Lemont Football Standouts LaDuke, Nagel Confirm College Football Plans

Lemont High School senior linebacker Hunter LaDuke and senior wide receiver Flynn Nagel have committed to play college football beginning in Fall 2015. Nagel has signed a National Letter of Intent to play at Northwestern University, while LaDuke will play at North Central College.

Both Nagel (6’0”, 190) and LaDuke (6’0”, 210) played significant roles in one of the most successful seasons in Lemont football history in 2014. Head coach Bret Kooi’s first campaign was one for the record books, and culminated with the program’s third IHSA Class 6A State Runner-Up finish in the last eight years. The Indians finished with a 13-1 record and captured their seventh South Suburban Conference-Blue Division title.

Lemont - which posted the fourth undefeated regular season in school history - became just the second team since 1985 to win 13 games in a season after winning three or fewer games the previous year. It also is one of just seven teams since the IHSA went to an eight-class system to post a record below .500 one season and win at least 13 games the next year.

Lemont matched or broke many program records in 2014. Its 13 wins tied the 2008 squad for the most wins in school history, and the team’s 13-game win streak also matched the 2008 team’s record for consecutive victories.

Lemont averaged a school-record 37.7 points per game in 2014, and Nagel had a huge hand in those numbers. He rewrote many sections of the school’s record book, setting single-season records with 93 catches, 1,428 yards receiving and 28 touchdown catches. His 28 touchdown receptions rank second on the IHSA’s all-time single-season list, and his receptions and yards receiving also rate among the state’s best single-season performances.

Nagel set a school record with 31 touchdowns in all in 2014; he added two punt returns for scores and a rushing score to go along with his 28 touchdown catches. He also threw a 49-yard touchdown on his only pass attempt. Three times he tied a school record by catching four touchdown passes in a game. He totaled 163 rushing yards and averaged 8.6 yards per carry. He also served as the team’s primary punt returner - averaging nearly 19 yards per return - and returned kickoffs, averaged 34.9 yards per punt, and played in the secondary on the defensive side of the ball.

Nagel raked in a number of awards thanks to his performance in 2014. He was tabbed as an Illinois High School Football Coaches Association Class 6A All-State performer, and also was selected as a MaxPreps second team All-America honoree. He was cited to all-state teams by the Chicago Tribune and Champaign News-Gazette; was named the Suburban Life Newspapers area MVP, and as an all-area pick by the Chicago Sun-Times, Joliet Herald News and Southtown Star; and picked up Offensive Player of the Year honors from Chicago Football Magazine.

Nagel, who transferred to Lemont after two varsity seasons at Marist High School, is one of the most prolific receivers in IHSA history. His 255 career receptions are the most in IHSA history, while his 3,613 yards receiving and 55 touchdown catches rank second on the IHSA’s all-time list. Nagel caught 58 passes for 691 yards and nine touchdowns as a sophomore at Marist in 2012. As a junior in 2013, he posted 104 catches for 1,494 yards and 18 touchdowns. He owns two of the state’s top single-season totals in receptions, receiving yards and touchdown receptions.

In his only full varsity season, LaDuke lived in the opponent’s backfield from his linebacker position. He was fifth on the squad with 63 tackles (38 solo). However, he led the team with 20 tackles-for-loss, and also racked up a team-high nine sacks. He added two forced fumbles and returned a fumble for a touchdown in a win at T.F. South.

LaDuke was a primary reason that Lemont limited opponents to just 10.2 points per game in 2014. The defense posted three shutouts, and held six opponents to seven points or less.

LaDuke was a postseason call-up in 2012 when the Indians went 11-2 and were an IHSA Class 6A State Semifinalist. He missed his junior season in 2013 with an injury.

A high honor roll student, Nagel will play for head coach Pat Fitzgerald at Northwestern, an NCAA Division I institution located in Evanston, Ill., and a member of the Big Ten Conference. Fitzgerald is 60-53 in nine seasons at Northwestern, and led the Wildcats to five straight bowl appearances from 2008-12. Northwestern posted a 5-7 record in 2014 and finished sixth in the Big Ten’s West Division. Nagel will become the third member of his family to play for Fitzgerald at Northwestern, joining brothers Aaron (Lemont Class of 2007) and Brett (Lemont Class of 2008).

A high honor roll and National Honor Society student, LaDuke will play for head coach Jeff Thorne at North Central, an NCAA Division III institution located in Naperville, Ill., and a member of the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW). Thorne recently was named North Central’s head coach, but has served as the Cardinals’ offensive coordinator since 2002, and as its assistant head coach since 2010. During his tenure, North Central has posted a 118-30 record, and it won eight straight CCIW titles from 2006-13. The Cardinals won 13 games and were an NCAA Division III National Semifinalist in 2013. North Central went 8-2 last fall and was second in the CCIW standings.