Simeon lost at Morris on Saturday to open the season 0-3. Such a challenging start could send many teams into an emotional free fall. But that isn’t the case with the Wolverines.
“I told the guys going into the season that we were putting them through a gauntlet,” Simeon coach Sinque Turner said. “After losing to East St. Louis last year in the playoffs, I didn’t think we were fully prepared based on the teams we had played during the season.”
So Turner went out and amped up his nonconference schedule. The Wolverines were competitive against Morris and Marist and lost to Bolingbrook by 31 points.
“We played well against all those teams,” Turner said. “If we eliminate some penalties and some self-inflicted wounds, those scores change a lot. But I’m not worried. We should win the next five games. Morgan Park will be waiting for us, and King is getting better, but they are not the same caliber as the three teams we just played.”
One of Turner’s major reasons for optimism is the talented young quarterback/receiver combo of Aki King and Jalonny Billingsley. The sophomores connected for touchdowns of 78, 55 and 34 yards against Morris.
King threw for 370 yards with no interceptions, and Billingsley had six catches for 194 yards.
Billingsley already has college scholarship offers from Miami, Missouri, Arizona State and Kentucky. He has the potential to mature into one of the best receivers in the country over the next few years. King is fast and savvy; he also contributed 73 rushing yards.
The duo has been playing together since they were 12 years old as part of the Chicago Hellcats youth football program, which practices at Simeon.
“The future is bright,” Turner said. “We are definitely going to keep these guys together, and there will be more talented guys that want to come and join them.”
Billingsley, who is 6-4 and 180 pounds, is the cousin of former Phillips star Jahleel Billingsley, who went on to play for Alabama and Texas.
The cousins have never met, but Jalonny reached out to Jahleel a few years ago.
“We’ve been communicating,” Jalonny said. “He’s talked to me about football and told me to keep my game up. I’m looking forward to meeting him in person.”
Simeon’s King-Billingsley connection may be the Public League’s most dynamic force. And it is unlikely there is a more productive sophomore duo in the state.
“It is pretty special,” King said. “We know what we can do with the chemistry we have built together. Now we need to go out and make it happen.”
Other slow starts
There are a handful of prominent programs 0-3. Barrington, which opened the season at No. 16 in the preseason rankings, has suffered some key injuries and is winless.
St. Laurence and Lockport are both 0-3. The Vikings made deep playoff runs the last several seasons, and Lockport advanced to the Class 8A semifinals last year.
Warren and Prairie Ridge have been staples of the Super 25 for most of the past decade, and both teams are 0-3.
This is the best year in state football history to get off to a slow start, however. All three-win and many two-win teams are likely to qualify for the IHSA’s expanded playoffs. So every team in the state still has everything to play for.