The new coronavirus normal: An inside look at Chicago Christian athletes’ Stage 1 workout

While some programs were still working this week on plans that would meet school district and local guidelines, Chicago Christian was ready to get out of the gate fast.

SHARE The new coronavirus normal: An inside look at Chicago Christian athletes’ Stage 1 workout
Chicago Christian coach Sean O’Connor waits for football practice to begin.

Chicago Christian coach Sean O’Connor waits for football practice to begin.

Kevin Tanaka/For the Sun-Times

No high fives. No spotters in the weight room. No crowding around the water fountain.

Will the new normal for prep football workouts take some getting used to?

“It’s gonna take a lot of getting used to,” Chicago Christian junior Tony Barclay said when the Knights resumed strength and conditioning work on Monday. “But you know, we’ll adapt, do what we have to do just to get back as a team and get back in shape.”

On June 5, the Illinois High School Association released long-awaited guidance on how high school sports could resume team activities after being idled since mid-March by the coronavirus pandemic.

Under Phase 3 of Illinois’ reopening plan, prep teams are allowed to do strength and conditioning with the now-familiar limitations: small groups, social distancing, masks where possible.

While some programs were still working this week on plans that would meet school district and local guidelines, the Knights were ready to get out of the gate fast.

Coach Nick Cook and his staff had a blueprint ready that featured five days of training weekly in June — three days of strength and conditioning and two days of speed work. The sessions are open to all Knights athletes, not just football players, though this is the main summer focus for Cook’s players.

Before going to the weight room, Jake Kracinski uses hand sanitizer at the Chicago Christian football practice.

Before going to the weight room, Jake Kracinski uses hand sanitizer at the Chicago Christian football practice.

Kevin Tanaka/For the Sun-Times

He rolled out the plan for students on Saturday, the day after the IHSA announcement, expecting around 50 of Chicago Christian’s 313 students would respond. Eighty did.

“To announce something on a Friday afternoon and conduct signups the next morning and to have 80 kids flood the thing and force us to add more sessions — it just communicates they’re really hungry,” Cook said.

Senior wide receiver/defensive back Jake Kracinski can vouch for that.

“I think everyone’s done with working out by themselves, not having anyone to support them and get them ready to go,” he said. “I think we’re all just excited to be back with each other.”

The sessions are designed around the state’s COVID-19 guidelines. They’re limited to a maximum of nine athletes and one coach, and start with a few minutes of stretching and light warmup in the school’s main gym.

Then it’s downstairs to the basement weight room. There, athletes follow workouts on a smartphone app with a coach available to answer questions, provide motivation and stand by with a spray bottle of disinfectant to keep the equipment sanitized.

Through it all, athletes are spaced apart and stay that way, taking breaks to rehydrate with their personal water bottles.

Coach Sean O’Connor watches Chicago Christian football players during workout in Palos Heights.

Coach Sean O’Connor watches Chicago Christian football players during workout in Palos Heights.

Kevin Tanaka/For the Sun-Times

The sessions are over in 45 minutes and the process repeats itself through the day with different groups of athletes.

Barclay, a wide receiver/defensive back, likes having some structure back in his workouts again. He was keeping fit using dumbbells and a treadmill at home, but it wasn’t the same.

“We’ve still been doing workouts [during the lockdown], but just to be back with some teammates, some of the coaches, just to push us — it’s a lot better than just being on your own by yourself,” Barclay said.

For now, the Knights and other football teams can only do these strength and conditioning workouts under the IHSA’s Stage 1 of return-to-play plan. That’s fine with Cook, who typically has used June for that kind of work anyway.

The big questions are if and when teams can move on to the next step, which would be sport-specific workouts in larger groups.

Chicago Christian always takes a week off from all activities around July 4, and that’s the plan this year as well. After that, who knows? 

Cook is preparing for three possible scenarios: moving ahead to Illinois’ Phase 4, which would allow larger group activities; remaining in Phase 3 with the current small-group activities; and, worst case, moving back to Phase 2 with athletes only working out remotely on their own.

Beyond that is the question of whether enough progress will be made in containing coronavirus to have a football season this fall. Does Cook expect to be on the sidelines coaching come August?

“I do,” he said. “It’s been back and forth ... about the whole thing. But I can’t help but lean more in that direction now that we’re actually getting to do some activity.”

Kracinski is hopeful as well after seeing what life without sports looks like.

“It was definitely a big part of my life that was taken away during quarantine,” he said. “I personally have been missing football a lot. So anything football-related, I’m ready for it.”

The Latest
Steele held the Rangers to one run through 4 2/3 innings.
The Cubs opened the season against the reigning World Series champions in Texas.
Murder charges have been filed against suspect Christian I. Soto, 22. Investigators haven’t determined a motive for the attacks, but they say Soto had been smoking marijuana before the rampage.
To celebrate the historic coinciding of the emerging of two broods, artists can adopt a cicada for free in exchange for decorating it and displaying it publicly. Others can purchase the cicadas for $75.