Surf & turf: USF'S Goolsby rides wave

Former Redskin QB throws 4 TD passes, fulfills dream in rout of Olivet9

When one of John Goolsby's last college football wishes recently was granted, the only thing missing was the genie in the bottle.

Goolsby, the former Morris High School standout, threw a single-game school-record tying four touchdown passes in the University of St. Francis' 62-20 victory over Olivet Nazarene on Oct. 24.

He was named Offensive Player of the Week in the Mid-States Football Association/Midwest League for a performance that moved him closer to owning all of the Saints' most significant passing records.

The significant thing for him was going on the road to play a home game on the Field Turf at Lincoln-Way West High School. The game was shifted from USF's normal playground because of inclement weather and concerns over the condition of the grass field at Joliet's Memorial Stadium.

"Oh, yeah, it's a good experience to play on this kind of field," Goolsby said after completing 16-of-32 for 285 yards in dissecting the Tigers. "I tease Coach 'U' all the time -- since I transferred here from Toledo.

"Write this in the paper because he's going to get a little here. He's promised me every year we'll get Field Turf.

"Come on, I've been here and been around college football for -- it feels like seven years. And we still don't have Field Turf.

"I was teasing him with Connor," Goolsby said, pointing the former JCA standout and current USF teammate Connor Krisch. "Remember? I said, 'Connor, don't believe it until you see it.' He's like we'll have it. And, sure enough, we played on it tonight."

Coach 'U' is Mike Uremovich, the man who is in his fifth season coaching the Saints. He slowly has built the USF program from rock bottom back to the point of respectability. And he has pushed for upgrades in the Saints' facilities from Day 1.

His turf promise is close to becoming a reality.

Beginning next season, USF will play its home games on Turf Field. The Joliet Park District has announced plans to rip out the existing sod and install the new playing surface at Memorial Stadium in the offseason. The move comes too late for Goolsby -- but not for many of his young teammates. He is happy they will be able to ramp up their experience to match that of his very own odyssey.

He is 25 years old and within a couple months of graduating from USF with two degrees, one in marketing, the other a Master's in business administration. He has been there, done that -- experienced it all -- in five-year period that took him from Morris to Toledo, the high school ranks to the MAC, and then brought him home again.

Goolsby served as an understudy to Bruce Gradkowski while playing at Toledo in 2004-05. Gradkowski is making his liveing with the Raiders nowadays in the NFL.

"I learned a lot from him," Goolsby said. "I follow what Bruce does every week. He was on TV Sunday. He got a chance to play. He deserves to play. He's a helluva football player. He does things right on and off the field."

Goolsby's memories of those days range from playing in Philadelphia on the Eagles home field to the Rockets mounting a drive to tie for the MAC West title and winning a bowl game. While Goolsby was at Toledo, the Rockets faced off against Fresno State in a Tuesday-night prime-time matchup on ESPN and they climbed as high as 19th in the national rankings.

He left the program after the two coaches he was closest with also left -- offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Rob Spence and recruiting guru Randall McCray. Spence went to Clemson. McCray works now at Wisconsin and still recruits in this area.

"I keep in touch with him," Goolsby said. "Every couple of months, we'll talk. He gave me a great opportunity."

When Goolsby transferred to USF in 2006, he still had four years of playing eligibility because he took a redshirt year at Toledo.

"I knew the program was up-and-coming," he said. "I talked to Coach Uremovich a couple of times. I liked what he was bringing to the table. He was coming from Waynesburg College. Their offense was a dynamic one. That's what sold me on coming here. I figured we could put up the same kind of numbers. People are finally seeing us do that here in these last two years."

Goolsby is a 6-foot-3, 226-pounder who blossomed late, a strong-armed, pocket-type quarterback. He was the backup to Benjy Kennedy during his junior year at Morris. Then, as a senior, he passed for more than 2,000 yards, led the Redskins to a 9-3 record and a berth in the 5A quarterfinals. The Redskins were ousted 14-10 by Joliet Catholic Academy in a classic game that turned on a controversial fourth-quarter call.

"We got the ball back with about 5 minutes to go and we were marching," Goolsby said. "We had a third-and-1 and I sneaked it. We got 3 yards, I swear. But the spot of the ball was moved backward. On fourth-and-1, I got stuffed, I admit it. They brought Jimmy (Jadron) in to clog up the middle. He plays with me now. I tell Jimmy all the time, 'If we get that first down, we score and win the game.' He laughs. He tells me, 'Yeah, I'll let you see my state championship ring.' "

Jadron, after graduating from JCA, first enrolled at Indiana. He later transferred to USF and now blocks for Goolsby. The two are part of a 20-something crowd of Saints that also includes Ponce Palmer and Jason Fiske.

"The biggest joke of all is the Tondinis from Morris who are on our team now -- they were in the seventh grade when I was playing in my senior year of high school," Goolsby said. "I never thought I was that old until somebody mentioned that. But I guess it's time to get into the real world."

He has plans to work in the sales and insurance field. He will stay close to the game he loves -- football -- through his cousin, Austin Feeney, who is a sophomore quarterback at Morris.

"His dad was the quarterback on the '84 state championship team," Goolsby said. "He has the potential to be good. I'll probably end up working with him some and some of the backup quarterbacks here at St. Francis."

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