Local Athlete Spotlight: Q&A With Charlie Fordon

FRANKFORT, IL — When it came time to select a college, Frankfort resident Charlie Fordon wasn't just looking ahead to the next four years; he was looking ahead to the next 44 years.

Fordon, who is a senior at Mount Carmel High School and plays inside linebacker on the football team, recently chose to go to Lake Forest College to continue his education and to continue playing football. Fordon has played all four years for Mount Carmel, where he would often need to be out the door by 4:30 a.m. for morning practices and workouts, and wouldn't be home until 7:30 p.m.

That type of dedication has also been apparent in Fordon's academics, too. He is a member of the National Honor Society. He has also been a member of the Mount Carmel Student Council in his junior and senior years. He has received High Honor classification all four years at Mount Carmel.

Patch got an opportunity to catch up with the normally busy Fordon to ask some questions about football and life.

Patch: How did you get interested in football?

Fordon: My first year playing football, I think it was flag football in kindergarten. I've always enjoyed the team aspect because people who don't play football don't understand that when you start to get to the higher levels playing tackle, they don't understand the hot summer nights and the conditioning and the sprints and everything. It really creates a close bond with your teammates. I feel like it's unparalleled with other sports. I really enjoyed it from the start. And my whole family has played football, and that's kind of how I got into it. I've enjoyed it ever since.

Patch: Who do you look up to and why?

Fordon: My dad because he's the person I try to embody every day. He's a hard worker and his work ethic is unmatched. He does a lot for me, and I just want to be the type of father he has been to me. He's never missed any of my games, and he's coached me since I was little. He's always been really supportive of me and really good to me.

Patch: What is your favorite memory playing football?

Fordon: That's a tough one, but I'd probably say senior year, our first game of the season this year against St. Rita because there were 8,000-10,000 people there. It was my first ever varsity start, so I didn't really know what to expect. The crowd was crazy. It was a stereotypical perfect hot summer Friday night for football. The game was very close the whole way, very intense. I was into it the whole time. We were huge underdogs going into the game, and we ended up winning. So, that was awesome. That was one of my best memories.

Patch: What's something that people who don't play football know about the sport?

Fordon: Definitely the team aspect. When it's hot in the summer and you have two-a-day practices, nobody else is really going through that except for you and your teammates. Nobody else really knows the work and the time and the dedication, how much time you really spend with your teammates. And I just feel like it creates relationships that are unmatched.

Patch: What does it feel like to make a big play?

Fordon: It's kind of a blur until you get up and celebrate with your teammates. Everything happens so fast. A big hit, a big play, or a tackle in the backfield, something like that, you kind of just react based on your instinct and technique. It happens so fast that you don't realize what happened until you get up and celebrate with your teammates and you see the crowd and the lights and everything. It's an awesome feeling when you hear the crowd getting loud, especially the student section. It's awesome.

Patch: What's been your biggest challenge?

Fordon: Getting to and from school everyday with early morning workouts. I live 45 minutes to an hour sometimes with traffic from Mount Carmel. In the morning, when we used to have 6 a.m., 5:45 a.m. lifts, I'd have to get up at 4:30 a.m., 4:15 a.m., three to four days a week, sometimes five days a week. That was always pretty tough because I'de be exhausted all the time. It was hard to stay focused in school. I would try to keep a positive mindset because all my teammates and classmates are going through the same thing.

Patch: Who is the athlete you admire the most and why?

Fordon: The first one that comes to mid is [former Chicago White Sox player] Paul Konerko because he was a leader on the field and his attitude effected his teammates. He was a game changer. He made big plays when the game was on the line. That's who I try to embody.

Patch: Do you have any pregame rituals?

Fordon: Since my first year of tackle football, my dad used to give me a picture of [NFL Hall of Fame linebacker] Jack Lambert. I always used to put it in my sock and I'd put some music on and watch a Jack Lambert highlight tape. That was my dad's favorite player, and [Lambert] eventually evolved into one of my favorite players because he played the game with such intensity. He was a bad dude. He didn't take crap from anybody on the field.

Patch: If you could have dinner with anybody, who would it be and why?

Fordon: I would pick Michael Jordan because he's a Bulls player, played in Chicago. I'd like to know what his mindset was and how he got himself so motivated to be a winner and what went through his mind before games and how he just locked in. I'd just like to pick his brain a little bit.

Patch: What's next for you?

Fordon: I'm hoping to major in business, but I'd like to keep my options open because I don't know exactly what field of business I'd like to get into. After college, I'd really like to work in [Chicago]. That's always been a dream of mine. I think Chicago is awesome and I'd love to work there. But, driving to and from the city with the traffic is not great. So, you never know what'll happen.

Know a local athlete who should be featured on Patch? Reach out to Editor TJ Kremer III at tj.kremer@patch.com for a chance to be featured.