The Illinois High School Association football playoff semifinals are scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 20 and the championship games Friday, Nov. 26 and Saturday, Nov. 27. Mendez calls his last timeout. He turns his face to the right, pulls his head back and prays. He towed his friends around the neighborhood on their skateboards. The California Cool of Jared Goff But on this late July night, 30-year-old high school football coach Rob Mendez has a taste for sushi. His greatest fear was failure. This is roughly the same player-to-coach ratio on a college football roster. Rob leans forward in his chair to reach his cell phone. "Special is bulls---. The battery on Mendez's wheelchair is dead, so two Panthers push him onto the field. "Put me on your shoulder," he says. "It's just me." It doesn't lead to a good place. Aleksic, Danilo ( Fr.) Can you lift me out of my chair?" All the honorees will . But I'm 30 years old and a JV high school football coach. His jaw dropped. When the final buzzer sounds, the players and coaches line up at the 50 to shake hands. The more we talk that night the more one word keeps popping up: How. It's just me. But other than the tetra-amelia disorder, his son Rob was born a healthy baby boy. "It was just it was horrible," Bob says. Check out Bay Area safety tracker, Bay Area Life; Sundays at 6:30 p.m. on ABC7, Football coach born without arms or legs to receive Jimmy V Award for Perseverance at 2019 ESPYS, Rob Mendez accepts the 2019 Jimmy V Perseverance Award at the ESPYS on July 10. Rob would set his chin on the ledge of the next step and use that to lift his entire body. That sentiment has been followed by so many other coaches that he came across in his career. And those kids gave me the feeling that I can do anything. It gives me hope for the world." ", But those experiences come at great cost. It's just natural to just be bold and try things in life. . And because of Rob's lack of limbs, his father says he retains 30 percent more heat than someone who has arms and legs. On convenience alone, it would have been the perfect place for him to coach forever. Preston Gannaway for ESPN He towed his friends around the neighborhood on their skateboards. Eventually, he became the head coach of. "We have unfinished business.". "Where you going, man?" Prospect, IL 60056 Phone: 847-718-5200 Fax: 847-718-5224 School Web Site: phs.d214.org Enrollment: 2107 Conference (s): Mid-Suburban League Nickname (s): Knights (boys), Knights (girls) Colors: Navy Blue/Columbia Blue School Type: Public Coed County: Cook He learned how to draw and write using his mouth. Later, she would cover Rob in blankets when they went in public. For Rob, the message from his father was simple: Embrace your differences. But Rob refuses because the upper belt limits his ability to access his phone and draw plays. How could someone who had never held a football teach a freshman how to throw, tackle or block? John Hersey High School Buffalo Grove High School Elk Grove High School Glenbrook South Rolling Meadows High School Saint Viator. "It wasn't very polite or sensitive. Mendez makes a trip to a nearby shopping center for coffee. I swear. Make sense?" He's meeting me at the bar. "I couldn't follow up with more of a class act," DeBoeuf said. Mendez doesn't buy it. "Thank you," he says to me after his first sip. "Put me on your shoulder," he says. Next year you'll be back in it, believe me." His jaw dropped. "I think every parent worries about their kids when they leave this earth," Bob says. Not having arms or legs has stopped Mendez from being able to play sports or do certain jobs he has always been interested in, like being an electrician, but he always fought to find ways to be happy. With the pen, Mendez draws the X's and O's of what the play is supposed to look like and why. In fact, he will be honored at the 2019 ESPY Awards as the Jimmy V perseverance Award recipient and was on the cover of ESPN Magazine's heroes edition. Andre Jackson gets instructions from Mendez during the team's first game of the season. McAvoy has been Mendez's caretaker for the past six years. Blood runs everywhere. But coaches on his staff says he only used that as an opportunity to teach and motivate once again. It took him more than a half hour - sometimes two steps up, one step down -- but he did it. Holding court, triggering laughs and helping people realize for a few minutes that a man in a wheelchair without arms and legs is just like anyone else. It isn't about what the players did right or wrong or what they need to clean up before the next game. High School North Kansas City . It has given him a life otherwise inaccessible. His father has long wished that Rob would wear an upper belt as well as the one that wraps around his waist. That's what I've realized over the years.". "It didn't take long for me to figure out that alcohol is not the answer." Taking a bath. Thats how I feel in my chair. Only football coach requests will be accepted. But after losing the season opener to Santa Clara, his Panthers won seven games in a row. "It's just me." For the past six years, Mike McAvoy has been Rob Mendez's caretaker, roommate and friend, each morning helping him with everything from taking a bath and brushing his teeth to getting dressed and eating breakfast. "This was confirmation that you know what, I'm doing OK," he says. I can work with people. "If I can go out there and power through four or five hours, then I'm OK.", Says McAvoy: "That's just him. "We live and die with each other," he says. Holding court, triggering laughs and helping people realize for a few minutes that a man in a wheelchair without arms and legs is just like anyone else. As the clock approaches 11 p.m., he looks at his empty glass and asks for another drink. McAvoy has been Mendez's caretaker for the past six years. In high school, his friends organized a 32-team Madden tournament. He's meeting me at the bar. "I've been getting messages on Twitter . Most days Mendez has chronic neck, back and shoulder pain. Prospect Men's Cross Country and Track and Field @PHSKnightsXCTF Feb 12 Varsity winners from last night Tuchner - 8.33 55mHH Balenda, Sahakian, Holtmeier and Walsh - 1:36.42 4x200 Raitano - 54.69 400m Garland 4:37.85 1600m Diversey, Tuchner, Guagliardo, Balenda 3:47.19 4x400 Guagliardo 5'8" HJ Holtmeier 20'11 LJ, 42'3" TJ Kamp 50'8" SP He wanted to leave by 9 p.m., but one conversation led to another. I haven't graduated college yet. For the past six years, Mike McAvoy has been Rob Mendez's caretaker, roommate and friend, each morning helping him with everything from taking a bath