Chicago Bears Honor Wheeling Coach Panagakis

WHEELING, IL — It was a perfect start to the season for new head coach Peter Panagakis and the Wheeling High School varsity football team. The Wildcats snapped a 19-game losing streak with a 27-15 win over Round Lake on Aug. 27.

The Chicago Bears announced Panagakis has been named the Chicago Bears High School “Coach of the Week” for Week 1. The “Coach of the Week” program is sponsored by Athletico Physical Therapy. The Bears will make a $2,000 donation to the Wheeling football program.

Panagakis is in his first year as head coach for Wheeling, after being named to the
position in August. He'd previously been an assistant coach for 16 years. He inherited a
team that had lost 19 straight games and fielded approximately only 20 players, which he
was able to quickly increase to nearly 40 in two weeks. The Wildcats won their first game
of the season to snap the losing streak with a 27-15 victory over Round Lake. Panagakis
also spent 30 years with the Wheeling Police Department. Wheeling will play at
Barrington (0-1) on Friday.

The Chicago Bears “Coach of the Week” program was launched in 1996 and “High School All-Star” program in 2011. The “Coach of the Week” program honors outstanding Illinois high school coaches who develop players’ football skills and knowledge, character, leadership, discipline and teamwork abilities. The nomination criteria for the “High School All-Star” program includes on-field performance, community involvement and good sportsmanship.

Deserving high school coaches and players are nominated by a panel of local prep authorities, and the winning player is selected each week from Aug. 27-Oct. 23. Since the program’s inception, the Bears have donated more than $326,500 to Illinois high schools in support of their football programs. For more information, please visit chicagobears.com/community.