By rssfeeds-admin 
Indiana’s C.J. West, Notre Dame’s Rylie Mills, Georgia’s Dominic Lovett, and Cincinnati’s John Williams all grew up in Illinois, with West, Mills and Williams hailing specifically from the Chicagoland area.
C.J. West – Nazareth Academy
College/Position: Indiana/Defensive Tackle
NFL Team/Round Selection: San Francisco 49ers/Round 4, Pick 11 (No. 113)
West was a part of Nazareth Academy’s 2018 Class 5A Illinois State Championship squad, who beat St. Charles North by a score of 31-10 to earn the school their third IHSA football state title.
After his time at Nazareth, West went on to play four seasons at Kent State before using his final year of eligibility to transfer and play at Indiana last season. He tallied 40 combined tackles, eight tackles for loss, two sacks and a forced fumble as a fifth-year senior with the Hoosiers.
NFL draft analyst Lance Zierlein describes West as a three-technique defensive tackle with adequate hand and foot quickness who is quick to diagnose plays. A lack of leverage and length at the point of attack might tie him to a one-gap scheme as a pro, but he has enough athletic ability to compete as a rusher on single blocks, which means he profiles well as an interior defensive line backup with room to grow.
The 49ers’ rookie minicamp takes place May 9-10 at SAP Performance Facility in Santa Clara, California.
Rylie Mills – Lake Forest High School
College/Position: Notre Dame/Defensive End
NFL Team/Round Selection: Seattle Seahawks/Round 5, Pick 4 (No. 142)
Mills went to high school a stone’s throw from the Chicago Bears’ practice facility in Lake Forest (LFHS is about a 15-minute drive from Halas Hall). While not as successful as regional power Nazareth, the Scouts went 26-19 over the four years Mills starred along Lake Forest’s defensive line.
According to 247sports, Mills was a four-star prospect and the fifth-best prospect in the State of Illinois in the class of 2020. He had offers from Alabama, Georgia, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Penn State and Wisconsin among others, but decided Notre Dame would be his college football home.
In 61 games for the Fighting Irish, Mills tallied 131 combined tackles, 26 tackles for loss and 17 total sacks. He was having the best year of his college career this past season before he tore his ACL playing against West and the Indiana Hoosiers in the College Football Playoff.
Mills registered 37 combined tackles, nine tackles for loss and 7.5 sacks in 13 games played in 2024, and Notre Dame went on to lose to Ohio State in the CFP National Championship, 34-23.
Zierlein sees Mills as a defensive lineman who has the size, strength and demeanor to be a good backup 3-4 defensive end, with enough talent to eventually become a quality starter in the NFL.
Overall, he has a pro-ready frame and excels at getting into the neutral zone and attacking blocks with his heavy hands, and can become a three-down rotational piece along Seattle’s defensive line should there be no lingering issues from his knee injury in the CFP.
While the Seahawks’ rookie minicamp concluded Saturday, Mills is still rehabbing his torn ACL and is expected to make a full recovery in time for the start of training camp in early August.
Dominic Lovett – East St. Louis Senior High School
College/Position: Georgia/Wide Receiver
NFL Team/Round Selection: Detroit Lions/Round 7, Pick 28 (No. 244)
A downstate product who went to high school on the East Side of the Illinois-Missouri border, Lovett was the No. 5 prospect in Illinois for the Class of 2021. He originally committed to Missouri and played two years in Columbia before he entered the transfer portal and joined the Georgia Bulldogs for the remainder of his college career.
Lovett amassed three straight years where he hauled in 54-plus catches between Missouri and Georgia, where he became predominantly used in the slot.
According to The Athletic’s Dane Brugler, “He was a reliable target for quarterback Carson Beck the past two seasons and developed under former wide receiver coach Bryan McClendon (now the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ wide receivers coach).
“With synchronized shake in his routes, Lovett created quick windows underneath for catch-and-go plays. But he struggled to expand beyond being a singles and doubles hitter, and his average size will be more of an issue working against NFL coverage. Overall, Lovett presents a small-throwing target and likely will be limited to the slot, but he has a fluid stride with solid ball skills to make plays — if given the chance. His speed can be used on special teams, as well.”
The Lions’ rookie minicamp is slated to take place May 9-11.
John Williams – Bolingbrook High School
College/Position: Cincinnati/Offensive Tackle
NFL Team/Round Selection: Green Bay Packers/Round 7, Pick 34 (No. 250)
Williams was a three-star prospect out of Bolingbrook High School under head coach John Ivlow. 247sports ranked him as a top-20 player in Illinois and just outside the top 100 offensive tackles in the country.
Williams also had offers from Central Michigan, Kansas State, Northern Illinois and Purdue coming out of Bolingbrook, but ultimately chose Cincinnati, where he majored in Aerospace Engineering.
Williams started 24 consecutive games at left tackle to end his college career, where Bugler wrote, “Williams was a steady presence at left tackle in offensive coordinator Brad Glenn’s zone-based run scheme with some gap methods. He waited his turn as a reserve over his first few years on campus but was ready for the starting job the past two seasons — he allowed just three combined sacks.
“At his best in pass protection, Williams quickly gets out of his stance to close space, stay balanced in his mirror and absorb/fend with his hands. He shows functional mobility and body control in the run game to seal the lane, but he isn’t a mauler (physically or mentally) and likely never will be. Overall, Williams has the footwork and pass-blocking instincts that will play well at the next level, but the main concern is about his ability to halt and move NFL defensive linemen. Some of his skills work best at tackle, others at guard — and he might be caught in the middle.”
The Packers’ rookie minicamp wrapped up on Saturday, but Bolingbrook natives still interested in getting another look at Williams can tune into Green Bay’s OTA offseason workouts, which start on May 27-28.
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