By Joseph Phillips
After finishing the 2021 IHSA football season with 1,048 yards, 90 completions, 7 touchdowns and 141 passing attempts in four games, senior quarterback Alexander Pratt, of the Homewood-Flossmoor Vikings, said he is now looking to take his game to the next level.
Although Pratt’s senior football season was shortened due to the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, he feels his quarterback journey has just begun.
“I played all four years for HF,” said Pratt about his journey to the starting quarterback position. “[My] Freshman year I started for the freshman team, my sophomore year I started for the sophomore team, my junior year I was a back-up for our senior starting quarterback, and my final year I started.”
Pratt kicked off his senior season with an explosive game against Lockport on March 19, 2021, passing for 217 yards, 3 TDs on 19 of 24 passing attempts. Pratt said it was the best performance of his career since playing for the Vikings from 2017-2021.
In addition to his big game against Lockport, Pratt said he not only used his COVID shortened off-season to lift weights in his garage but gathered teammates for practice at Lincoln Way North. Pratt said the group mainly worked on running routes and speed training.
“My teammates and I did not have access to the weight room at HF [this off season],” said Pratt, due to a limited number of games this season. “But the coaches set up training regimens [for us] via Zoom and also emailed us scheduled instructions on our workouts.”
And in spite of playing limited amounts of games this season, Pratt still believes he has something to prove.
The 6-foot-4, 215-pound quarterback out of Homewood-Flossmoor said he has plans to compete for the starting QB position for the Division III National Champions North Central College Cardinals in the fall of 2021. Pratt said he is very excited to attend North Central College, in spite of the recruitment process being hindered by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“[I’m] very excited [to play] for the Cardinals next season,” he said.
Pratt said he currently patterns his game after former Clemson QB Trevor Lawrence. Lawrence, a former National Champion in college football, was drafted as the No. 1 pick of the 2021 NFL Draft by the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Pratt said, like Lawrence, his game is predicated on using his size, speed, legs, and ability to make throws out of the pocket from anywhere on the field.
He attributes most of his athletic success to his father, Alexander O. Pratt. The elder Pratt is the current assistant coach for the HF Vikings and the former starting quarterback for Gary West Side High School.
“My dad taught me everything I know about being a quarterback,” said Pratt about the influence of his father. “I love having him as a coach. My dad played both high school and college football. [He’s] coached [at] HF for 11 years and 22 years overall.”
In addition to his father’s success, Pratt’s mother, LaCael, was a former athlete also. She competed as a gymnast on the high school level in a few competitions. Like his mother and father, Pratt’s grandmother, Carolyn Palmer, also competed as a student athlete growing up.
“[She] always encouraged me to stay [focused] on my academics,” said Pratt about his grandmother. “She was also a student athlete. She stayed on my moms and auntie growing up.”
With his grandmother, mother and father inheriting strong genes in the family, Pratt’s cousin, Derek Newton, was a former NFL player who played for both the Houston Texans and the New Orleans Saints from 2011 through 2018.
According to his bio, Newton was drafted by the Houston Texans in the seventh round of the 2011 NFL Draft.
PRATT LEADS VIKINGS TO A 2-2 RECORD ON THE SEASON:
Pratt led the HF Vikings to a 2-2 record on the season.
The 17-year-old out of Flossmoor stated he will continue to”Aim High” as a student athlete. He currently holds a 3.2 GPA as a senior at Homewood-Flossmoor High School.
His team (the Vikings) finished second as state runner-up for the 2014 season and in the State’s Top 25 for the 2010 season (23), 2013 season (17), 2014 season (8), 2015 season (6), 2016 season (17), 2017 season (11), 2018 season (10), and the 2019 season (at number 9).
Joseph Phillips is the Sports Editor for the Chicago Crusader Newspaper. He is a Chicago native, who has been a sports writer for over 17 years. He also hosts the SC Media News and Sports Network Q&A radio show on WHPK 88.5 FM Chicago. He can be reached at [email protected].
Joseph Phillips is the Sports Editor for the Chicago Crusader Newspaper. He is a Chicago native, who has been a sports writer for over 17 years. He also hosts the SC Media News and Sports Network Q&A radio show on WHPK 88.5 FM Chicago.
