Luke Gentile juggling many roles for Riverside-Brookfield

Luke Gentile is no ordinary football player.

Nor can the Riverside-Brookfield senior be easily defined — at least position-wise.

Gentile has many talents and has shown to be capable of playing numerous positions for the Bulldogs.

Last year, Gentile started at wide receiver, split time at running back and also played safety.

This season, with the Bulldogs returning a good blend of juniors and seniors to go with a talented sophomore class, Gentile will play receiver and linebacker, get a few reps at running back, handle the punting duties, return punts and be the holder for kicks.

To put it mildly, R-B opponents will see plenty of No. 33 on the field.

Although wide receiver is Gentile’s main position, he never played the position until his sophomore season. Gentile said he’s come to embrace the many challenges of playing numerous positions. When the basketball season ended, Gentile said he lifted four times a week to prepare his body to handle the rigors of football.

“I kind of keep an open mind,” he said. “In high school, I just do what I’m asked to do by the coaches. I want to help the team win, but I like playing wide receiver the most, especially in the slot. I feel I can get to work catching the ball and I like running in space.”

Riverside-Brookfield coach Brendan Curtin said Gentile’s an ideal player for a public program looking for respect in a predominately private Metro Suburban Blue Conference.

“Luke is our version of a Swiss army knife,” he said. “He will play a variety of positions for us. He’s a sharp kid. Luke always been an explosive football player and extremely dedicated in weight room.

“He got after it for his senior year, embracing the challenge of stepping up and leading this team. He won’t leave the field a whole lot.”

The 5-foot-10, 170-pound Gentile, a guard on the basketball team, is also capable of taking a few snaps at quarterback. He noted his experience playing both ways last season was a big advantage for his senior campaign.

“I feel a lot more comfortable with everything now,” Gentile said. “Last year I was learning the offense, but this year I know it pretty well. I’ve learned what works well. We have a lot of players returning, so we have high expectations. I’m looking forward to the season.”

After finishing with two wins last season, the Bulldogs have an uphill climb battling the likes of Bishop McNamara (12-2), Aurora Christian (8-4), St. Francis (8-3) and defending Class 4A state champion IC Catholic Prep (14-0).

Curtin emphasized the positivity throughout the program as a key building block that could lead to more victories in coming seasons.

“I think we’re much experienced team this year than last year,” Curtin said. “We have a pretty good feel what we’re going at and pretty solid team speed. Last year we had to rely on our younger players, but they received a great education in what it takes to compete at the varsity level.

“We certainly have the talent to achieve our team goals, which obviously equates to an exciting and successful season.”

RIVERSIDE-BROOKFIELD BULLDOGS

Coach: Brendan Curtin

2018 Record: 2-7

Players to watch

Luke Gentile sr. WR/LB

Eduardo Pena sr. RB/LB

Chris Doherty sr. RB/DB

Brandon Aguilar sr. OL/DL

2019 schedule

Aug. 30 at Morton 7:30 p.m.

Sept. 6 at Wauconda 7 p.m.