Quarterback Jacob Bell was pretty green when Naperville North coach Sean Drendel handed him the keys to the offense last summer.
Bell, who was entering his junior year, didn’t even have access to any car keys at the time. He’s younger than many of his classmates.
“It was very unique,” Bell said. “Week 1, I was 15, so my mom dropped me off to the game. So that was pretty funny.”
What wasn’t so funny was the challenge posed by the Huskies’ first two opponents. Bell made his varsity debut against Homewood-Flossmoor and then faced defending Class 8A state champion Loyola the following week.
“I spent my offseason preparing, so I knew what was coming, but obviously the speed was a pretty tough adjustment,” Bell said. “Taking care of the ball was something I had to get used to because I was on JV the year before.
“Definitely not the easiest start, but when I look back at it, I’m blessed to have had those curveballs thrown at me right away, to see the toughest of competition and have to overcome that type of adversity early. Things got easier as the season went on.”
Bell didn’t play poorly despite the opposition. Naperville North beat Homewood-Flossmoor and lost to Loyola.
Bell then threw three touchdown passes during the Huskies’ 51-49 win against Bolingbrook in Week 3. He led them to wins in their final three regular-season games before their 23-8 loss to Glenbard West in the first round of the playoffs.
“He handled himself very well,” Drendel said. “We try to be a take-what-they-give-you type of offense. I know everyone talks about their numbers, but realistically the best characteristic of a quarterback is leading his team to wins. As the season went on, Jacob understood that and, in my opinion, did a better job of it.”
The Huskies relied heavily on their ground game led by Cole Arl, who is attempting to earn a walk-on spot at Arizona State. He was a security blanket for Bell.
“A lot of it was just figuring things out,” Bell said. “Our offense was pretty well-rounded, so (it was) just knowing when to use certain weapons and when to depend on one thing versus the other.”
The Huskies are going to rely more on Bell, who won’t turn 17 until Aug. 28, two days before the season opener at New Trier. The Ball State commit is ready to throw more passes to seasoned receivers like seniors Brock Pettaway and Ian MacConnachie.
“With a developed senior quarterback and returning receiving corps, I think our passing game will be something to look out for,” Bell said. “That’s pretty exciting as a quarterback, getting ready to air out the ball a little more.
“I’ve got a great group of guys around me that listen and hold me accountable. We’re super excited for this year. I’m really looking forward to it.”
So is Drendel.
“Jacob is still a young senior, but he is very mature for his age,” Drendel said. “He’s a very polished young man and respectful. He’s exactly what you want in a student-athlete. He represents our program very well and does a good job of leading, and we’re excited to see more of that.”
Bell is excited to be part of a tradition of high-level quarterbacks at Naperville North, which include his immediate predecessor, Aidan Gray, a sophomore at Northwestern, and Bell’s older brother Jon, who is beginning his junior season at two-time defending Division I Football Championship Subdivision national champion South Dakota State.
“I always take account of how lucky I am to have such a great system and guys to learn from, one being my brother,” Bell said. “You don’t get a closer look than that as a role model. And Aidan was pretty awesome to me.
“So the younger quarterbacks in our program who are going to be here after me, I try to lead them and take them through some drills and teach them new things every day, just based on my experience so far.”
Bell has two younger brothers, Jonah in eighth grade and Joshua in fifth grade. Both play quarterback, so there is the potential for Drendel to have a Bell in the program for 14 consecutive seasons.
“We’ve been fortunate enough to have some great quarterbacks,” Drendel said. “I think Jacob may go down as right there with them or maybe even better than most of them.”
Matt Le Cren is a freelance reporter.
