Three years ago, not many would have predicted Homewood-Flossmoor High School’s Cyrus Tate would materialize into a Division-I player.

One person who did have the insight to see the possibilities for Tate was H-F coach Roy Condotti, an NIU alumnus.

As a freshman at the south-suburban school, Tate did not see glamorous beginnings to his prep career.

Standing barely 6-foot-2 and weighing about 150 pounds, Tate was a hardworking starter on the Freshmen-A team, who averaged about two points a game.

“I wasn’t the best thing out there,” Tate said. “I was decent though. I started because I was tall.”

Growing four inches going into his sophomore year, Tate stood a sturdy 6-foot-6 as he was promoted to the varsity.

As a senior on a 22-1 team ranked No. 2 in the state, Tate has developed into a 6-foot-8, 230-pound menace in the post.

“There was just something about him,” said Condotti, who added that Tate is the first player he has coached who will go to NIU. “He was just a competitor. He had the long arms and the body and you knew he was going to get bigger.”

Since his humble beginnings, Tate’s attitude and confidence have changed since his freshman year.

“I’m the toughest person you’ve ever seen,” he said.