Bishop Noll senior Julian Ramirez has always felt like a football player.
For three-plus seasons, he has shown it. But for the past year, the 5-foot-10, 200-pound linebacker has really shown it.
Ramirez didn’t play the sport until his freshman year.
“I’d always been really interested in it,” he said. “I would watch it a little bit. But my mom was always worried about me playing. She didn’t want me to get hurt.”
Ramirez, who leads the Warriors (1-2) in tackles, began playing soccer in second grade. As a defender, he played the position with a certain edge.
“I was always physical,” he said. “I was pretty big in comparison. Whenever the ball came my way, it was just so much of a size difference. I don’t want to say I was better. I just had an advantage over a lot of people. That helped my play.
“Soccer was a lot of running. Playing defense, I was never a big scorer. I never got that love for it like that. It was more like something I could do with my friends that I enjoyed doing.”
But Ramirez wanted to play football.
“As soon as I got to high school, I dropped soccer,” he said. “I was like, ‘I’m done.’ Too much running for me. I was ready to try football. I had the size. I liked the physicality of it.”
So how did Ramirez convince his mother?
“It was more just me asking over and over,” he said. “By the time I got to freshman year, I was like, ‘Mom, please.’ And she was like, ‘OK, now that you’re in high school, you can give it a try.’ From there, I just fell in love. It obviously was a lot of work. But work is what you need to get better.”
Ramirez quickly discovered he had a lot to learn.
“I remember the first day walking into a meeting, and it was like a whole new language to me,” he said. “It took a lot of time for me to understand. It was slow. I had to ask a lot of questions to the upperclassmen and the coaches. As long as I was doing that, I was learning. Little by little, toward the end of my freshman year, I had a pretty good understanding of what I needed to do, what was going on all the time and how the game worked.
“It was a lot of work. But if you’re not looking at it as work and effort, if you’re just doing it to enjoy it and have a good time and do the best you can, it’s not bad. It’s going to be hard at times. But as long as you persevere, you’re going to be good.”
Ramirez became a part-time starter during his sophomore season and then moved into a full-time role last year, when he recorded a team-high 114 tackles, 12 tackles for loss and five sacks.
A captain this season along with senior defensive end/kicker/punter Zekiel Zukley and senior center Jasyn Leal, Ramirez has 33 tackles, including three for loss.
Tyler Milby, in his second season as Bishop Noll’s coach, marveled at Ramirez’s growth.
“Freshman year, sophomore year, all I had was his sophomore film, and I was like, ‘He can do something,’” Milby said. “Then my first year, his junior year, he just took off, and he’s continued to improve and be great this year. It takes a little time to get that football knowledge, but he understands, and he’s feeling it and he just keeps improving and improving.
“He’s taken it to a whole new level this year. Last year, he was hesitant. If he didn’t see them in that hole clear, he didn’t get it. They were getting the yards. Now he’s seeing it. He’s reacting faster. He’s getting it in there before they even hit the hole. He’s showcasing his ability. When teams watch us, I’m hoping it’s like, ‘Hey, we have to circle No. 9 and make sure he doesn’t disrupt us.’”
After going 2-8 last year, the Warriors have more wins in Milby’s two seasons than in their previous nine combined. They’ve increased their roster numbers from the 30s to the 50s, and Milby said they’re still learning how to win but have already learned how to “fight” until the end of games.
Milby said Ramirez’s selection as a captain highlighted how much he means to the team. He’s the type of player and person who can help lay a foundation.
“He’s not loud,” Milby said. “He’s not screaming, rah-rah, in your face. He was voted because of how he performs on the field and in practice. He does everything the right way. All of my young linebackers want to be like Julian because he does things the right way.”
Count linebacker/running back Jeremiah Patton, a freshman with tons of potential, as part of that group. Ramirez and Patton became fast friends.
“Julian’s like my big brother,” Patton said. “That’s really my dawg. When I got here, he was letting me know what I was doing wrong. He was letting me know without getting mad. I would shoot him a text to ask him a question, and he would respond in the fullest detail. The definition of leader is Julian.
“I try to model his playing style because he perfects his craft. It really shows in games. He’ll get tackles, he’ll shed blocks, he’ll actually get to the ball, his pass drops. He really perfects his craft.”
So much so that Ramirez should have an opportunity to play in college. Milby said he got “goose bumps” recounting his “favorite memory so far this year” after the Warriors participated in a scrimmage at Calumet that also included Lake Station.
“We did awesome,” Milby said. “We played great — everyone. And as soon as we got on that bus, Julian was like, ‘Coach, can you please check your phone?’ I was like, ‘Great. Here we go. What happened.’ He sent me a screenshot of the text. I stopped that whole bus ride, made everyone dead silent, and I read that entire text out and said, ‘We’d like to officially offer you a spot here at Loras College.’ And that bus erupted for that young man. I’ve never been so hyped for a kid in my entire life.
“You look at him freshman year and think, ‘This kid isn’t going to do too much.’ Sophomore year, he’s getting better. And now it’s senior year, and that window is open for him, that door is open for him.”
Milby believes that’s just the beginning for Ramirez, who intends to study business management in college.
“Once that recruiting process really takes off in December and January, I only see more for him,” Milby said. “Right now he has straight A’s in school. He’s working to improve his GPA. He’s giving himself the best opportunity to continue.”
Milby, who spent two seasons as Calumet’s defensive coordinator after four seasons as Wheeler’s linebackers coach, is pleased to see Ramirez thrive.
“He’s one of the first people who bought into me right away here,” Milby said of Ramirez. “Linebacker is my pride and joy. I’ve been coaching varsity football for eight or nine years, and he is dominating. I’ve been fortunate to coach some great linebackers, and he is ready to be that next one.”
Especially given his path, Ramirez takes nothing for granted.
“I’m just trying to improve my game to be more valuable and more wanted,” he said. “I love football. I would love to go to college. It would be amazing. I’m just glad I can use football to get to college.
“I’m just going to keep working. Never get too much in your head. Focus on what’s in front of you, not what’s behind you or around you. Just keep your head down and keep working.”
