McNair Is Oak Park’s Man for All Positions

Perhaps it was inevitable that Monte McNair of Oak Park High would be a multifaceted football player.

Having grown up playing baseball, basketball and soccer, McNair wasn’t thrilled about spending substantial portions of a football game on the sideline getting a breather while some of his teammates were on the field.

After playing defensive back and kicker during his first season in the eighth grade, he was a receiver and kicker as a freshman on Oak Park’s junior varsity team.

He played receiver, kicker and punter and returned kickoffs and punts at the varsity level as a sophomore and junior before also becoming a starting defensive back this season.

“I’ve always felt that if you’re going to play football, you should want to be out there as much as possible,� McNair said. “Otherwise, you shouldn’t be out there.�

McNair is in the game for every play except when Oak Park kicks off, yet he says fatigue doesn’t become a factor until the final five minutes.

Then it’s simply a matter of taking one play at a time.

“I don’t try to look at the big picture,� McNair said, “because if I say, ‘I have to play five more minutes,’ I won’t be able to. But you can always get yourself to go one more play. So you just keep going one more play.�

Linemen who play both ways are the ones who have it tough, McNair said.

“They get hit on every play,� he said. “You look at those guys after games and they look like they’re about to pass out.�

The respect McNair has for linemen is evidence of a down-to-earth personality, Coach Dick Billingsley said.

“He’s real quiet and real respectful of others,� Billingsley said. “He’s a very good student and a very good athlete, but you’ll never hear him talk about himself. He’s very humble about what he’s accomplished.�

McNair has 35 receptions for 690 yards with seven touchdowns, helping Oak Park to a 5-2-1 record and a No. 8 ranking in Southern Section Division XI.

He is averaging 19.7 yards per catch in his varsity career, but Division I programs have shown little interest in him.

The 6-foot-1, 177-pound McNair admits he lacks the speed and leaping ability to impress Division I coaches, but Billingsley said McNair has other skills that will allow him to play at that level.

“He is one of the most intelligent players I’ve coached during my [32-year] career,� Billingsley said.

“He’s knows exactly what’s going on out there. He can catch almost any kind of ball.�

McNair, Oak Park’s starting point guard last basketball season, said he understands his football limitations.

“Because I don’t have the blistering speed or the great leaping ability, I try to run the best routes I can,� McNair said. “I have to make up for the fact that I’m not 6-4 and don’t run the 40 in 4.3.