Chris Watt

Glenbard West's Chris Watt, one of the two best prospects in Illinois, picked Notre Dame.
(Jon Cunningham/Beacon News)

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You’re rated as one of the two best football prospects in Illinois. What are your goals? To win a conference and state championship. It’s humbling to be named the best player in the state, but it doesn’t matter if the team isn’t winning. Team goals are more important. I’d rather win a state title than be an All-Stater.

Last season, you weighed 265 pounds. Now you weigh 290. Are you eating a lot of your mother’s chocolate-chip cookies? I eat a lot of mom’s cookies. And I drink a lot of milk, a half-gallon at dinner, and a lot of protein shakes every day. I also eat two plates of spaghetti with bread. And I’ve been lifting weights four days a week since March.

Coach Chad Hetlet describes you as a ‘‘raving lunatic’’ on the field, that he has never seen anyone who is such a difference-maker at his position. Your reaction? It makes me feel good. It’s like turning on a switch. When you step between the white lines, you have to be a different person. I used to play hard but not with a mean streak. Now I want to finish every block, bury my opponent and put them on their backs on every play.

Why Notre Dame? I chose Notre Dame because the school offers everything from an athletic tradition to a great athletic future to great academics. I want to major in business with an emphasis on management.

What about Glenbard West's tradition? I’ve heard about [coaches] Bill Duchon and Jim Covert. When I was a freshman, I was given a book, As the Backs Go Tearing By, a history of Glenbard West football. In sixth grade, my coaches were players from the 1983 state championship team. They used to have a Hitter’s Club. We know what it meant to be a Hitter. We’re getting back to old traditions.

What makes a great offensive lineman? Being smart, knowing what you’re doing on every play, having fun, playing with a mean streak, finishing.

The player you most admire? My brother Kevin, a redshirt freshman defensive end at Northwestern. I had a chance to play with him as a sophomore. I look up to him. He has worked so hard to get where he is. He showed me that hard work pays off.

Why didn’t you go to Northwestern? Northwestern is a great fit for Kevin. Notre Dame is a better fit for me.

Superstition? The night before a game, we go to a friend’s house and watch a movie, and I drink six Gatorades. That’s the magic number.

Have you ever caught a fish in Lake Ellyn? No. I tried but never caught anything. A friend caught a big catfish. And there a lot of goldfish, too.

Cubs or White Sox? Cubs. I’ve been a Cubs fan ever since I was born. My mom was a huge Cubs fan growing up. There’s nothing like the atmosphere of Wrigley Field.

Your favorite Bear? Brian Urlacher, because of his tenacity and the fact that he’s a great teammate off the field. I met him in Platteville when he was a rookie and got a picture.

The most fun I have in football? After games, I enjoy being with my teammates, all the camaraderie that goes with it, the life lessons you learn from football and apply off the field. We go to Los Burritos on Roosevelt Road in Glen Ellyn —we call it Los B’s — and have a giant burrito called a suizo, with cheese on top.