Ike Young moving to quarterback for senior-heavy Monticello

MONTICELLO (WCIA) — The Monticello Sages will have a familiar face in a new role this season, as Ike Young will take over as starting quarterback.

“I’m excited. I prepared a lot in the offseason with weights. Weights are important to get stronger and more physical,” Young said.

“On the mental side, of it, it’s a big change, it’s a big step up from running back because it’s a lot more responsibilities, but I feel like I’m prepared to take that challenge.”

Young is making the position change from running back, utilizing his dual-threat skillset under center.

“As a running back, you have a lot of skill. I have a lot of knowledge in the running game, so I’m a very good runner, but also I’m a threat with my arm,” Young said.

“It’s a little bit of a challenge, but Ike got a lot of reps at quarterback last year and just was able to adapt to running back because that’s the type of kid he is and so it’ll definitely be a transition for him,” Head Coach Cully Welter said.

Monticello thinks 2024 can be a special season, returning nine starters on defense and 18 seniors on the roster.

“This is a year we’ve always looked towards and we’re excited to see from where we were at freshman and sophomore year to where we are now,” Young said.

“This is a group that’s stuck together pretty well. A group that plays a lot of sports, a lot of three sport athletes in the senior group. It’s a very likeable group, so they’ve been fun to be around, just hope they can see some success,” Welter said.

And that continuity has helped them make strides at the start of preseason practices.

“We can be a lot better than we have been in the past,” senior offensive and defensive lineman Mason High said.

Some of the mistakes we can clean up. A lot of returning starters, so I think we’ll be better than we were in the year’s past.”

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