Rocco Nero

Fenwick HS '27 GPA 4.3. National Honor Society
6'1 210lbs 2025 6A State Champion
Varsity Baseball OF/1B
Varsity Football RB/DB

[Rocco Nero @RoccoNero22]

Rocco Nero
6A Playoffs Round 1
11 Carries
103 yards
1 Rec. 10yards
9.3 YPC
@Fenwickfootbal

[Holy Crossbars @HolyCrossBars]

⚫️Fenwick (7-3) rolled to a comfortable first-round win against Highland Park. Though the final was 38-20, the score was 35-0 shortly after halftime. Jake Thies didn’t record a safety, but he scored in just about every other possible way, on a rush, a reception, and a pick near midfield that he took all the way to the end zone. Freshman Noah Marshall had 110 receiving yards and a TD, and Rocco Nero continued to shine, with 11 carries for 99 yards and a score. Junior DE Hank Holland had eight tackles for the Friars. With a road win in the second round, Fenwick would come back home to face Geneva or Wheaton North in the quarterfinals.

🟣Next Game: At Hononegah (9-1), 1:00 Saturday
The Indians’ 32-3 defeat of Willowbrook on Friday was their first playoff win in three years, but they’re a perennial presence in the postseason - the last time they didn’t qualify was 2006. The Indians lost 42-13 to Nazareth in the first round last year. It can be tough to judge the NIC-10. With no non-conference games, most strength of schedule metrics create a closed loop. The conference is 5-4 in the playoffs so far, with the other wins coming from first-place Harlem (over St. Charles East), Guilford (over Zion-Benton), and Belvidere North (over Wheaton Academy and NIC rival Freeport). Of note, last weekend’s 32-3 game was much closer than the score indicates. The Indians’ defense held Willowbrook to 154 yards, but the offense didn’t muster much until the fourth quarter. The score heading into the fourth was 9-3.

☑️Illinois Media poll: #6 in 6A
🗓️Schedule: A bit below average - 37 opponents’ wins (see comment above), 1 ranked team
🏈Scoring averages: Offense 40.2 / Defense 9.3
🏆Best regular season win: Week 5 vs. Guilford, 17-14
👀One player to watch: Senior DE Logan Wilson is a quality pass rusher, but one of the perks of playing in the CCL is that Fenwick’s offensive line will be well prepared for him

@FenwickFB @FenwickAD @myleshill_9 @JackWoods5592 @KamRutlin @Corey_Griffin5 @JimmyWatts2027 @JonathanPavalon @Noah0Marshall @tristau_28 @jpbordeauxwalsh @jackhaagenson_1 @CalebRJ5 @RoccoNero22 @Ryder_mach_ @quinnparis_3 @MaxElfvin4 @HankHolland95 @ConniesPizza

[Scott Burgess @scottybscout]

What Skill Players Lit Up Scoreboard Over Weekend?

@carterharriss13 @8JordanLewis @RoccoNero22 @ChaseHojna47111 @Logan_M_Lennon @GeorgasG_22 @kevin_jay2 @lamarinpowell0 @Jameson_Davis27 @Decatur_W & more!

https://t.co/Wy6jJWCFUd

[Prep Redzone Illinois @PrepRedzoneIL]

What Skill Players Lit Up Scoreboard Over Weekend?

@carterharriss13 @8JordanLewis @RoccoNero22 @ChaseHojna47111 @Logan_M_Lennon @GeorgasG_22 @kevin_jay2 @lamarinpowell0 @Jameson_Davis27 @Decatur_W & more!

https://t.co/TtOvAn5LFN

[Holy Crossbars @HolyCrossBars]

⚫️Fenwick (8-3) won 38-13 on Saturday at Hononegah, the seventh straight playoff win for the Friars. First-year starting QB Myles Hill had perhaps his best game of the season, completing 17 of 20 passes for 315 yards and four touchdowns. Three of those went to Jake Thies, who finished with 124 total yards and six tackles. Senior Jimmy Watts caught the fourth. Rocco Nero, whose excellence all season has allowed Fenwick to move Thies around the field, ran for 77 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries. Led by All-Staters Kam Rutlin and Jack Woods, the Friars dominated the line of scrimmage, which they’ll need to do again this weekend against their most battle-tested playoff opponent. It’s the eighth time in school history that Fenwick has played in the quarterfinals. With a win, they’d face Harlem or Notre Dame.

🔵Quarterfinal: Home vs. Wheaton North (8-3), 1:00 Saturday
Most expected Geneva to be in this spot. The Falcons, though, had other ideas. They pulled out a win for the ages, leading the top-ranked team in 6A for essentially the entire game. After Geneva took a 35-30 lead with 83 seconds to play, the Falcons used 81.4 of those seconds to charge all the way back down the field. The game-winning 80-yard drive culminated in a 17-yard touchdown pass from sophomore Grant Neibch to Johnny Clayton. The 36-35 final stood in stark contrast to their matchup on the same field just four weeks earlier, when Wheaton North fell to Geneva 42-14. It’s the Falcons’ first quarterfinal berth since 2021, the year they won the 7A state title. They’ll lean on Mac Murray’s running and the arm of Neibch, who took over at the beginning of October after an injury to his older brother.

