The hottest uncommitted football prospect in the country is Thornton All-State defensive end Tim Jamison after his eye-opening performance Jan. 3 at the U.S. Army All-American Bowl in San Antonio. Jamison dominated against some of the top high school offensive linemen in the country. “He was the biggest surprise of the game, absolutely unbelievable,” opposing coach Bob Palko of West Allegheny (Pa.) High School told University of Michigan publication the Wolverine. “We could not block him. We devised plans to stop him, but he split the double-team [block]. He split the triple-team. He went right through the tackle, [guard] and the running back.”
Before the all-star game, the 6-foot-3-inch, 240-pound Jamison had been closely recruited by Purdue–where he is visiting this weekend–Michigan and Wisconsin along with Michigan State and Iowa. After the All-American Bowl, Florida and Ohio State began a late rush. According to Joliet recruiting analyst Tim O’Halloran of Rivals.com, Jamison appears to be leaning toward Purdue. A successful trip to West Lafayette, Ind., could be the deciding factor in Jamison’s decision. …
The top five uncommitted prospects Illinois coach Ron Turner is pursuing are 6-6, 330-pound offensive lineman Roland Martin of Harper, defensive backs Nate Lyles of Hubbard and Kwame Agyeman of Lake Park, quarterback Marcus Randle El of Thornton and receiver Bryant Creamer of Simeon. O’Halloran reports Martin is leaning toward Oklahoma and Tennessee, while Lyles is looking at Michigan and Oregon. Agyeman is visiting Arizona this weekend with his other top choices Oregon, Boston College and Indiana. Randle El likes Wisconsin, Iowa, Indiana and Northwestern. Creamer might be the only one the Illini can land. They are in his final five along with Notre Dame, Wisconsin, BC and Virginia.
— Bob Sakamoto
Rockford Boylan coach Steve Goers, a Chicago native, became the 12th boys basketball coach in IHSA history to post 700 career victories when his Titans beat Grayslake at the Bloomington/Normal tournament Dec. 26.
Since the 61-year-old Goers replaced Dolph Stanley in 1980, Boylan has won 17 conference, 20 regional, 15 sectional and six supersectional titles and has reached the state quarterfinals six times. Former standouts who played for Goers include Danny Jones (Wisconsin), Damir Krupalija (Illinois) and Joe Tulley (DePaul).
Over the course of his career, which included stops at Oswego, LaSalle-Peru and Harvard, the Gage Park graduate has mellowed in dealing with the stresses that come with the job. “I’ve changed a lot,” he said. “I’ve become more patient with players and parents. I’ve seen everything you could see as a coach.”
— Paul Arco
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Mark Forde is the new boys water polo coach at York. Forde, who played at Southern Illinois, was head coach at Lane the last two seasons.