|
|
|
By TR HARLAN Friday night will be a night nobody can forget. It won’t only be because the Chesterton football team beat No. 6 Valparaiso 12-10, but for the healing process that it represented. Just five days after the Chesterton and Valparaiso communities suffered tremendous losses, the archrivals met again on the gridiron – it was more than a game and everyone in attendance knew it. In the center of the storm on the Chesterton side was John Thanos clad in his white uniform with the maroon 44 on his chest and back. “In my opinion, it comes back to what a young man has been taught by his father (Mark),” Chesterton football coach John Snyder said. “His father taught him to be there for your team and be strong. When you’ve grown up in a sports family all your life, I think it would have hurt him more and been harder to not play tonight.” On the Valparaiso side, the Vikings wore the letters “RR” on their helmets for long-time coach Rich Renn. Both families met at midfield for a moment of silence and to shake hands with both teams. “Don’t diminish what the Valpo community and coaches went through,” Snyder said. “I got a call on Sunday driving home about Rich and I couldn’t go in my house because I didn’t want my kids to see me cry. Three hours later, I get the call about Mark and John Thanos and I’m just floored. “I hope that everyone can keep in perspective that it’s still just a game. It’s a game that we all love, but it’s still just a game.” And that’s what made it so special Friday night. “John came in on Monday and watched film with us the day after his father and grandfather died,” Snyder said. “He didn’t have too. I didn’t expect him too. He wanted everything to stay the same for the team. “His world was falling apart around him and he was thinking of his team first.” “Chesterton tends to put their head down when things go bad and my dad hated that,” Thanos said after the game. “He would always say that was ‘the Chesterton way’. We finally proved him wrong tonight.” Thanos led a defense that allowed just one long drive by the Viking offense that led the area in total offense through four games with that heart that continues to grow and grow. “In between these lines, there was an opportunity for John to get away from what happened a little,” Snyder said. “Tomorrow, reality sets in again and you continue to deal with it. For a couple hours tonight, maybe he could get away from it for a little while.” “My dad and grandpa would have wanted me to keep living my life and celebrate theirs instead of dwelling on the bad things,” Thanos said. “I knew this week I had to be tough for my step-mom and my family. There were a lot of tough decisions to make, talking to reporters and all that stuff. “I had to be strong and give the story justice. What they did was truly heroic and I wanted people to understand that.” And when Tony Hite lined up for the game-winning 57-yard field goal with 6.7 seconds left, the little breath of air that may have helped it land just short, may have come from the heavens. “I’m sure John’s Dad and his Grandfather are still jumping around somewhere right now after this one,” Snyder said.
Posted 9/23/2008
|
