The NWN had the opportunity to speak with Michael Grossman, the Boys’ Cross Country team’s head coach, to discuss the upcoming season and how the boys will fare this year.
NWN: Based on the boys who joined Cross Country this year, how do you feel about the team’s abilities?
Grossman: We have a lot of athletes who come from track and field. They train over the summer, then they join cross country. They had a very healthy and a very successful track and field season, so I expect that we will have a very successful varsity team. We are also going to have a very successful sophomore team. Also, based on the freshman we’ve had come in so far, they look to be pretty talented.
NWN: What are the team goals?
Grossman: Our team goals every year include staying healthy for the whole season because these kids run anywhere from 40 to 70 miles each week. Another goal would be to win the Pat Savage Invite which is one of the largest cross country races in the country and we host it here at Niles West, on October 4th. Our other goal would be to win conference in CSL South and qualify for state as team.
NWN: What are practices like?
Grossman: Practices are usually from Monday to Saturday. Every Monday we go for a long run; for our varsity athletes that is usually 9 to 14 miles. We use our hill in the back of the school, as well as the track. It really varies from day to day. We also try to get two recovery workouts at some point during the week to relax.
NWN: What are some areas you think the team should work on this year?
Grossman: One thing I would like to see an improvement on is one or two of our varsity athletes taking the lead. We always run as one big group and I would like to see one or two varsity members become leaders.
NWN: Are there any particular meets the team is looking forward to this year?
Grossman: We always look forward to Rockford Harlem, which is at Rock Cut State Park. We look forward to the Pat Savage Invite which we host at West. We also look forward to the Peoria First to the Finish meet, which is hosted by the brand First to Finish; it is also run on the state cross country course. We look forward to state.
NWN: What improvements have you made over the summer?
Grossman: Last summer, the summer of 2o14, we had a lot of injuries, a lot of guys who were injured at the end of track season because of the weather. They spent the majority of the summer in rehab working with the athletic trainers at West. This summer we were able to stay healthy from May all the way through August. So we were able to make some progress.
NWN: Do you believe the team has a fair shot at making state this summer?
Grossman: Yes. We were talking about this yesterday and we qualified as a team back in 2011, and comparing our notes from the fall of 2011 to the fall of 2015, these two teams are almost identical to each other.
NWN: Are you doing anything different this year with the team?
Grossman: No, I think over the last 15 years we have developed a very healthy workout regiment. We adjust things little by little, based on each individual athlete; every athlete runs and competes differently, so we manipulate our training around them. But as far as our morals and goals, things stay the same.
NWN was also able to speak with Atul Krishna, one of the cross country captains, along with Sam Iverson and Eric Scott. Krishna states that “Based on the season so far, I can say we have a strong group of upperclassmen, and that we have a strong shot to go to state this year, for only the 2nd time in Niles West history. Our team has substantially increased due to harder workouts put by our coaches and each of us motivating each other to get better. Whether state or not, I think we’ll have a great season this year.”
Come out to cheer for the boys’ at their home meets this year!
