Al-Jassim sets 2 single-season records and 5 career records and Palacio sets 3 school records in 2024
By Jim Beers
CHESTER – Friday February 14 was a special day for most Americans as most people celebrate Valentine’s Day by to demonstrate their love for loved ones.
At Chester High School it was also a night for exciting YellowJacket Basketball and the recognition of two very special CHS Football Players who set numerous records this 2024 football season.
The YellowJacket Basketball team hosted long time rivals, the Sparta Bulldogs, in a Cahokia Conference, Illinois Division game in Colbert Gymnasium on Rocky Bridges Court. The JV YellowJackets won their game by a score of 43-38 and the Varsity YellowJackets won their game by a score of 49-43, to improve to 16-14 overall and 5-4 in the conference.
In addition to exciting and successful YellowJacket Basketball, the Chester High School Cheerleaders concluded their 2025 Kids Camp with a pre-game performance by all 120 participants of their camp which was titled, “We Love Cheer”. That performance was a crowd favorite and brought in approximately 200 additional fans to Colbert Gym.
A third highlight of the evening was a special presentation to Mike Lochhead, Stadium Announcer for YellowJackets Basketball, for his dedication as announcer for the past 31 years. CHS Principal Jeremy Blechle made the presentation which received a well-deserved round of applause from a packed house at CHS.
As if these special events weren’t enough, for some Jacket fans, the highlight of the evening was the recognition of two very special Chester High School YellowJacket Football Players, Zain Al-Jassim and Devante Palacio. Both are seniors and for the past for years have given CHS Football fans tons of enjoyment and excitement on the gridiron!
Both of these outstanding gentleman broke school records in football including School records, Single-Season records, and Career records for outstanding performances throughout their 4-years at Chester High School.
Zain Al-Jassim
Zain Al-Jassim, a 6’1”, 215 lb. YellowJacket quarterback and defensive end, set two single-season records and five career passing records. These records were previously set by former CHS quarterbacks Curt Clendenin and Nick Meyer.
Single-Season Records
- Zain broke his own previous Single-Season record of 1,868 Passing Yards with a 2024 Single-Season record of 2,151 passing yards
- Al-Jassim also set the CHS record for Single-Season Passing Touchdowns with 25 touchdowns
Career Passing Records
Zain also set five career passing records including the following:
- Career Passing Attempts with 554
- Career Passing Completions with 315
- Career Passing Completion Percentage of 57%
- Career Passing Touchdowns with 49
- Career Passing Yards with 5,033
Al-Jassim Awards
Al-Jassim further earned the following post-season team, Cahokia Conference, Illinois Division, and All-State Awards:
- YellowJacket Team “Elite Warrior Award” for hard work, being a best teammate, and being of MVP material.
- Offensive All-Conference “Player of the Year” for the Cahokia Conference, Illinois Division.
- “All-South” Football Award
- “All-State” Football ‘Honorable Mention’
Devante Palacio
Devante Palacio, a 6’3”, 195 lb. wide receiver and defensive back set three school records that were previously set by former CHS Football standout Jim Howie.
Reception Records
- Devante set a new CHS Career Reception Record with 118 receptions
- Palacio also set a new career record for Reception Yards with 2,110 yards
- Devante further set a new record for Receiving Touchdowns with 21 Touchdowns.
Palacio Awards
Devante Palacio earned the following team and Cahokia Conference, Illinois Division awards for 2024:
- YellowJacket “Offensive Weapon Award”
- Cahokia Conference, Illinois Division “ Offensive All-Conference” Award
- Cahokia Conference, Illinois Division “Defensive All-Conference” Award
- “All-South” Football Award
Together, Zain Al-Jassim and Devante Palacio helped the 2024 Chester High School YellowJacket Football Team win the 2024 Cahokia Conference, Illinois Division Championship. During their tenure at CHS the YellowJackets won the title three of the last four seasons.
This year the Jackets had an undefeated 5-0 record in the Cahokia Conference, Illinois Division and had an overall 2024 record of 9 wins and just 2 losses.
Chester also made the 2024 IHSA Class 2A State Football Playoffs with a first round, 40-35, win over Westville. The win improved Chester to 9-1 overall and advanced them to the 2024 “Sweet-16” of the playoffs.
It took the No. 2 Maroa Forsythe Trojans to finally eliminate the Jackets, 28-7, in Round 2 of the playoffs. This was the 7th year in-a-row that Chester qualified for the playoffs and Al-Jassim and Palacio were instrumental in that accomplishment.
CHS Head Coach Billy Belton presented both Al-Jassim and Palacio with autographed footballs in recognition of their outstanding accomplishments as YellowJacket Football players. Both players received standing ovations from both Chester and Sparta fans at the conclusion of the recognition ceremony prior to the CHS vs Sparta Basketball game.
Billy Belton, CHS Had Football Coach, presents senior quarterback, Zain Al-Jassim with an autographed commemorative football to honor him for his outstanding Career as a YellowJacket Football player. Jim Beers Photo
Billy Belton, Head CHS Football Coach, presents CHS Wide Receiver Devante Palacio with a commemorative autographed football in honor of his outstanding carer as a YellowJacket football player. Jim Beers Photo
Shown here, Chester YellowJacket Football players Zain Al-Jassim (left) and Devante Palacio (right) are presented with commemorative autographed footballs during a special ceremony prior to the start of the February 14 basketball game when Chester hosted Sparta in a Cahokia Conference matchup. Both Al-Jassim and Palacio set several school records over their 4-year career at CHS. Making the presentations was Billy Belton (center) CHS Head Football coach. Jim Beers Photo