Curie’s Fleming picks Iowa

Updated: June 23, 2011 8:12PM

After leading Curie to its first Public League football championship in school history as a junior, quarterback Maurice “Reese” Fleming has nded his recruiting by committing to Iowa.

Fleming, an academic qualifier, said he wanted to be able to concentrate on football and his grades and he was solid with his decision to play for the Hawkeyes.

He chose Iowa, where he will play cornerback, over Indiana, Wisconsin, Cincinnati and Minnesota.

“I have a great feel for the school and my position coach (Phil Parker),” Fleming said. “I have dreams of one day playing in the NFL and Iowa seems like the perfect fit for me.” The 6-foot, 180-pounder accounted for more than 3000 total yards for Curie last season, passing for 18 touchdowns and rushing for 17.

Condors coach Tyson LeBlanc calls Fleming is a special player. “He is a do-everything type guy,” LeBlanc said. “He’s a hard worker, almost to the point that he doesn’t know when to stop. He is a lock-down corner and I would not be surprised to see him backpedaling on Sunday five years from now.”

LeBlanc also appreciates Fleming’s leadership capabilities. “To watch him grow both as an athlete and as a student is a real plus for a coach,” LeBlanc said. “He has developed into an outstanding team leader and most of what we do starts with him.”

Fleming is the second Curie player in the past two years to commit to play in the Big Ten, following defensive end James Adeyanju, who will be a freshman at Wisconsin this fall.

Fleming believes there is still some unfinished business for Curie this fall. “Last season we won the first city championship in school history,” he said. “Nothing would be better than to follow that up by winning the first state championship in school history. Every person on the team is dedicated to getting the job done.”

Fleming also said he’s dedicating the season and all his accomplishments to the late Quaashi Akil Chandler, his former teammate who died after an asthma attack last season during a game at Bolingbrook.

“I think of him every day,” Fleming said. “We always talked about winning a championship and playing together in college. My dream was his dream and his dream was my dream.”

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