Pat Disabato – Page 18

Northern Illinois linebacker Kyle Pugh (57), who graduated from Bloom, celebrates a defensive stop against Buffalo during the MAC championship game at Ford Field on Friday, Nov. 30, 2018.

Springing into action: Northern Illinois linebacker Kyle Pugh, a Bloom graduate, wants to use fall football delay by MAC to get fully healthy

August 13, 2020 at 10:41 a.m.

Northern Illinois linebacker Kyle Pugh has had to overcome more adversity than most during his college career. The 6-foot, 220-pound redshirt senior ruptured his bicep tendon in 2017. He had...

Reavis football coach Tim Zasada, who's also the girls basketball coach, walks the sidelines during a game on Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2020.

Disabato: Monday turns into a whole new ballgame as Southland coaches realize ‘it’s strange without football at this time’

August 11, 2020 at 11:37 a.m.

It was a different kind of Monday for Reavis football coach Tim Zasada. For the first time in his 16-year career, Zasada enjoyed a good night's sleep before the official...

Lemont celebrates winning the Class 3A baseball state championship on Saturday, June 11, 2016.

Disabato: IHSA drops the ball, literally, when it comes to giving ‘summer’ sports a fair shake with truncated schedule. But there’s still hope.

July 31, 2020 at 2:05 p.m.

No sooner Wednesday had the Illinois High School Association unveiled a modified schedule for the upcoming 2020-21 season did the complaining start. Much of the angst was directed at the...

After tearing his meniscus in football, Tinley Park’s Thomas Fitzgibbons gave his all to be ready for a baseball season that never was: ‘To have that taken away was heartbreaking.’

July 30, 2020 at 12:10 p.m.

It has been said that time heals all wounds. The high school baseball season was canceled four months ago due to the coronavirus pandemic. But the pain of not playing...

Marian Catholic coach Mike Taylor oversees the action against Benet during a game on Friday, Feb. 7, 2020.

Disabato: Is the time right for Illinois to add a shot clock to high school basketball? Area coaches weigh in on the hot topic.

July 28, 2020 at 11:49 a.m.

Every few years, there's talk of bringing a shot clock to Illinois high school basketball. That talk, however, has never resulted in action. A group of approximately 20 coaches from...

Great Lakes Valley Conference postpones majority of fall sports season until second semester: ‘I’m happy they’re trying to give us something.’

July 27, 2020 at 5:34 p.m.

Christine Szymanski, a senior midfielder on the Lewis women's soccer team, found a bright side to the Great Lakes Valley Conference moving most of its fall sports seasons to the...

Thornton coach Dontrell Jackson paces the sideline during a game on Friday, Sept. 20, 2019.

Disabato: Fred Gandy says ‘failure is not an option,’ gets ready to tackle the challenges of being Thornton’s head football coach

July 24, 2020 at 2:28 p.m.

In the late 1990s, when Fred Gandy was a sophomore at a local private high school, he attended a Thornton football game on a Saturday afternoon. Gandy and his mother...

Mount Carmel's Tony Livermore makes his way up the field after catching a pass against Loyola during a game on Friday, Sept. 21, 2019.

‘It’s literally a Cinderella story’: Mount Carmel’s Tony Livermore satisfies childhood dream by committing to play baseball for Northwestern

July 23, 2020 at 1:02 p.m.

When Mount Carmel's Tony Livermore was 6 years old, he was watching football on TV with his father. Northwestern and Missouri were playing. One thing in particular stood out. "I...

Former Eisenhower football coach Travis Moore yells instructions to his players during a game against Richards on Friday, Oct. 19, 2018.

Disabato: Bill Bylsma’s tenure as Eisenhower’s football coach was short but sweet. In four seasons, ‘he did a great job of bringing people together.’

July 21, 2020 at 1:39 p.m.

Bill Bylsma's tenure as Eisenhower's football coach was brief — just four seasons. But don't confuse quantity with quality, folks. Bylsma, who died on July 8 at the age of...

Homewood-Flossmoor's Chad Readey pulls down a rebound against Maine South during a game on Monday, Dec. 23, 2019.

Disabato: With stunning SAT score and oozing two-sport potential, H-F role player Chad Readey is a risk worth taking for colleges

July 10, 2020 at 10:23 p.m.

Homewood-Flossmoor's Chad Readey is contemplating taking the SAT again. It's not that the rising senior is unhappy with his 1460 score. It ranks in the 97 percentile of 2.13 million...

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