019 seasons, the Friday Night Drive breakout stars, picked by our staff:
Jack Lemke, Oswego, Sr., WR
Jamal Fomby was the headliner in Oswego's passing attack last year, understandably – but Lemke was quietly a pretty dynamic complement. Lemke caught 25 passes for 510 yards and three touchdowns. He even threw a touchdown pass to Isaiah Emmanuel.
Fomby is gone now, leaving Lemke as the main man.
Look for Lemke to put up huge numbers for an Oswego offense that has broken out of its traditional run-heavy mold.
Ryan Keeler, Nazareth, Jr., DL
J.J. McCarthy isn't the only highly-touted junior on Nazareth. Keeler – whose older brother Matt was the starting left tackle for the Roadrunners' Class 7A state champs last year – already holds offers from Michigan, Iowa, Purdue and a host of others.
And why not.
The No. 1-ranked defensive end in Illinois in his class has a 6-foot-4.5, 245-pound frame that he'll surely grow into. With Nazareth graduating three of its four starting defensive lineman, the opening is there for Keeler to make his presence felt.
Ronde Worrels (6-2/210, Jr.) - RB/LB, Princeton
Already drawing interest from the University of Wisconsin, Worrels will be a three-year starter for PHS and a team captain. Coach Ryan Pearson says Worrels is a very hard-working and humble young man "that we're excited to have back. He possesses a tireless work ethic that is contagious to others."
Nick DeMarco, St. Charles North, Jr.
OK, so DeMarco already got a head start on his breakout.
When older brother Sam went down with a torn right PCL, DeMarco stepped right in during the North Stars' playoff run. DeMarco, who will play baseball collegiately at Notre Dame, went for 286 yards and two TDs in a first-round win over Normal Community – and North just kept rolling.
With Tyler Nubin now at Minnesota, DeMarco looks like the surest best to be the first guy the North Stars hitch their wagon to offensively.
Brett Galletti, QB, Ottawa
Ottawa obviously had a tough go of things during an 0-9 campaign in 2018, and that extended to then-sophomore Galletti (67-152, 720 yards, 2 TD, 11 INT) as he transferred from a Class 1A program and took over a new, more-open Pirates offense against a tough Northern Illinois Big 12 Conference slate behind an often overmatched offensive line.
The signs of a potential breakout season to come, however, were and still are right there for the strong-armed, athletic Pirates signal-caller.
A hard-worker and quiet leader who has put on more muscle, attended camps and worked year-round with a personal quarterback coach, Galletti returns for his junior season more experienced and polished at the same time Ottawa — in the second year of head coach Chad Gross’ hybrid spread offense — moves to what should be a more-manageable Interstate Eight Conference.
“If we’re going to take another step and start stringing some wins together, it’s going to be because of some big games by Brett,” said Gross. “I’m really excited for how hard he’s worked and what I believe he’s going to show this season. …
“I think he’s definitely put himself in a position to have a big year, and that might put him in a position to get some good (college) offers.”
Cooper Willman, senior QB, Sterling
After splitting duties last season with the now graduated Camden Bailey, Willman will be the man under center full-time for the Sterling Golden Warriors in 2019.
Even sharing time in the backfield last season, Willman made the most of his chances. He ran for 737 yards and 7 touchdowns on 78 carries – a whopping 9.4 yards per carry – and also competed 50 of his 70 passes (71.4 percent) for 771 yards with 9 TD passes against just 2 interceptions.
He steadily got better as the season went on and he became familiar with the formations and playbook, and the offensive execution improved so much that the Warriors made a run to the Class 5A semifinals for the second straight season.
Now, with four of the Warriors’ top five running backs and four of their top six receivers having graduated, the onus will fall even more upon Willman to run the offense smoothly and efficiently, to help the new faces assimilate more quickly and comfortably.
And in a new conference now – the Western Big 6 – Willman will have a whole new set of league foes who have yet to see what he can do when he’s got the ball in his hands.
Austin Pullara, LB/TE, Coal City
If you watch a Coal City football game this year, it will be hard to take your eyes off of Austin Pullara. That's because the senior linebacker/tight end is big (6-foot-2, 210 pounds), fast and always around the ball.
Not only is Pullara physically gifted, he has an innate knowledge of the game that serves him well. It doesn't take him long to pick up on a quarterback's cadence or to read his offensive keys. His ability to know where the ball is going allows him to arrive there quickly, and with bad intentions. Once he does arrive, the ball carrier usually hits the ground with Pullara draped on top of him. He finished with 107 total tackles last year, including 14 tackles for loss, and had three interceptions and a fumble recovery to his credit.
When Coal City has the ball, he is one of the main targets for quarterback Payton Hutchings. Last season, he had 20 catches for 333 yards and five touchdowns from the tight end position. Don't be surprised if the Coalers try to get him the ball more often this season.
He is a three-sport varsity standout, averaging a double-double during basketball season and hitting above .300 as a run-producing catcher and third baseman for a baseball team that has averaged 30 wins over the last two years. Even though Coal City is flush with talent around him, Pullara is the player that makes the Coalers go.
Ian Gorken, QB, Crystal Lake South
After splitting time at quarterback as a sophomore, Gorken moved into the role full time as a junior last fall.
The 5-foot-11 Gorken was still learning on the job in South's spread offense, but the dual-threat QB helped the Gators to their first playoff appearance since 2015. Gorken completed 67.2% (80 of 119) of his pass attempts for 1,306 yards with 14 touchdowns against just four interceptions, and he ran for 571 yards and eight scores.
Gorken is likely to take on an even more significant role this season after the Gators graduated their top running back (Zach Borgert) and wide receivers (Jacob Rana and Mike Helm).
Jake Shipla, OL/DL, MInooka
The two-way lineman contributed a lot for the Indians last season, but as a largely as a part of a young Indian team that didn't really click until later in the season, Shipla's accomplishments may not have been as well noticed as they might have been in other circumstances.
Shipla (6-foot-3, 250) really flexed his muscles on the defensive side of the ball where he racked up 21 tackles for loss and 10 quarterback sacks.
Minooka's defensive unit will expect Shipla to shoulder a lot of the load, especially early, and it appears they are more than broad enough to live up to that.
Grant McConkey, QB, Sycamore
The quarterback ran for 743 yards last year, and completed 58.5 percent of his passes on just 94 attempts. He threw for 797 yards, seven touchdowns and five interceptions as a junior last year.
As he enters his senior year, he'll have a lot of tempting targets to throw the ball to – Manny Dominguez ran a lot as a slot receiver but also showed explosive capabilities as a receiver; Jase Hayes came on late in the year at tight end with decent height as a target; and Jack Johnson showed potential as well.
With a large group of targets back – as well as leading rusher and receiver Logan Egler – McConkey has the chance to make a mark in the passing game as well as with his feet.
Alex Siebens, WR, DeKalb
After a strong showing throughout the summer – including the high-profile Red Grange Classic last month – he may not be flying completely under the radar any more, but the incoming senior receiver expects to be a big part of the DeKalb offense.
He missed his sophomore year, and last year he had 12 catches for 196 yards and a touchdown as the Barbs were breaking in a sophomore quarterback in Trenton Kyler.
But with Kyler with another year under his belt and the offense as a whole adjusted, Siebens is poised for a breakout.
Mac Nugent (5-10/210, Sr.) - RB/LB, Bureau Valley
Returning leading rusher who will be asked to be a two-way impact player.