☑️Illinois Media poll: Receiving votes in 6A (12th)
🗓️Regular season schedule: Fairly tough - 41 opponents’ wins, 3 ranked teams
🏈Scoring averages: Offense 23.8 / Defense 17.3
🏆Best regular season win: Week 4 at St. Charles North, 34-17
👀One player to watch: Senior TE/LB Adam Schilling is a big target in the red zone. He’s rebounded from a season-ending injury last September to make an impact on both sides of the ball for the Falcons this fall

@FenwickFB @FenwickAD @myleshill_9 @JakeThies2 @JackWoods5592 @KamRutlin @Corey_Griffin5 @JimmyWatts2027 @JonathanPavalon @Noah0Marshall @tristau_28 @jpbordeauxwalsh @jackhaagenson_1 @CalebRJ5 @RoccoNero22 @Ryder_mach_ @quinnparis_3 @MaxElfvin4 @HankHolland95 @ConniesPizza

[Holy Crossbars @HolyCrossBars]

🏈Lights were bright, ➡️and these guys didn't blink‼️ 🔥 ➡️Here are the top performances from this week's CCL action‼️👇 @ConniesPizza #holycrossbars #holycrossbarspodcast #cclfootball @CapuanoNino @hites_connor
@MLeeQB11 @Loyola_FB @LAGoRamblers @CaravanFootball @FenwickFB @BrodenMackert @TiviasCaldwell @lucaflorio_ @d1_lovx @RoccoNero22 @Jameson_Davis27 @CMaldonado425 @Peterrrr_13 @damacioortegon4 @SFHSFBWheaton @NDCP_Football

[Scott Burgess @scottybscout]

What Skill Players Lit Up Scoreboard Over Weekend?!

@carterharriss13 @8JordanLewis @RoccoNero22 @ChaseHojna47111 @Logan_M_Lennon @GeorgasG_22 @kevin_jay2 @lamarinpowell0 @Jameson_Davis27 @Decatur_W & more!

https://t.co/Wy6jJWCFUd

[Rocco Nero @RoccoNero22]

6 A Playoffs 2nd Round
18 Carries
77 Yds, 1 TD @FenwickFB

[Holy Crossbars @HolyCrossBars]

🏈These CCL WR, RB, QB are putting on a clinic:
➡️➡️These players are a masterclass under pressure‼️ @ConniesPizza #cclfootball #holycrossbars #holycrossbarspodcast @hites_connor
@BrodenMackert @RoccoNero22 @TiviasCaldwell @JakeThies2 @FenwickFB @d1_lovx @Donivencamp27 @BrandonJ2027 @StPatrickFB @FenwickFB @NDCP_Football

[Scott Burgess @scottybscout]

Running Backs Carve Up Big Numbers on Halloween

@JashawnStaples @RoccoNero22 @ChaseHojna47111 @TiviasCaldwell @LamarOsterhues @52TjD1 @Maddog0606 @Conor_Hunt8 @ChuckRosengren @9Truzz

https://t.co/lbLiIrFOEw

[𝗝𝗼𝗵𝗻 𝗚𝗿𝗮𝘆𝘀𝗼𝗻 @JRGrayson]

Run Rocco Run - cool 11 carries for 103 yards, light work #FenwickFast

[Matthew Rooney @mrooney23]

Not many backs run harder and with more purpose than Rocco

[M_L_Tate18 @MelvinLTate]

TOUCHDOWN: @FenwickFB. Rocco Nero 24yd run, set up by his 31yd run the previous play. Just 34 seconds into the third quarter, it's 28-0 Friars.

[Rocco Nero @RoccoNero22]

Regular Season Highlights @FenwickFB
545 Total Yards
5 TD's
379 Rushing Yds (6 YPC)
106 Receiving Yds (15.1 YPR)
60 Return Yds (20 YPKR)
https://t.co/KYMcfNEaWy

[Rocco Nero @RoccoNero22]

Senior Night
9 Carries 63 yards
1 Rec. 22 yards

[Rocco Nero @RoccoNero22]

4 Carries 39 yards
I Rec. 40 yards 1 TD

[Holy Crossbars @HolyCrossBars]

🏈These CCL players don't just find the endzone. ➡️They engineer it‼️ They own the zone‼️
🔥SUBSCRIBE & LIKE our YouTube channel ‼️@HolyCrossBars #CCLFootball #Holycrossbars #Fridaynightlights #Illinoishighschoolfootball

@RoccoNero22 @KeegCastagnoli @FPiechonka

[ray hamilton @rayhami75853032]

#25 Rocco Nero 25 yard TD run on Friday night.@FenwickAD @RoccoNero22 @varsity_voices1 @CoachV_Friars

[M_L_Tate18 @MelvinLTate]

TOUCHDOWN: @FenwickFB. Rocco Nero 3yd run with 7:10 left in the opening quarter. Friars lead St. Francis 14-0. Each scoring drive has been five plays.

[Rocco Nero @RoccoNero22]

Early Season Highlights...