From just throwing a ball in the backyard with his grandpa as a kid to hitting home runs and getting touchdowns in high school, sports have impacted senior Connor Burgess in various ways. Whether it was by helping him create meaningful relationships, dealing with the pressures of life, overcoming hardships, or learning to take risks, these situations he has experienced in sports have built him into the person he is today.
For Burgess, sports were a prominent aspect in his relationships. Since he was little, he has made connections with his family through sports, and starting high school, he used football as a way of fitting into a new group of people. It helped him build meaningful connections with his peers at school and gave him a chance to have a reliable group he can go to when he needs them.
“Coming into high school was kind of a lot because of all of the new people. Football kind of put me in a new group of people that know you’re always there for each other. It’s not just with peers, it is with my dad and grandpa too because my grandpa babysat me when I was little, we’d go out in the backyard and play catch with a baseball, and he taught me how to swing a bat and stuff like that too, so it help build those relationships as well,” Burgess said.
Pressure is something most people struggle to overcome and deal with; however, Burgess used football as a way to view it in a more positive aspect. Smiling, he expressed how, instead of viewing pressure as something that would drag him down, he used it to give himself confidence and help build him up.
“I enjoy it, I’ve always wanted to be the guy who’s up with the game on the line, and I’d rather be the person in control than watch someone else try to win the game. I enjoy having the eyes on me because there’s no better feeling than when the pressure is on you and you succeed,” Burgess said.
In middle school, Burgess got an injury that caused him to have to sit on the sidelines for a while. Slowing his speech, he explained how it was tough, and how he persevered through the injury and did whatever he could to get back on the field. Physical therapy and rest were key points of his recovery, and he did not give up until he was healed.
“In like 7th grade, I tore my gluteus medius, and I couldn’t run or anything. I did physical therapy, which wasn’t fun because I missed a big chunk of the season, but I just kept working through it until I got better,” Burgess said.
Since he was a kid, Burgess has always been playing sports. He looked up as he reminisced about playing when he was a kid; he knew he had made the right choices of sports to play. It was not until high school, however, that he joined a football team, but he knew that if he did not try out, he would regret it. He wanted to try something new and put himself out there, so that is what he did.
“I have been playing baseball in the backyard from like two years old, and I have never played football until high school because I would always play fall baseball, but I started football in high school, but I would always play football at recess… I would always watch Bears games with my Dad every Sunday and knew I’d regret it if I didn’t take the chance and try something new.” Burgess said.
