St. Xavier’s football coaches tabbed St. Rita grad and Manteno resident Zach Norred as a candidate for a redshirt year in 2024.
Norred had other plans.
Veteran Cougars coach Mike Feminis didn’t take long to change his mind on how he was going to use the talented defensive back.
“Coming in, we thought we would redshirt him because we had a couple of older guys and he passed an older guy right away,” Feminis said of Norred. “Another one of our players got dinged and he got his opportunity.
“Zach ended up being a really, really good player. We knew he was going to be a good player, but not so soon.”
Norred racked up 62 tackles, intercepted two passes and forced a fumble his first year in a Cougars uniform.
“I’ve always been taught to compete,” Norred said. “I just worked and got the job and did what I had to do.”
There was no sophomore slump as he racked up 6.5 tackles for losses and 5.5 sack for the Cougars, who finished 8-3 but did not make the playoffs.
Norred was an an honorable mention all-conference pick in the Mid-States Football Association Midwest League.
“He took his game to another level,” Feminis said of Norred’s sophomore season. “He got bigger, faster, stronger and all of that.”
The 6-foot, 185-pound Norred said he did what he was taught.
“It’s just flying to the football and moving around,” Norred said. “That’s what we’re taught here. Fly around. Make plays. Just do your job.”
Defensive coordinator Tyler Reinhardt is in his second season at SXU and didn’t see Norred in 2024. But he was impressed with Norred last year as he helped the Cougars lead the MFSA by allowing just 316.5 yards per game.
“He’s one of the hardest workers and smartest guys I’ve ever coached,” Reinhardt said of Norred. “He just does everything the team needs and what the defense needs.”
In high school, there were long stretches in which Norred had to wake up at 4:30 a.m. to get to St. Rita for workouts before school. His father, Tim, and older brother, Brandon, graduated from St. Rita, while his younger brother, Andrew, attended the school for a while but opted to finish at Manteno.
“My dad brought be to St. Rita games and I grew up loving it there,” Zach said. “It always felt like home.”
Quarterback derby
There is an interesting quarterback competition going on and Feminis will not make any decision until next week.
Incumbent Dominic D’Ambrosio, a graduate student from Andrew, threw for 1,618 yards and 14 touchdowns in 2025 and ran for 207 yards and four scores.
He will have competition from Eastern Illinois transfer Blainey Dowling, a former Mount Carmel star who was MaxPreps Illinois Player of the Year in 2022 and led the Caravan to a perfect record and Class 7A state championship.
“Dom was a great teammate for three years and didn’t get much of an opportunity,” Feminis said. “As a redshirt junior, he won the job last year and did a really nice job for us.
“Getting Blainey is a dream come true for us. He’s a local kid who lives right down the street. He had a great career at Mount Carmel and he’s been a great addition to our team. The guys really like him.”