Avon's Nathanial Vakos, Elyria Catholic's Jack Kenneally sign letters of intent to play football on Division I level

Avon's Nathanial Vakos and Elyria Catholic's Jack Kenneally didn't start out to be great players, but each found its talent and skill sets were perfectly suited for football. And now they are moving on to play for NCAA Division I schools. Vakos and Kenneally signed National Letters of Intent on Wednesday at their respective schools, as the early football signing period got under way. Kenneally, a 6-foot-7 wide receiver, is headed to Youngstown State University. Vakos signed to kick at Ohio University. Soccer was Vakos' first sport growing up but he quickly took to the pressure of kicking extra points and field goals for the Eagles. Vakos missed his first PAT attempt as a freshman, but set a national record with 260 consecutive successful extra points. Despite never scoring a touchdown, Vakos graduates as the third-leading career scorer at Avon. "A lot of work and time and sweat and tears went into these last four years," Vakos said. "Everything lined up to go to Ohio. It's close to home, my brother goes there, good coaching staff, good football and free school. Can't complain about that." Vakos was also a key part of the soccer team, which became the school's first Division I team to win a regional championship. "This was never my plan, I was always planning on soccer," he said. "Eighth grade summer, I started kicking and as time went by, I kept getting better and better and I transitioned to thinking I could do this in college, and luckily I get to do this at the highest level." According to the National Federation Record Book, Vakos is one of only eight kickers in the United States with more than 250 career extra points. "Nathaniel did the work, he went to the kicking camps and he just kept getting bigger and stronger," Avon coach Mike Elder said. "I knew his freshman year he could be pretty special. He had the consistency and accuracy and he wanted to do the work." Vakos spent summers at kicking camps, while juggling the demands of playing two sports. "I can't say enough about Chris Dore, our soccer coach, for allowing us to share players and allowing these kids to play multiple sports. He doesn't have to do that," Elder said. "It's the right thing for kids and that's why we're blessed at Avon. All of our coaches support each other." Kenneally has a career double-double average on the basketball court for the Panthers but he found his calling on the football field, where he caught 50 passes for 904 yards and 12 touchdowns for an Elyria Catholic team that advanced to the Division V regional finals. "Of course, I started playing basketball before I did football so basketball was my first love," Kenneally said. "I think over time taking my ability and size to football and seeing what I can do on the field really just took me over. Friday night with coach (Brian) Fox just blew me away and I became more committed to football." For Fox, all of the touchdowns and one-handed catches Kenneally made on Friday nights were surpassed by the leadership qualities he brought to the locker room and practice field. "Obviously, Jack is a great football player, we wouldn't be here if he wasn't," Fox said. "He showed a level of leadership, dedication and selflessness that helped us be a great program. As you jump to the next level, the talent difference gets thinner and thinner. The ones who work at it are the ones who stick. Jack has bought into the idea that greatness is a 24/7 thing. "He has his life in order, he has his priorities set. He has all of his arrows pointed in the right direction. It's going to be hard for people to keep up with the things he's going to do at the next level." Kenneally knew Youngstown State was where he wanted to be. "From the time they started recruiting me, they've been in my mind as No. 1," he said. "The coaching staff, the environment, the distance was all good for me. The family atmosphere they have there really also attracted me. They were really interested in me and called me about three or four times a week to see how I was doing. "The weight is off of my shoulders now. I can enjoy the rest of my senior year." Contact Todd Shapiro at 440-329-7135 or ctsports@chroniclet.com.