Mateo Casillas to play baseball at Southern Illinois-Edwardsville
By FRED KRONER
Few high school athletes have faced the choices that were available to Mateo Casillas as he embarked on his senior year at Mahomet-Seymour.
Should he pursue a collegiate career in football, wrestling or baseball?
“I had interest from colleges at all levels in all three sports,” Casillas said.
There was a good reason that he was a marquee recruit.
As a junior, Casillas was an All-Apollo Conference first-team selection in football (as a defensive lineman) for an 11-1 team that reached the Class 5A semifinals. He was fifth on the team with 53 tackles.
He was also an All-Conference first-team pick in baseball as a junior, primarily as a right fielder who also pitched. He batted .354 and has a career batting average of .358.
In wrestling as a junior, he won 57 of 59 matches, placed third at the IHSA state tournament and – once again – was an All-Conference first-teamer as a 195-pounder. He has a career record of 121-15, with 51 pins. As a sophomore, Casillas was the state runner-up at 195.
At 5-foot-11, 205 pounds (that’s his football playing weight), before Casillas could eliminate colleges, he had to start the process by eliminating sports.
Picking his favorite sport wasn’t an option.
“For me, whatever sport I am competing in is the one that I favor,” Casillas said. “Right now, I am 100 percent all in on football and making a run at a state championship.”
The 6-0 Bulldogs play their regular-season home-finale on Friday (Oct. 7) against Taylorville.
Football, however, was the first sport Casillas crossed off of his list. Then, ultimately, he dropped wrestling from his list for the future.
“Making the decision to play baseball was a tough one,” Casillas said. “I enjoy playing each of my sports for various reasons, but knew that playing at a high level would require me to choose one.
“This decision was one that came with many discussions with my parents (Dan and Kris) and coaches. I knew my best opportunity was going to be in baseball and wrestling. Ultimately, my love for the game of baseball is what led me to pick it over the others.”
When he graduates from M-S in May, 2023, Casillas is expected to have 10 varsity letters: four in wrestling, three in football and three in baseball. His freshman year of baseball was canceled due to COVID-19.
“I really love all aspects of each of the sports that I participate in,” Casillas said. “My decision to choose baseball was based on my love for the game and my ability to continue to develop in the sport.
“I also feel that baseball gives me more opportunity after the collegiate level.”
When the first segment of his process concluded, Casillas started considering colleges.
He recently gave a verbal commitment to Southern Illinois-Edwardsville (which he also visited for wrestling). He also looked into Beloit College (where each of his parents were letter winners), Eastern Illinois University (for baseball), Millikin University (for all three sports) and Monmouth College (for football).
Unofficially, he was able to check out numerous other colleges.
“My travel baseball teams played at many college campuses, which helped me see numerous schools and facilities throughout the country,” Casillas said.
After making what he thought was a final decision, Casillas had second thoughts. It wasn’t the school that he was questioning.
“I had been in contact with the wrestling coach at SIU-E and had a visit to the campus after high school wrestling season (in 2022),” Casillas said. “After my visit, I really liked the atmosphere, location and feel of the campus and coaches.
“A few months later, I had a home visit with the wrestling coach and was pretty confident that I was going to be wrestling at SIU-E.”
He didn’t want to make a hasty decision, however.
“I decided to explore all of my options,” Casillas said. “I went to several high school showcases and received offers, but none felt like the right fit for me.
“After talking with my parents and coaches, I decided to go on an SIU-E showcase in late August since I liked the campus so much during my original visit.
“After the showcase, the coaches messaged and wanted to make an offer for me to play (baseball) for SIU-E. I felt like this was the best opportunity for me to continue my baseball career and academics. I have always been, and always will be, drawn to wrestling, but I know that baseball is where I have the most potential.”
Casillas committed even though he recognized that as he continues to excel during his senior year, other scholarship offers could be extended.
“I’m not really concerned about possibly missing out on a better scholarship because I feel that SIU-E is the best fit for me at this time,” he said. “I also am not sure that there are many scholarships available for 2023 graduates as several schools are shifting to recruiting athletes from the transfer portal or the next graduation year.”
The impacts from COVID-19 – which took the country by storm, starting in March, 2020 – are still being felt by teen-aged athletes.
