YOUNGSTOWN - Marcus McWilson doesn't have a set position. He seemingly roams around the Cardinal Mooney High School football team - offense, defense and special teams.
"I'm not quarterback yet," said the 6-foot, 195-pound senior. "It's certainly a great feeling to help wherever I'm needed, make plays."
"Marcus is a tremendous athlete," Cardinal Mooney coach P.J. Fecko said. "He does a lot of different things. He kicks the ball. He returns the ball. He's a defensive guy. He's a receiver. He's a running back. His ability to want to compete and to do so wherever he's called upon helps. He's been successful to do that."
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His fellow senior Courtney Love is a fierce defender, so much that he was named the 2011 Division III co-defensive player of the year.
Love, a 6-1, 225-pound athlete, loves his position.
"The best part is hitting people, I love it," Love said. "You get to make people scared the next play. It kind of sets the tone of the game."
"Anyone comes to the line, they don't want to come to his side," McWilson said. "They run away, but he'll certainly get you. He's a fast guy, sees the whole field.
He's over there telling me what the play is. He can read it, see the linemen and see where the ball is going. We read our keys right, we can make plays."
Fecko said there is more to Love than hard-nosed play.
"Obviously, he has some physical skills, but it's his knowledge of the game," Fecko said. "It's his willingness to learn. It's his wanting to learn and his ability and desire to get better each and every day that he takes the practice field."
Both bring unique attributes to Cardinal Mooney's team.
"Those are guys that played really well for us last year," Fecko said. "They're tremendous athletes that will further their career on, as everybody knows. Two guys that can play some ball. Their leadership and experience will be something everybody can lean on, along with the other seniors."
They're both heading to Nebraska next season from a Cardinals team that won the 2011 Division III state championship - the school's eighth title.
They'll play for Bo Pelini, a Cardinal Mooney graduate. Assistant coaches Tim Beck and Vince Marrow are former Cardinal Mooney graduates as well. And, former Cardinal Mooney standouts Braylon Heard, Tim Marlowe and Mark Pelini currently play for the Cornhuskers.
Love had offers at USC, Pitt, Oklahoma, Ohio State, West Virginia and Michigan State.
"Just because that fits me and my family," Love said. "I feel Bo Pelini is a great coach and defensive coordinator. The program itself is just amazing. The tradition they have behind there is great. It's like another Mooney family to me. I feel like I fit in real good there."
McWilson, who has played alongside Love since the eighth grade, had offers from Michigan, Michigan State, Illinois, Youngstown State, Bowling Green, Cal-Berkley and West Virginia.
"It's going to be a great experience, to play at the next level with him," McWilson said. "... Anyone would be lucky to attend any of those schools or get an education in general; playing a Division I level is a great feeling. Hopefully, things go well."
With McWilson, Love feels confident heading to Nebraska.
"Not too many times you get to go to the same college as your high school teammate," Love said. "With him, it takes a lot of stress off in the backfield because he's out there making plays left and right - everywhere, special teams, and offense. Whatever it is, he'll do it."
