Football: Malin Jones heads Joliet Catholic’s elite college talent

Updated: February 1, 2012 8:37PM

Northwestern-bound Malin Jones, clad neatly in purple, was in the spotlight Wednesday afternoon at Joliet Catholic’s national letter-of-intent signing ceremony at the school.

Yet other story lines developed as five of his teammates who helped the Hilltoppers finish second in the state in Class 5A, along with standout soccer forward Cody Vercellotti, also signed with the colleges of their choice.

Jones, who was committed to Northwestern for about 16 months, said, “I never wavered on that. It only got better as I made visits there.

“I’m glad this day is here. I’ll take it step by step now. The big thing will be to get ready to get on the field. I want to make the decision tough for coaches on getting me out there.”

Jones played in the Jan. 3 Semper Fidelis All-American Bowl in Phoenix. Hilltoppers coach Dan Sharp said a coach at the game called Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald and told him Jones might have been the best player there.

Jones said he filled in sociology for his major when he applied to Northwestern, but now he isn’t sure. “That may change when I get there,” he said.

Another story at the ceremony concerned the rivalry between NAIA national champion Saint Xavier and University of St. Francis, which continues to grow in intensity. The Cougars, who were represented by coach Mike Feminis and an assistant, former Hilltopper and Cougar Billy McKeon, added Jake Jankowski to the depth chart at offensive tackle.

St. Francis-bound linebacker Mike Passo and defensive tackle/linebacker Nick Collofello smiled at the prospect of facing their old friend the next several years.

“The rivalry thing is already starting up,” laughed Jankowski, who helped the Hilltoppers break school records in points scored and yardage last season. “Passo and I have been kind of arguing about it.”

“It’s going to be fun playing against him — but I don’t know, he’s going to be awful big,” Passo said.

Feminis said Jankowski “fits a need. He has a chance to be a No. 2 tackle right away. He has a good body and feet. I’ll always take those good Joliet Catholic linemen.”

Jones, the only Hilltopper ever to rush for more than 1,000 yards in three seasons, offered, “I think Jake Jankowski ran-block better than some guys I played with out at that game (Semper Fidelis Bowl).”

Feminis also signed defensive lineman Nick Cemeno from Providence, quarterback Austin Feeney from Morris (as an athlete, “a smaller verson of Billy McKeon”) and defensive end Alex Hamilton from Minooka. Plus, he landed Montini quarterback John Rohde, who is all too familiar to Joliet Catholic.

“I’m really excited to play for Coach Feminis, especially after they won the national title,” said Jankowski, who will major in business. “I wanted to go someplace where I could get playing time early, and when I went there, it seemed perfect.”

But don’t sell USF short, either.

Joe Curry, named interim coach last week when Mike Uremovich left for a coordinator post at Northern Illinois, said of Collofello and Passo, “We’re excited. These are two good academic kids. They’re two original commitments that stuck by us. Both guys will be in good situations. They’re be in spots where we will have seniors next season.”

“The coach (Uremovich) leaving didn’t affect me,” said Collofello, who will major in actuarial science. “They’re a good team and I’m excited to go play with them and with Passo. It’s not every day you get to keep playing with your high school teammate.”

Passo, who will major in business, said he had committed to St. Francis when he heard Collofello had received an offer. “We’ll go and lean on the guys who will be seniors to learn what we can,” he said.

Joliet Catholic defensive ends Josh Falk and Matt Frolik signed, respectively, with NCAA Division II Northwest Missouri State and with Robert Morris, a fledgling NAIA program.

“It’s a great school,” Falk said of Northwest Missouri State. “They’ve had a lot of success in the past.”

Falk, who will major in political science and minor in criminal justice, said he will red-shirt next fall.

Sharp said Frolik can play defensive end or linebacker at Robert Morris, which was represented by head coach Jared Williamson and an assistant.

Vercellotti signed to continue his soccer career at Upper Iowa University. Joliet Catholic coach Tom Cranmer noted Vercellotti scoring seven goals this season and 10 the last two years. “And that’s for a team that did not score a lot,” he said.

Cranmer describes Vercellotti as “a natural forward, a nice target player, quick, smart on the ball and an accurate shooter.”

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