The setup was perfect for a star in the making: a packed gymnasium with about 1,600 students. Beaming mentors seated in the front row. A crew from NFL Films. Silver balloons spelling out “MEGAQUON” in honor of Chicago’s soon-to-be-drafted mega-talent.
Then Laquon Treadwell stepped onto the podium at Crete-Monee High School and delivered the perfect message.
“Be different,” he said. “Separate yourself. That’s one thing I had to do to get to where I am today. A lot of kids out there feel like they have to be like the next person, and they don’t. Have your own purpose.
“Hopefully one day we’ll all be celebrating one of you guys coming back.”
On Monday, while workers labored 36 miles away in Grant Park to complete the main stage of the NFL’s Draft Town, Treadwell came back to south suburban Crete-Monee as one of the top-ranked college players in this week’s NFL draft.
Just three years ago, Treadwell was an All-America prep receiver, off to Mississippi to duel with the elite cornerbacks of the Southeastern Conference. He thrived until a gruesome injury against Auburn left him with a dislocated ankle and broken fibula in his left leg. And with some added perspective.
Now he’s on the verge of launching an NFL career. If Treadwell gets selected in the first round Thursday night, he’ll receive a guaranteed four-year contract, likely worth between $7 million and $10 million.
At Monday’s homecoming, Treadwell spoke without notes but with great emotion. He thanked his teachers, his coaches and his mother, Tami, who shielded her six kids from trouble by keeping their circle tight, telling them, “Your brothers and your sisters are your friends.”
After Treadwell mentioned his young daughter Madison, dressed in pink, he froze for nearly a minute. His former coach, John Konecki, approached to offer support, patting him on the shoulder.
Tami Treadwell sensed what happened.
“Looking at those kids’ faces,” she said, “he could see himself.”
Elaine Gaffney handled Crete-Monee’s sports media relations during Treadwell’s career and called him “the total package — kind, intelligent, athletic and not pompous or full of himself. That’s why so many people are excited about his success.”
Gaffney was seated near Ruth Debonnett-Southall, who tutored Treadwell during his senior year. In Treadwell, she sees potential that stretches well beyond the gridiron.
“The world is his for the taking,” she said. “Laquon has such tenacity, a love for life and for people. They gravitate toward him. He reminds me so much of Magic Johnson, his personality and everything he has going for him.”
The school showed a highlights video, set to hip hop, with the 6-foot-2 receiver stiff-arming his way to score after score.
Dr. James Harden, the school principal, presented Treadwell with a framed No. 6 jersey, telling him: “It took a village, and the village will always be here for you. We will always celebrate you.”
Treadwell played nine positions at Crete-Monee and thrived in eight of them: three wideout spots, quarterback, running back, defensive end, outside linebacker and free safety. He was named the Tribune’s Player of the Year and finished with 3,653 receiving yards, second most in Illinois history.
He also kicked extra points, succeeding with the regularity of a surfer on Lake Michigan.
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“The worst kicker in the history of Crete-Monee,” Konecki said with a laugh. “True story: Our rule was that if Laquon missed an extra point, we’d go for two. We’re playing Lemont in the semifinals in 2012. We score and we’re down 27-26. Conventional wisdom says go for one. But if Laquon misses one, he’s missing all of them.
“So we went for two. Scored on a pass play. Everyone came up to us and said, ‘That was the gutsiest call in the world!’ We didn’t have the heart to tell ’em we had a rule, the Treadwell rule.”
If SEC foes adopted a “Treadwell rule,” it was never to leave him in single coverge. He left Ole Miss as the leading pass-catcher in school history, capping his All-SEC junior season with three touchdowns against Oklahoma State in the Sugar Bowl.
Blessed with terrific footwork and soft hands, Treadwell ran a pedestrian 4.63-second 40-yard dash that could drop him to the bottom third of the first round. Draft analysts liken him to Anquan Boldin, who used his powerful frame to make three Pro Bowls.
Treadwell, 20, pledged to enjoy Thursday night and not get stressed. But he added this reality check: “I’m anxious, yeah. I couldn’t sleep last night — for this (appearance at Crete-Monee) — so I can’t imagine what the (night before) the draft will be like.”
He can only hope it turns out as well as his homecoming.
“I don’t look at myself as any bigger than the next person,” Treadwell said. “To be able to come back and have people listen to me, that’s huge. Hopefully I’ll inspire some young kids to reach their dreams.”
Twitter @TeddyGreenstein