Sunday Slam: "Sully" Still Making an Impact on Sideline at Glenbrook North
Sullivan Led Maine West Boys Basketball to Fourth in State in 1998; Lakes' Dynamic Duo Among Area Contributors to North Central's D-III Football Title
Jim Sullivan’s passion for coaching had not diminished after he led Maine West to its most successful boys basketball season 25 years ago.
But Sullivan’s love for his two young daughters and gaining sole custody of them took precedence over being a varsity head coach and he resigned after the Warriors raised the fourth-place trophy at the 1998 Class AA state tournament in Peoria.
“Sully” never lost the joy of coaching high school basketball. As his daughters got older and more self-sufficient he got back in the game as an assistant coach. And he’s still at it in his third season with Glenbrook North as an assistant to Quin Hayes.
“My big thing is if I never got out of it and stayed on as a head coach from ‘98 on I wouldn’t still be in it,” Sullivan said. “I would’ve been burned out and I would’ve tired of it quickly.
“As an assistant I don’t have to deal with all that (administrative responsibilities). It’s about kids, it’s about X’s and O’s and all the things as a coach you really like. I still have a fervor for it and as long as I do I might stick around.”
Sullivan was 141-82 with three regional titles in eight seasons as Maine West’s head coach and was inducted into the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association (IBCA) Hall of Fame in 2014. His final Maine West team, led by the dynamic Division I inside duo of all-staters Lucas Johnson (Illinois) and Kevin Frey (Xavier), went 28-5 and knocked off Fenwick and future NBA standout Corey Maggette 76-64 in the quarterfinals in Peoria.
Seniors Brian Regan and Brad Alesi gave the Warriors solid guard play, juniors Bart Fabian and Alfredo Jiminez were big contributors and future Iowa starting offensive lineman Andy Lightfoot and Jamie Jewitt were also among those who made an impact off the bench. They nearly completed a furious fourth-quarter rally in a 73-70 semifinal loss to Galesburg and lost 66-63 to Quincy in the third-place game.
But Sullivan’s family and professional responsibilities took precedence over running a basketball program. He had a tremendous passion for teaching social studies, primarily senior-level government and U.S. history, before retiring in 2014.
“Even after I stepped down, not everybody really understood why I got out,” Sullivan said. “I realized I would probably never be a head coach again for a couple of reasons - one was my daughters and the other was Maine West.
“I loved the school and my colleagues and I wasn’t willing to move just for the sake of coaching basketball and saying I’m the head coach. I enjoyed the classroom and I miss the dynamic even today. I struggled with it for a couple of years (after retirement) because I really enjoyed the classroom. There were other ways to get my basketball fix.”
That turned out to be as an assistant coach for Don Rowley at Hersey, Bob Williams and Matt Walsh at Schaumburg and Luke Yanule at Hoffman Estates before heading to Glenbrook North. He’s been ready and willing to fill whatever role - offense, defense or as a mentor - they needed.
Sullivan coached against Hayes when he was a star for St. Viator in the 1990s and helped him with some postseason prep when he was coaching at his alma mater. He joined Hayes when he took over at Glenbrook North, which was 23-8 last year and is 10-0 this season.
“It’s been great and I have a lot of latitude,” Sullivan said. “I do the defense and he does the offense and he’s really good at it. He’s got a real acumen for the game. We’re young and small … but we’ve gotten to where we pick you up and really get after you and we’re tenacious defensively.”
Sullivan said it will be “very unique” to sit on the sidelines for Glenbrook North when Maine West visits at the end of the regular season in February because it was a big Central Suburban North rivalry in the 1990s. Sullivan’s 1992-93 team led by Daily Herald All-Area co-captain Brian Johnson, who played four years at Illinois, went 26-3 but two of the losses, including a 1-point sectional championship heartbreaker, were to the Spartans.
“It didn’t take long for dozens of guys to call me and say, ‘What are you doing,’ giving me crap,” Sullivan laughed about coaching at Glenbrook North. “The starting five of that ‘92-’93 team, we all went out to dinner recently and they were just killing me on Glenbrook North. It was funny but it’s been great.”
It’s moments like those - including the 20th anniversary gathering of the 1998 team at Armand’s in Arlington Heights or going to watch UIC with assistant coach and former Maine West player Bill Wuczynski - that make staying in the game so worthwhile for Sullivan.
“The greatest trophy is the relationships I still have with so many players,” Sullivan said.
Lakes Show Leads North Central’s Title Run
Lakes High School alums Ethan Greenfield and DeAngelo Hardy made quite an impact as North Central College won its second NCAA Division III football title with a 28-21 win over Mount Union (Ohio) on Friday night. The first-team All-Americans accounted for all 4 touchdowns to help North Central to its second title and a 15-0 record.
