Football is a game highly dependent on skill, speed and toughness. But a quote from Yogi Berra about baseball also translates to the gridiron as well: “Baseball is 90 percent mental, the other half is physical.”
Normal U-High’s Cole Matejka and Alek Weiland are the leaders of a Pioneers team that has gone from the middle of the pack into a team that appears destined to be a frontrunner in the Central State Eight.
The two multi-year starters are certainly much bigger, faster and stronger than they were when they first surfaced at the varsity level, but upping their smarts has been one of the biggest factors in Normal U-High’s turnaround.