Vernon Hills football players Giacomo and Giuseppe Urso aren’t twins.

The brothers feel like they are, though.

“Our bond is so tight,” Giuseppe Urso said. “It’s like our brains are connected. We’re always …”

“We’re always on the same page,” Giacomo Urso said, finishing the thought.

Giacomo Urso, 17, is a senior. Giuseppe Urso, 15, is a sophomore.

“Despite the age gap, we’re almost the same,” Giuseppe Urso said.

What else do they have in common?

“We both love to hit,” Giuseppe Urso said. “The Urso brothers love to hit.”

Those Urso brothers are key players for the Cougars (2-5, 1-2) this season too.

The 5-foot-9, 185-pound Giacomo Urso, who describes himself as “powerful,” is an inside linebacker and H-back. An all-conference pick in the Central Suburban North last season, he was leading the team with 56 tackles, including three for loss, before sitting out Vernon Hills’ loss against Maine West on Friday.

The 5-8, 165-pound Giuseppe Urso plays running back primarily and emphasizes his speed and shiftiness. He has rushed for a team-high 376 yards on 65 carries.

The older brother is often blocking for his younger brother on run plays.

“I notice that when Giacomo knows that a play is going to his brother, there’s more motivation to throw a good block,” Vernon Hills coach Bill Bellecomo said. “You can’t teach that. Being brothers, he’s going to give everything he has.”

Giacomo and Giuseppe Urso are the youngest of six siblings. They shared a room for 11 years.

“We had two beds really close to each other,” Giacomo Urso said. “We’d always stay up late, talking and watching TV together. It didn’t get annoying until high school. Once I got to high school, I was like, ‘OK, I want to sleep in my own room.’”

They didn’t play tackle football until Giacomo Urso’s freshman year, saying their mother, Maria, had been opposed to the idea.

“I had to do a lot of convincing,” Giacomo Urso said. “And it paid off.”

Giuseppe Urso played for Vernon Hills’ freshman/sophomore team last year and wanted to join Giacomo on varsity this season.

“I knew that wouldn’t come too easy,” Giuseppe Urso said. “I had to work for it.”

He walked into his coach’s office at the end of his freshman season to announce his intentions.

“He said, ‘Coach, I’m gonna earn a spot on varsity,’” Bellecomo said. “I said, ‘OK, well, good luck to you.’ He came out this summer with that goal and worked really hard to accomplish it.”

Lake County News-Sun

Twice-weekly

News updates from Lake County delivered every Monday and Wednesday

Giuseppe Urso earned not only a varsity spot but also a prominent role as he and Giacomo became teammates.

“I didn’t think of Giuseppe as a teammate,” Giacomo Urso said. “I just thought of him as my brother, rooting for him to do well. When he makes a play, I see it as my own.”

Giuseppe Urso said Giacomo’s presence drives him.

“Every time I suit up, knowing that I’m playing with my brother, it motivates me more,” Giuseppe Urso said. “It puts more discipline in me. I know going out onto that field that I have someone I can trust.”

Giacomo Urso indicated their drive is common in their family.

“Our competitiveness runs throughout the family, whether it’s in sports or it’s our parents and siblings running a business,” he said. “Whatever the passion is, we’re passionate about what we do. Our family loves to be the best.”

Sam Brief is a freelance reporter for the News-Sun.