Greenfield, who received the 29th Gagliardi Trophy for the outstanding D-III player, also received the title game’s Most Outstanding Player after rushing for 119 yards and a TD and catching a TD pass. He rushed for 1,997 yards and 29 TDs this season and 6,679 yards in his career. He was also the MOP when North Central won the title in 2019.
Hardy, a junior, caught 3 passes for 107 yards and a TD and finished the season with 70 catches for 1,198 yards and 19 TDs. Junior defensive lineman Dan Lester (Vernon Hills), junior cornerback Antwain Walker (Oswego East) and offensive lineman Jeske Maples (Moweaqua Central A&M) also earned first-team All-American honors.
The North Central offensive line included four Chicago-area starters in junior right tackle Will Ebert (Hersey), sophomore right guard Sam Pryor (Kaneland), junior center Jarod Thornton (Homewood-Flossmoor) and freshman left guard Alex Knaperek (Lincoln-Way East).
The defensive leaders included senior linebacker Sam Taviani (Downers Grove North), sophomore linebacker Angelo Cusumano (Glenbard North) and senior linemen Dan Gilroy (Cary-Grove) and Brandon Greifelt (Notre Dame/Mount Prospect resident). Taviani had a team-high 9 tackles in the title game.
NIU Volleyball Job Familiar Territory for Parys
Former Prairie Ridge volleyball star Sondra Parys was chosen as the head coach of the Northern Illinois University women’s program this week. Parys spent the past five years as an assistant at Loyola and this year’s team won the Atlantic 10 Conference regular-season and tournament titles and advanced to the NCAA tournament for the first time in 17 years.
It’s also a homecoming for Parys and her family as her dad Joe was on NIU’s 1981-82 basketball team that made the NCAA tournament and her mom Lori was an NIU cheerleader.
"I am beyond grateful and excited for this special opportunity to lead the NIU volleyball program," Sondra Parys said in a statement. "I am honored to be a part of the Huskie family and can't wait to get to work with our student-athletes."
Parys played at Toledo before starting her college coaching career at The Citadel. She helped Queens University of Charlotte (North Carolina) make two NCAA Division II tournament appearances. In 2019, the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) recognized her as one of the up-and-coming stars in the profession with its 30 Under 30 award.
Skoronski Makes NU History, Next Stop NFL
Maine South grad Peter Skoronski made history this week as Northwestern’s first unanimous football All-American selection. The left tackle who is projected as a first round NFL pick announced Friday he is declaring for the 2023 NFL Draft.
The 6-foot-4, 315-pound Skoronski was a First Team All-American selection by the five organizations that determine that status: Associated Press (AP), American Football Coaches Association (AFCA), Football Writers Association of America (FWAA), Sporting News and Walter Camp Football Foundation (WCFF).
Skoronski mentioned on Twitter that he wanted to follow in his grandfather’s footsteps. Bob Skoronski is a member of the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame and he played primarily at left tackle in an 11-year career and was part of five NFL champions and the first two Super Bowl winners.
Maine South’s Bliss Heads to Football Coaches Hall of Fame
Maine South assistant coach Charlie Bliss, who has been an integral part in the one of the state’s most successful football programs, will be part of the Hall of Fame Class of 2023 by the Illinois High School Football Coaches Association (IHSFCA). Bliss will be inducted in the assistant coach category.
Lincoln-Way East’s Rob Zvonar will be inducted in the active coach category and John Ivlow (Bolingbrook) and Todd Kuska (St. Rita) will be inducted in the retired coach category. Ivlow and Kuska announced their retirements after this season.
The University of Illinois’ Pat Ryan will receive the Ray Eliot Award. Ryan, who won two state titles and finished second five times at Metamora, has been instrumental in helping Illinois rebuild relationships with the state’s high school coaches since Bret Bielema took over.
Official Business
There has been a significant decrease in the numbers of high school officials throughout the country in recent years. More and more football games are being moved off traditional Friday nights to Thursday nights or Saturdays. Basketball officials are working both ends of boys/girls doubleheaders. And underclass games are getting postponed or canceled because there aren’t enough officials.
The IHSA is addressing it by allowing 15- and 16-year-old students to register for an IHSA provisional license. This would bring in new “officials in training” who can work local youth league and junior high contests and work ninth-grade contests with a fully licensed official.
IHSA associate executive director Kurt Gibson discusses the program in this video. You can also learn more at https://www.ihsa.org/Officials/How-to-Become-a-Licensed-Official.
Hauser Announced as New Conant AD
Conant announced via Twitter that Erik Hauser will take over as athletic director on July 1, 2023. Hauser is currently the athletic coordinator and will replace John Kane, who is retiring at the end of the school year after 15 years as athletic director.
Palatine’s Filian Still Holds IHSA Soccer History
Palatine’s Willie Filian is still the only coach to win boys and girls IHSA soccer state championships in the same school year. After he led the boys to their dramatic overtime title in the fall of 1994, his girls team also brought home a title in the spring of 1995.