Nick Hill Signs With Green Bay Packers
</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[Nick Hill, the 26-year-old former quarterback for the SIU Salukis--inspired by the career of NFL great Kurt Warner--signed a three-year contract with the Green Bay Packers in the NFL today.
Nick signed the contract at 10 a.m. in the Packers' front office at Lambeau Field and spoke to the Du Quoin Evening Call from the airport in Green Bay before heading back to Du Quoin.
He will be back in Du Quoin late today before heading back home in Orlando.
The call came from Green Bay's front office on Tuesday, January 10 after Hill's marriage on January 7 to wife Alicia (Johnson) , a health educator and head volleyball coach in a Florida school system.
"I feel blessed for someone to give me an opportunity and it feels good," said Hill, the son of Mr. and Mrs. Cha Hill of Du Quoin.
"I will start out on the 80-man roster at Green Bay. I will attend a mini-camp, then the training camp," he said. "The Packers will evaluate me every day and I will be on the roster through the pre-season. The Packers will then cut the roster to 53 by the time the season begins," he said. "I will have to work hard."
Hill said he doesn't currently have an agent and signed the contract himself. "My wife is obviously excited," he said. At this point in my career I don't care if I have to compete against 10 quarterbacks." Hill did not disclose the contract terms, but said those terms will hinge on him making the final cut.
He said, "The career of Kurt Warner has kept me motivated the whole time and it means more to me that I have to do this the hard way." I think I have proven myself and it's not just about the arm. It's more about the accuracy," he said.
Nick Hill's career began at VanMetre Field in Du Quoin. He transitioned quickly to Saluki stardom and has honed his skills as a star quarterback in the Arena League in Orlando and Tampa Bay areas where he has certainly proven himself.
Hill attended the Du Quoin High School where he was a three-year starter. He played basketball as well. As a junior, he was First Team All-State in basketball, averaging 26.7 points and 6 rebounds a game. As a senior he was First Team All State again, averaging 22.7 points with eight rebounds a game. In football, he was a First Team All State and First Team All Conference selection after passing for 1,451 yards and 19 touchdowns. He became the school's first 4,000-career yard passer in 35 years, the first since former major league pitcher and Du Quoin alum Don Stanhouse in 1968.
Hill originally attended Western Kentucky University where he played on the basketball team. He redshirted during his first year at SIU after transferring from Western Kentucky. As a sophomore he completed 16 of 22 passes for 288 yards and three touchdowns. As a junior, he started all 13 games and ranked second in the conference and seventh in the nation in passing efficiency. He completed 121 of 196 passes for 1,721 yards with 15 touchdowns. He was the team's third-leading rusher with 91 carries for 382 yards and six touchdowns.
He was a first team Gateway Conference All Academic player. As a senior, he led the conference in passing yards per game with 226.8, total offense with 252.3 and ranked second in passing efficiency which was also third in the nation. He set school single season records in passing (3,175), touchdowns (28), completions (258) and attempts (361). He was named a First Team All Conference, Gateway All-Academic and Sports Network All-American. He was a nominee for the Walter Payton Award.
His academic major was in special education and clearly his life has been guided by making lives better for young people. His professional career includes going unselected in the 2008 NFL draft, but he signed a three-year contract as an undrafted free agent for the Chicago Bears.
He later joined the professional Arena Football League in 2009 Hill signed with Orlando in 2010 and more recently Tampa Bay for the 2012 season.
In the meantime he has a proven track record in the utility industry as a representative for free market electrical energy broker Select Choice.