There are a lot of moving parts during the summer for a three-sport athlete like Libertyville’s Trevor Wallace.
Travel baseball, high school basketball and high school football keep him busy. But Wallace’s schedule became a little more complicated as he entered his senior year. Facing a shorter summer after winning the Class 4A state title in baseball on June 14, he competed to become the Wildcats’ starting quarterback.
“I think I did a pretty good job of keeping everything separate in my mind,” said Wallace, who did bring his laptop on the road to baseball tournaments to review the football playbook before bed. “When I was playing baseball, I got football out of my mind. But one of my main goals of the summer definitely was to get that position and then keep it.”
Wallace got it, emerging from a three-man competition to succeed all-state quarterback Quinn Schambow. The 5-foot-11, 180-pound Wallace learned in mid-August that he would start for the defending North Suburban Conference co-champion Wildcats, which gave him time to process the news and prepare for the season.
One of Wallace’s final checkpoints came before Libertyville’s Aug. 22 scrimmage with defending 4A state champion DePaul Prep.
“I remember thinking, ‘This is it. This is what I need to be doing,’” Wallace said. “It’s definitely like a dream come true, knowing that I’m the quarterback of the varsity team I grew up watching. Since I was in elementary school, my dad and I would go to the games together on Friday nights. Now I’m the one out there on the field, which is pretty cool.”
Wallace wants to stay on the field, too, and he took a big step forward with a rock-solid debut in the Wildcats’ 24-14 nonconference win against Lemont on the road on Friday. He completed 9 of 18 pass attempts for 190 yards and two touchdowns, including a 74-yard connection with senior wide receiver Nicholas Ori.
“He managed the game quite well and played mistake-free football,” Libertyville first-year coach Tim Budge. “He’s a trustworthy kid and the kind of player you want on your team. He knows the offense really well, and we trust that he’s going to make the right decisions out there.”
Wallace, the starting second baseman for Libertyville’s baseball team and a guard for the boys basketball team, emerged from the game equipped with hands-on knowledge he hadn’t accrued as Schambow’s backup last year.
“After all the adrenaline wore off, I was able to slow things down and make some plays,” Wallace said. “The first pass was incomplete, but I knew it wasn’t the end of the world. After the game, I remembered a couple of throws that weren’t the greatest or a time when I didn’t communicate as well with the guys as I needed to. But it was a solid game all around.”
Wallace isn’t in this alone, of course. The offense includes Ori, a 6-3, 200-pound Illinois State commit who transferred from Wauconda, and 6-5, 210-pound junior tight end Brock Williams, who is one of the nation’s top prospects in his class.
Wallace also has the support of the rest of his teammates, according to senior right guard Carson Holmes, who plays baseball with him.
“He definitely had those first-game jitters, like we all did, but he is a very calm player who doesn’t let things get to him,” Holmes said. “I went up to him before the game and told him that things were going to happen, but as long as we all stick together and work as one unit, we’ll be fine.
“He has confidence in himself, and I’m confident that he’ll get the job done.”
With so much experience playing multiple sports, Wallace understands that quarterback may be a unique position. He knows leadership and accountability are important, in addition to production on the field.
“Quarterback is a fun role to have, and I love that part of the position, having some pressure but being fully able to put it behind me,” Wallace said. “I realize I’m one of the leaders and that this is my time to show that I deserve this spot.”
Steve Reaven is a freelance reporter.
