An inauspicious prep career with a two-year stop at College of DuPage under former head coach Matt Foster has placed Raymond Vohasek into position at the top level of college football.
 
Vohasek, a McHenry native, is a starting nose tackle for the University of North Carolina Tar Heels. What he has accomplished in his two seasons at UNC proves that junior college football is an avenue to big-time college football for those with untapped potential and a boatload of determination and grit.
 
"No doubt, I'm not here without the time spent at COD,'' said Vohasek, who is in his junior season for the Tar Heels. "It's one of the reasons why I'm so grateful for all of the opportunities I've had by playing college football. I learned about preparation, discipline. Basically, I give Coach Foster and his staff all the credit for where I'm at in my career.
 
"It was the best decision to attend and play at COD.''
 
Vohasek has played a critical role in head coach Mack Brown's revitalization of the Carolina program. He has started in eight of UNC's nine games, and contributed a career-high three solo tackles in last week's 31-17 loss to No. 2 Notre Dame.
 
For the year, the 6-foot-2 ¾ inch, 310-pounder has 23 tackles with 2 ½ sacks as UNC (6-3 overall) prepares for tomorrow's home game against Western Carolina. He has played in 20 of the Tar Heels' 22 games in his two seasons.
 
The nose tackle position is an unsung role that perfectly fits with Vohasek's temperament. More often than not, it's a one-on-one battle against the center, where strength and leverage are at stake.
 
"It really comes down to the fact that I just have to take care of business and let my teammates do their thing,'' he said.
 
That doesn't surprise Foster one bit.
 
"That's a position where you won't get the stats or the accolades,'' he said. "But that's all right for Ray. He's a complete team-oriented guy who just wants to win. Others can have the limelight.
 
"Any team at any level wants a guy like Ray."

Vohasek was an unknown prospect at McHenry High School before attending COD. He said he played "about six positions" his senior year and helped his team reach the state playoffs for the first time in nine seasons.

Foster said Vohasek was COD's top player in 2017 and was the only freshman to start on defense. He led the Chaps in both sacks and tackles for loss, but then sat out 2018 due to a shoulder injury that required surgery.
 
"Ray showed enough good things on tape as a freshman that proved he could play big-time college football,'' Foster said. "It made a lot of sense for Ray to sit out that season, but it's not an easy thing to sit out a year. To his credit, he took his rehabilitation very seriously, and he showed an unbelievable amount of discipline. He was determined.''
 
That offseason also allowed him to concentrate on his academics and in turn, he earned his associate's degree.
 
"I was set-up very well by a host of dedicated staff in academics,'' said Vohasek, who is on schedule to earn his bachelor's degree in communications next fall. "Carolina is known for its academics, and the assistance I received at COD has been instrumental in helping me succeed in the classroom.''
 
That Vohasek was recruited by North Carolina makes for an interesting twist. He originally was recruited by UNC's former coaching staff, led by then-head coach Larry Fedora.

Carolina maintained its interest in Vohasek as Brown, who was the head coach at UNC  from 1988-97, returned as head coach in 2019 after 16 seasons at Texas (1998-2013) in which the Longhorns were a national power, capped by their BCS National Championship in 2005 and national championship appearance in 2009.
 
"There are all sorts of five-star recruits who now consider Carolina because of Coach Brown,'' Vohasek said. "For me, the work never ends. I want to keep my starting position because there's always someone behind you who wants the job. It keeps me hungry.''
 
A hunger in which COD helped feed.