Jacob Ritter had plans for his senior year of high school, but they changed dramatically very quickly with one phone call last winter.
Ritter was the backup quarterback at Lincoln-Way East last season behind a senior in Braden Tischer and figured to take over as the starter this fall. But those hopes went out the window when Jonas Williams, one of the nation’s top quarterback recruits, transferred in from Bolingbrook.
“I learned the day before he came in,” Ritter said of Williams. “My coach called me and was like, ‘Oh, we’ve got a four-star coming in.’ I made the move, and it’s the best move I’ve made.”
The move was to Marist, where Ritter had quite a debut Saturday afternoon.
The 6-foot-2, 190-pound quarterback threw four touchdown passes, leading the host RedHawks to a 29-16 season-opening win over Morgan Park in what was also the debut for Marist coach Mike Fitzgerald.
“This is my first high school start,” Ritter said. “It means a lot. It really does. I know I’ve got my teammates with me. I’ve got the fans supporting me. I’ve got a great school around me.”
Ritter completed 11 of 17 passes for 155 yards and threw TDs to four players, including senior running back John McAuliffe. The Cornell recruit ran for 78 yards on 18 carries and added three catches for 46 yards and a TD.
Iowa recruit Brad Fitzgibbon had one of four sacks for Marist (1-0) and added a tackle for loss, while Joshua Loera came up with a fumble recovery.
Nasir Rankin, a Whitney Young transfer, finished with four catches for 132 yards and an 84-yard TD in his debut for Morgan Park (0-1). Marcus Thaxton completed 11 of 22 passes for 153 yards and a TD and added a 20-yard TD run. Quince Shearer contributed an interception and a fumble recovery.
Ritter, meanwhile, enrolled in Marist for the second semester of his junior year and slowly got to know to his new teammates.
“It was tough,” he said. “When I got here back in January, I didn’t really know anybody. I was just the new guy. They didn’t even know I played quarterback.
“But once they brought me in, a couple weeks in, they started inviting me out and we got really close and the team bonded greatly.”
It wasn’t all smooth, though.
“He came in and he was a quiet dude,” McAuliffe said of Ritter. “And in his first practice, his timing was off and he was pretty nervous. He didn’t look the best.
“But as the weeks went on, he just got better and better. Now, he’s at the point where he just threw four touchdowns in our opening game. He’s great. He’s got a great relationship with all our teammates.”
And Ritter also knows he has earned the confidence of his fellow RedHawks.
“My teammates know what I can do,” he said. “They believe in me fully. (Friday) night, they were talking about, ‘We believe in you. Play your game.’ Yeah, there’s pressure, but pressure is a privilege at the end of the day.”
Ritter threw three TD passes in the first half — a 15-yarder to McAuliffe, a 13-yarder to Brendan Doran and a 24-yarder to Stephen Brown.
Morgan Park, a Class 5A quarterfinalist last season, put up a strong fight and pulled within 21-16 late in the third quarter on Thaxton’s 20-yard TD run.
But Marist — looking for a resurgence after going 4-5 and missing the playoffs in 2023 — had the answer thanks to a new quarterback who has been impressing the new coach.
“Jake is a phenomenal football player and he’s an even better person,” Fitzgerald said of Ritter. “It’s always tough when you come into a new school. You’ve got to earn the trust every day.
“His teammates love him because of the way he goes about his business.”
