The past year has been a very tough year for sports and athletes of the world. Locally, the Cerritos College football team has faced every obstacle COVID-19 has thrown at them but are eager to reclaim the turf.
Due to COVID-19 restrictions being lifted this month, the team will be returning to campus with all of the safety measures for the first time in over a year to pick up right where they left off on the field.
The team has not been able to practice, or compete which did not sit well with the players.
For some it was more challenging physically while others dealt with it mentally.
The team at first thought it would only be for 2 weeks, tops a month. However, a whole year later, they have not been able to resume any of their normal activities.
While speaking to Coach Grosfeld, the struggle the team has had this year came to light.
Many players have not been able to properly work out, practice or stay in shape the correct way as they normally would if they were allowed to practice on campus.
Thankfully, Coach Grosfeld has been able to provide weekly workout plans for them to do at home and does weekly check in with all of the guys on the team. However, it’s not the same.
“Many of these kids don’t have the right equipment at home, some of them live in apartments and don’t have the room, and other’s left football because of COVID but school as well” said Grosfeld.
He explained how it has taken a toll on his students, he mentioned football isn’t something you can learn on Zoom like english or math, it is something that needs to be hands on.
Unfortunately due to the pandemic a total of 28 students have left the football team. Coach Grosfeld explained that it hurts to see them lose these kids because he knows they will be missing out on so much more than just football.
After speaking with Adrian Cazo, a second year player on the football team, he explains that this football team is a family on and off the field.
What has troubled him the most is not being able to see his brothers.
“We are all a very close team, I live a couple blocks away from the school, after or before practice my brothers would come to my house to practice or hang out, we have all created such a tight bond and I can’t wait to go back to that”
This football team is not only a team but a family as well and after speaking to several players, as well as the coach, there’s no doubt this team is one strong family.
The coach refers to all of the players as “my kids” because that’s how he sees them and he makes sure to coordinate a weekly Zoom meeting to have all the players talk, communicate and help keep that bond.
Cade McConell, a freshman at Cerritos College, explained how he had to adapt alongside the rest of the team. “I’ve tried to do the best of my abilities to do every set of every workout provided by the coach individually, but yet all together collectively and we have.”
McConell has yet to step foot on campus for the first time but explained how he has been so welcomed to the team or as he calls them “my new family” and is eager to get on the field and practice in person and maintain Cerritos football team status as one of the top teams in California.
