By the time Merrillville’s season opener rolled around Friday night, junior quarterback Michael Hill Jr. was ready.
But that wasn’t necessarily true in the run-up to the game — and his first varsity start.
“I was nervous all week,” Hill said. “I got with my sports psychologist. I sat down with her. We talked it out. Once I put the cleats on, it was just another day, another game.”
The 6-foot-2, 180-pound Hill showed his poise and composure against visiting Andrean. He completed 19 of 23 passes for 278 yards and four touchdowns as the Pirates, ranked No. 3 in Class 5A in the preseason state coaches poll, won 41-14.
Hill impressed Merrillville coach Brad Seiss.
“He played really well in the first half,” Seiss said. “He made some good decisions. We gave him some pretty easy throws with the stuff out of the backfield.”
Indeed, Hill’s first two TD passes were to junior running back Cameron Jordan, who turned the short throws into long scores, first a 70-yarder and then a 51-yarder.
“It was just the game plan,” Jordan said. “We saw what they were doing. It was just great play-calling.”
But Jordan, who finished with 10 receptions for 164 yards, was impressed with Hill too.
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“He’s amazing,” Jordan said. “He can do anything. He’s a great overall person, player, leader. He’s the best.”
Hill also hit senior wide receiver Rynell Lewis for a 9-yard TD and connected with senior wide receiver Mikel Smoot for a 54-yarder.
“He showed some of the things he can do when he pulls the ball, different arm angles,” Seiss said of Hill. “The touchdown to Rynell Lewis, he made a nice play.
“He made some mistakes in the second half. But it was his first start. That’s part of what it is. He just has to keep getting better every week.”
Hill completed 17 of 19 passes for 268 yards and all four of his TDs in the first half for Merrillville. He threw interceptions on each of his first two attempts in the second half.
Hill, who was part of Merrillville’s 400-meter relay team that placed sixth at the state meet in the spring, completed 2 of 5 passes for 12 yards and ran for 131 yards and three TDs on 12 carries last year. He spent most of the season on the junior varsity team after playing freshman football at Mount Carmel in Chicago. He gained varsity eligibility for Merrillville’s regular-season finale in Week 9.
“He made all kinds of plays,” Seiss said. “He was like the Johnny Football of JV football last year. He’s athletic. We also have to understand his style of play. We have to be able to live with mistakes a little bit. But he has to get better, too, and he knows that.”
Senior running back JQ Johnson had 135 yards and two TDs, including an 80-yarder, on 11 carries for the Pirates, who won their eighth consecutive game in the series against the 59ers.
For Andrean, which is ranked No. 4 in Class 2A in the preseason state coaches poll, sophomore wide receiver Tyler Vo caught a 32-yard TD from senior quarterback Brady Elish and finished with four catches for 57 yards.
“Andrean is big up front,” Seiss said. “But we thought we had a pretty good advantage with some of our quickness, especially on the D-line. We did a good job of getting into the backfield, forcing negative plays. The quarterback was never comfortable. We played really aggressive.”
Merrillville’s quarterback seemed comfortable in his starting debut.
“We did some great things,” Hill said. “But we have some things to improve on. … We have to get a lot of wrinkles out of our offense. The defense played really well. I’m proud of them.
“Class of ’27, they’re going to circle our names. … I’m looking forward to seeing what I can do in my recruiting process and get that tightened up.”
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