“The recruiting process definitely is not an easy one,” Casillas said. “Due to COVID, extra years of eligibility and the transfer portal, the opportunities for student-athletes became smaller.
“Since two of my sports have extremely limited scholarships (baseball and wrestling), I knew that it was going to be a very difficult process to get a D-1 scholarship.
“It was sometimes difficult to process why and how coaches were recruiting when I felt like I was performing well.”
His parents helped provide a strong support system. Dan Casillas played football for four years at Beloit College. Kris Casillas played volleyball for four years at Beloit and softball for one season.
“From the very beginning, my parents told me that I needed to focus on the things I could control, rather than stressing about getting a scholarship,” Mateo Casillas said. “They would tell me that only a small percentage of high school athletes will play college sports and there would be an opportunity if I continued to work hard and improve.
“I knew I needed to remember to trust the process and people who were closest to me.”
Casillas expects to contend for playing time his first year on campus.
“I think that I will have the opportunity to compete for a starting position my freshman year,” Casillas said. “I have been told by coaches they need left-handed batters and outfielders. I fit both of those needs.
“I see my strengths as my work ethic and hitting the ball with power. As for areas of improvement, I need to be more consistent at the plate and drive the ball to all areas of the field.”
He plans to major in construction management and possibly minor in either kinesiology or exercise science.
“In 10 years, I could see myself owning a construction or landscaping business or even being a Turf Management manager for a professional organization,” Casillas said. “I know that I like to work outside and prefer to complete projects. I also have thought about opening my own fitness gym or coaching in the future.”
The desire to compete at the collegiate level has been with Casillas for years.
“As a little kid, I would watch baseball, football, and even wrestling on TV or going to state competitions or collegiate games,” Casillas said. “I would talk to my parents about how cool it would be to perform in front of so many people and to compete on national television.
“They would also always tell me that it would take a lot of work and a lot of dedication, but they always told me it was possible. I truly never thought about which sport I would play, but rather what division I would be playing in.”
Though he didn’t watch them during their glory years, his parents were still his role models.
“I wanted to be just like them,” Mateo Casillas said. “One experience that made the biggest impression on me was the NCAA College World Series.
“I enjoyed seeing the atmosphere and level of play during the CWS. The College World Series games was probably when my desire to play collegiately began to grow stronger.”
Even as a three-sport high school athlete, Casillas found time to play for competitive travel teams in baseball, starting as a 9-year-old. It wasn’t just a time for fun and games.
“I took my training more seriously than most my age, putting in countless hours in the gym or batting cage,” he said. “As I entered high school, I knew that I wanted to have a great high school career, break records, and leave a lasting legacy at Mahomet-Seymour.”
His college ambitions seemed to become more realistic two years ago.
“It was at the end of my sophomore year that more colleges became interested in me and started contacting me,” he said. “During that time, I knew that I had the potential to play collegiate sports.”
High school athletes who participate in multiple sports often have a tremendous opportunity when they reach college and specialize in one sport.
“By being a three-sport athlete, I learned many valuable lessons, but do believe that focusing on one sport in college will help me to excel even more,” Casillas said. “I am accustomed to training and competing at a high level all year long, so that will help me adjust to the schedule of a collegiate athlete.
“Being able to focus on baseball will be a challenge, but one I look forward to.”
He recognizes there will be challenges ahead as he relocates about 155 miles away from Mahomet to Edwardsville.
“I think that the transition will be hard, but any college transition is hard for a kid and their family,” Mateo Casillas said. “I feel like after the first couple of weeks I will get the hang of it and the transition will be easy.
“The hard thing will be not seeing my family. My family is so important to me, and I am very close with them. On the other hand, I feel like I will appreciate them more because I don’t get to see them as much as I normally would.
“I will also miss all of my home-cooked meals, but hope that they can make their way to me while at SIU-E.”
Casillas said there are too many people who have impacted his life and career to thank them individually.
“I would just like to thank God for blessing me with my gift and putting me in the situation that I am in today,” he said. “I would also like to thank my family, friends, coaches, and mentors that have helped me achieve one of my biggest lifelong goals of becoming a collegiate athlete and competing at the Division I level.”
