New Trier’s Cremascoli earns honor for work on and off the field

In typical quarterback fashion, Nevan Cremascoli was throwing to those around him April 20. 

Instead of footballs, though, the New Trier High School senior was tossing thanks and praise while accepting a prestigious Scholar-Athlete Award from the National Football Foundation. 

During a speech, Cremascoli thanked coaches, teammates and family members for supporting him while contributing on and off the field as a student-athlete. 

“It means the world to me to be recognized in this way,” he said at the ceremony. “And I am so incredibly grateful for this honor today.”

Cremascoli is one of eight Illinois recipients of the Scholar-Athlete Award program, which returned after a two-year hiatus.

Cremascoli enrolled in New Trier as a sophomore when his family moved to the district. He became the starting quarterback for the football team, while also competing in volleyball and basketball. 

In his final season, Cremascoli — a team captain — passed for 2,174 yards and 18 touchdowns, while running for six more scores. He was an All-Conference selection. 

New Trier head football coach Brian Doll nominated Cremascoli for the award, the first time Doll felt compelled to do so, he said. 

“I think back to the experiences of having you on varsity; you are in exceptional company, not just from your performances on the field, but the way you acted, the way you treated others throughout this entire journey you’ve had at New Trier,” Doll said to Cremascoli during the ceremony April 20. 

Off the field, Cremascoli carries a 4.2 GPA and is a member of the National Honor Society. Cremascoli also helped found the club Leaders for Change, as a way for student-athletes to give back to their community through mentor programs and service work. 

Cremascoli also co-founded T1 Athletes, an organization that raises awareness about and offers resources to athletes with Type 1 diabetes, such as the founders: Cremascoli, Charles Olges and Patrick Heneghan.

Cremascoli gave plenty of credit to his mother, Kari Cremascoli, who is the superintendent of Wilmette Public Schools, and other family members for putting an emphasis on education and community service.

In the fall, he will bring those attributes to Northern Illinois University, where he plans to study biomedical engineering.

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