Cole Cesmat inspiring others through difficult journey

Aug. 23—Cole Cesmat's high school football career has been anything but normal.

He had doctors and trainers tell him one of his legs was longer than the other based on his inability to properly squat and run in seventh grade. That carried over to his freshman year of high school at Casteel. His first thought was tight hips. But more tests revealed he had hip dysplasia.

He underwent surgery in November of his freshman year at Casteel High School. He had to travel to Vail, Colo. for the surgery, where his pelvis was broken into four places and his hip rotated 24 degrees. He thought the surgery would help put him on a path to play high school football.

But that was just the beginning of all he has gone through.

"Room 36," Cole said. "That room number is where I've received all the bad news with my injuries. Me and my dad laugh about it. I can't be in room 36."

Cole knew his recovery would be a long process. Shortly after his surgery, he and his mom, Chris, were picking up his older sister at the airport when they were rear ended.

The collision caused airbags to deploy, and smoke began to come from the car's air vents. Cole, unable to move freely as it is, was locked in the car due to his seatbelt jamming. By the time he was able to hobble outside, the damage was done.

Physically, he was relatively fine. The seatbelt dug into his incision and started to bleed. Mentally, however, Cole suffered from PTSD and had a new fear of being trapped inside of a car should another accident occur. It hampered his desire to earn his license, but he was too afraid to admit it for over a year. His father, Brad — the owner of Sports360AZ — had to coerce him into taking a short drive to the store before he was due for his license.

Brad could immediately sense something wasn't right.

"He was gripping the steering wheel and breathing hard, so I ask him, 'Are you alright?' Brad said. "We go in and shop and then the same thing. He pulls in the driveway and tells me he has to talk to me about something. He told me, 'I have visions that my friends are going to be in the car with me and we are going to get into an accident and they're going to burn to death.'"

Cole was able to overcome the fear after seeing a therapist. He also planned to use football as an escape. Casteel coach Bobby Newcombe also took the time to sit with Cole in classes he began to struggle in because of his mental health.

He managed to see the field his sophomore season in 2020. But a bout with COVID forced him to miss games. As a junior he was expected to be elevated to the varsity roster. He was already 6-foot-5 and had started to put on muscle.

The summer before his junior season he attended camps with Newcombe and other players. While at Northwestern, he tweaked his leg. Trainers thought it was a simple calf strain. To be safe, he sat out the camp at Purdue.

His leg continued to bother him until football camp with the Colts. But he put the pain to the side and participated at a high level in every drill. That is, until he went out to block on a play. He compared the feeling to being an action figure that gets its leg pulled off from the knee down. He screamed immediately.

Nearly two years after hearing his season was over due to his hip, his junior season was now lost because of a torn PCL.

"It destroyed me," Cole said. "I knew I had to get it fixed because I wanted to play football. I put in all this hard work to get to that point and now it was gone."

Cole suffered mentally from the injury. There were times where he admittedly questioned his purpose on earth because he was once again limited to his bed and a wheelchair after surgery.

It nearly broke him. But one day he decided it wasn't time to give up.

Since he was younger, he had worked with Chad Dunn and his team at Move Human Performance in Chandler. Cole, still weighing attempting to make a return to the football field, attacked rehab. Dunn said his progression and work ethic was astounding. Now a little over a year after knee surgery, Cole is gaining some strength back in his squat and other exercises.

"With Cole's tenacity and his resilience to not give up in rehab or even on the field, he is a true competitor," Dunn said. "How many injuries? How many setbacks can you go through? It's my job to tell Newcombe he's ready to go. He just needs to get on the field and get some playing time."

Dunn, who works with several other local high school, college and professional athletes, cleared Cole to play this season. His doctors did, too. The news came when they sat in room 35.

As of right now, he's still taking it easy. He's stepping out of contact drills until he is sure his body can handle it. But that time will come. He knows it, his dad and mom know it, and his coach knows it. His teammates can't wait.

"He battles through everything," Newcombe said. "Not only are we excited about him, we're big fans of Cole. Everyone knows everything he's been through. To see him get physically back in it and to get on the field and make some plays, that's going to be pretty awesome."

His mother, Chris, was nearly brought to tears at the thought of him stepping on the field for Casteel. Her eyes began to water when asked about senior night.

She admits she is hesitant for him to play. She knows how much his previous injuries broke him. But she also recognizes his mentality to fight and keep pursuing what he loves.

"For him to want to continue, it shows immense courage because he knows he can always get hurt again," Chris said. "I don't know if I can watch him play this year because I'm afraid of him getting hurt again with a collision. But for him, as a person, to want to keep doing it ... he's working so hard to come back and it's amazing."

Brad agreed.

"I couldn't be more proud of my son for his stick-to-itiveness," Brad said. "I believe he's impacted others by simply showing up."

Cole's journey has been unlike many other high school athletes. But even during dark times in his room alone with half of his body unable to move due to pain, he never gave up. He kept imagining himself stepping on the field with his team and just being there for them in general.

In July at Casteel's football camp, Cole spoke to the team alongside the rest of the seniors. His message to them was simple: never give up and embrace the underdog mentality.

His speech brought several players and coaches to tears. All of them wanted to go out and practice for a third time at 7:30 at night.

While he hasn't always been able to be there in the way he wanted to, Cole is a Colt through and through. And he's looking forward to when he's able to take his first varsity snap, whenever that may be.

"I'm just happy to be walking. I'm happy to have the chance to play football again," Cole said. "A year ago, I thought I would be the kid on the sideline ... the charity project. Running in the heat, being with my teammates. I'm happy. I'm just happy."

Have an interesting story? Contact Zach Alvira at (480)898-5630 or zalvira@timespublications.com. Follow him on Twitter @ZachAlvira.