Working on a nursing degree and playing a college sport demands a lot of time.
And when it come to participating in nursing clinicals?
Just ask St. Xavier senior linebacker Terry Elias Jr. about that. He’s juggled classwork, clinicals and football this fall.
“It’s definitely been tough,” the Crete-Monee graduate said. “Sometimes it gets to the point where I’m pulling all-nighters — it’s like pulling all of the hair out of my head with how stressful it is.”
Meanwhile, his college football career is likely over after the Cougars (7-4, 3-2), who entered the week 25th in the nation in the NAIA poll, lost 45-0 to No. 7 Marian (Indiana) on Nov. 15 in a Mid-States Football Association Midwest League finale at Deaton Field in Chicago.
Elias, one of 19 seniors honored before the game, was productive with nine tackles — three solo — and a sack.
In all, the 6-foot, 190-pound Elias had 103 tackles, 11.5 tackles for losses and three sacks this season. For his career, the Monee resident racked up 335 tackles, which included 143 solos, 41 tackles for losses and 14.5 sacks. He was the league’s defensive player of the week twice this season and four times in his career.
While working on a nursing degree, he did some other on-the-job work, including a stint at a mental-health facility, so he has seen a lot in these past few years. With football likely complete, he is aiming to put in a few more hours at a hospital come December to gain a little more experience.
He got the interest in the medical field because his mother, Jakia Caldwell-Elias, is a nurse. It intensified a few years ago due to another family member.
“My sophomore year, I was taking care of my great-grandmother (Naomi Caldwell) before she passed away,” he said. “It pushed me and made me want to be in that field.’’
On the football field, his father, Terry Sr., got him started when he was 5 as he was signed up for the Richton Park Raiders. He took a liking to the sport and “it was a no-brainer to keep playing,” he said.
Elias had some good seasons before this year as he was a two-time MFSA Midwest first teamer. But this year he blossomed.
“I do have a good knack for the ball,” he said. “But with the new DC (defensive coordinator Tyler Reinhardt) that we have, he had me moving back in the box. That’s better for me and the team.
“I picked it up right away because in high school, I played in the box and in my youth league I played in the box. So I was pretty familiar with the position.”
Football has become a different world for him after dealing with his great-grandmother’s illness and seeing some of the misery he was witnessing in the hospitals.
“I use football as an escape,” he said. “If I’m not playing it, I’m big on playing video games like Madden.
“It’s something I enjoy doing.”