CARTERVILLE — Jake Baumgarte was pretty busy during his days as a Herrin Tiger. Baumgarte played four sports–football and soccer (co-op with Carterville) in the fall, basketball in the winter, and tennis in the spring. As he heads off to college, Baumgarte has narrowed his focus to just football, and he will do so at SIU.

Baumgarte will walk on as a kicker for the Salukis. He was an IHSA Academic All-State Selection and actually earned an academic scholarship to SIU. That academic scholarship helped open a door to walk on to the football team.

Baumgarte said he will study civil engineering. Classes start next week. Now it’s just a waiting game due to the pandemic to see when he’ll be able to work out with his new team.