JCA's Stockman on the rise

JCA senior set to build on JCA's D-I middle linebacker tradition

STOCKMAN!!!”

As a sophomore strong safety for Joliet Catholic’s Class 6A state championship team in 2007, Jake Stockman lined up inside the box like an outside linebacker, with the Hilltoppers shuffling the cards of a successful deck between 4-3 and 4-4 defenses.

Early and often enough, whether it was defensive coordinator Cory McLaughlin or assistant coach Mark Mettille, Stockman heard his last name called as much as his No. 11 — and not for rolling sevens.

"I was always freaking out," Stockman said about earning the ire of either McLaughlin or Mettille, or even head coach Dan Sharp. "I would think, 'What did I do wrong?' I would go over stuff in my head like, 'Coach says lead with this foot, what foot did I lead with? Where were my hands, where was my placement?' I freaked out about what I was doing wrong."

"STOCKMAN!!!"

Two years later, Stockman has grown like a Jake in the beanstalk, ready to follow the recent Division I path of inside linebackers like Mike Goolsby, Chris Jeske, Kevin Rouse and Nick Clancy. A 6-foot-2, 225-pound senior, Stockman plans on continuing Joliet Catholic's prestigious strong-side middle linebacker tradition, and the sound of his name still carries a wallop.

"I don't freak out about myself anymore -- I freak out about everyone else," Stockman said. "I think, 'Who didn't I tell to go somewhere?' Or, 'OK, what junior messed up and why am I getting in trouble for it?' And a lot of the time, it's the coaches yelling for me and looking to me for information, especially Coach Mettille.

"He's always the one who looks for me and asks, 'All right, what do you think if we do this? Are you going to be able to make this play; are we going to be able to make that play? What about this guy? Can we get out there and do this or do that?' The coaches are looking for me on the field to be that coach for our guys."

That experienced, team-first guy certain to excite Joliet Catholic football's fandemonium answers to the simply stated handle of "Stockman." You can call him Jake, and a handful of colleges already have. He has offers from Air Force Academy, Navy, Buffalo and Eastern Illinois. He is considering Northwestern, Illinois, Purdue, Ball State and Central Michigan.

A weak-side inside linebacker last season, Stockman totaled 71 tackles, including 26 solo stops. He added 10 hurries, 1.5 sacks, 3 forced fumbles and 4 passes knocked down, showing the speed, strength, smarts and versatility that will allow him to transition from playing safety, outside linebacker and both inside linebacker spots during his three-year varsity career.