and brushing his teeth to getting dressed and eating breakfast. "It gives me this sense of independence. "I can guarantee you there is someone with no arms and legs living in the mountains somewhere with a whole different story who isn't as active as we are. Mendez learned to diagram plays by using a pen in his mouth. Mendez gives me directions. Wayne DrehsDrehs is a senior writer for ESPN. Rob is no different.". A very small percentage. As he was not able to play football, Mendez taught himself the game by playing Madden football video games. "Yes!" Things like that happen all the time. "I think it always will." But on this late July night, 30-year-old high school football coach Rob Mendez has a taste for sushi. Now he has everyone asking, "who says I can't? At first, students and staffers did not quite know what to make of Robert, but it did not take him long to put their fears to rest. Prospect High School. Otherwise it won't work. The biography of Nick Vujicic, a 36-year-old motivational speaker from Australia who also has tetra-amelia, says there are just seven known people living in the world today with the syndrome. College Football Prospect ID events are the first premier event following the 2022 high school and college football seasons. "About damn time," McAvoy says with a grin. "I'm sitting right there at the bar next to you. "So I try to stay positive. The receiver is open. The other kids are special, too. "It brings out the best in people. I love when the kids say 'nobody', because it's true. I can work with people. He's a great guy and I'll go to the end of the earth for him.". ", Mendez hopes to someday have the opportunity to coach varsity. Mendez gains happiness and joy through helping others and that will be his message when he takes the podium for his acceptance speech. Ozzy Garcia Donna High School football player attending a prospect camp at Southwestern University in Georgetown Texas get's a high-five from coach.. I turned around, took two to three steps and then I heard it." The throw is too long, and the ball harmlessly caroms out of bounds. Where do I put my hands? On this day, one of his freshman quarterbacks struggles to grasp the footwork on the 37 stretch. But those who stayed learned about their new coach. Rashada, a California high school star, returned home to the San Francisco suburb of Pittsburg instead of enrolling. Shaving. On Rob's first day of kindergarten, they watched nervously behind a glass window as other 4- and 5-year-olds approached their son eager to learn about something most of them couldn't comprehend. Is that you?" Because he weighs 50 pounds, alcohol affects him faster than people who weigh much more. Preston Gannaway for ESPN I don't focus on it. "The Super Bowl of JV football," he says. It's an image his brain can't compute. When his friends played basketball, Rob was the referee. I'm proud of you. "I don't think I could do that to those kids," he says. He insists he's fine, and we order beers. She says she couldn't look at her son for the first couple of weeks. We are all special. Most everyone recognizes him and says hello. He despises the word "special.". Prospect High School JV Football Coach Rob Mendez was born with a rare disorder that left him with no arms or legs. But on this late July night, 30-year-old high school football coach Rob Mendez has a taste for sushi. He asks his quarterback for a hug. "Complaining is my No. Preston Gannaway for ESPN. Last April, the varsity coach at Prospect was looking for someone to help change the culture of the Prospect program when he came across Mendez's rsum. He asks his quarterback for a hug. And 26 percent of the school's students are economically disadvantaged. "Screw that," he says. His parents connected him with Vujicic, who Mendez said told him he could make $25,000 per night as a motivational speaker. Mendez didn't care. "I'm not the perfect guy. And he knew what he wanted to do for the rest of his life. ESPN producer Kristen Lappas directed the SC Featured documentary, available on ESPN+. Livingston told me Mendez's presence is living proof of what humans are capable of. "And the muscles in your neck are not supposed to be used that often. Preston Gannaway for ESPN "Bugs the s--- out of me," he says. I lean over, wrap my hands around him and lift him out of his chair. No way. At 18 years old, he moved up to be the quarterback's coach on his high school's football team. He drew up game plans on Madden and took them to practice. Preston Gannaway for ESPN. But he's always there for the kids. Dear Coach Doe; My name is Joe Blow and I am asking you to consider me as a future prospect for the University Notre Dame football team. It has given him a life otherwise inaccessible. His older sister, Jackie, pushed her brother to try new things and one day tucked a PlayStation controller under his chin. What if I drop him? Prospect High School. Rob leans forward in his chair to reach his cell phone. Physically, Mendez is unlike any other high school football coach in the U.S. Mentally and emotionally, he's no different. IN HIS 30 years, Mendez can't recall a single dream in which he has had arms or legs. They run the play again. 1 poison," he says. 2021: Missouri Football Coaches Association Class 5 first-team all-state selection at defensive end as a junior. It feels as if everyone is staring. What if I drop him? It is part of the Campbell Union High School District . But he's always there for the kids. I couldn't tell you what it felt like to catch a ball in the flat, but I knew what it was and why it worked." It doesn't lead to a good place. The day is designed by college coaches in order to get the most out of everyone's time. There's a lot on his mind. Who says I can't?'". No way." It is hard for college coaches to obtain rosters from high school coaches, and even harder to get them to hand over contact . Mendez rolls over to his dejected quarterback. But here, he's in his element. Prospect High School, or Prospect, is a public four-year high school in Mount Prospect, Illinois, . "Where you going, man?". This also ensures that prospects will have time to interact with the coaches and learn from them in a small group and one-on-one setting. But Mendez doesn't care about that. Mendez operates his cellphone, attached to a stand on his wheelchair, with his nose and lips. Luis Lopez, the JV coach who worked with Mendez at the school, hugs Mendez. They gave me a feeling of importance. THE DAY AFTER teaching his quarterback the 37 stretch, Mendez sits under the lights at the Prospect 50-yard line, exhausted. 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