Carmel quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis looked over the defense as he barked out the signals, took the snap, dropped back and threw a pass to his target, just like any seasoned starting quarterback.
Kaliakmanis hit Mikey Lucas, who caught the ball and sprinted down the left sideline for a 33-yard touchdown.
Yet Kaliakmanis is hardly a seasoned varsity quarterback. Friday’s home game against Nazareth was only the fourth start for the 14-year-old freshman from Antioch.
“I haven’t seen a kid throw like he can at this young age,” Carmel coach Andy Bitto said.
Kaliakmanis, who stands a slender 6-foot-3 and 170 pounds, has thrown four touchdown passes this season and rushed for two more. He threw for a season-best 241 yards and his first TD against DeKalb in Week 2 and tossed a pair of touchdown passes — including one to his twin brother Dino — against Marist in Week 3.
Athan Kaliakmanis completed 12 of 23 passes for 106 yards and a touchdown on Friday in Carmel’s 32-13 loss to Nazareth.
More Top Picks Best Anti Fatigue Glasses For Office Workers
The Corsairs fell to 0-4 and 0-2 in East Suburban Catholic play.
“He makes checks at the line of scrimmage, he calls the counts, he does all of the little things that usually a junior or senior can do,” Bitto said. “So he’s kind of real mature in reading coverages. The seniors have accepted him, and he controls the huddle. He can tell the receivers where to line up. He’s pretty comfortable.”
Bitto, who had never had a freshman start at quarterback, said he decided in June that Kaliakmanis would get the job.
“Part of it was his accuracy is tremendous, his poise is very good,” Bitto said. “Watching seven-on-seven leagues, I thought this could be something that’s very good. Then, we got into June and we could tell he was moving ahead of the other kids. We thought he would give us the best chance to win games at this time.”
Kaliakmanis has had his share of struggles, too. He was sacked four times at DeKalb.
“The biggest thing I thought was if he throws a bad ball or a pick or gets nailed, then how does he handle it,” Bitto said. “Well, he gets up and does it again. He’s got a short memory, which is really hard to teach especially for a freshman kid playing in the limelight.
“We’re playing some tough, quality teams, so he’s getting an education under fire.”
Kaliakmanis also showed his athleticism in track, where he won an Illinois Elementary School Association state title in the long jump as an eighth-grader.
Bob Hurst is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
Twitter @Pioneer_Press