Junior Zane Westerlund gaining a reputation as a big-play linebacker for Chesterton’s 5-2 football team that faces undefeated Crown Point at home Friday night

Tom Keegan
Onwardtrojans.com

Desire goes a long way in football, but more than that is required to gain the attention of coaches on the recruiting trail.
Chesterton linebacker Zane Westerlund wants to play college football, but does he have size, athleticism, an eagerness to embrace the physical aspect of the sport, a plan for shoring up both his strengths and weaknesses, and is he trending in the right direction?
Yes, yes, yes, yes and yes.
Any discussion of the top college football prospects must include Westerlund early in the conversation, perhaps the first name mentioned. Ditto for volleyball, his other sport.
A 6-foot-1, 225-pound junior in his first season as a full-time starter, Westerlund ranks second on the team in tackles (52) and tied for first with senior Colin Kellogg in sacks (three).
Instead of resting on those numbers, Westerlund is focused on how to improve the things that would inflate those statistics.
“There have been so many when I was a step too slow,” Westerlund said of the sacks he has missed. “There have been so many when I was a step too slow. I need to get twitchy. I need to get faster. I’m untouched getting back there but the dude either rolls out or throws the ball.”
The statistics don’t show how many times Westerlund has gotten his hands on the quarterback without sacking him, making him hurry a throw, and those are among the plays that have Westerlund determined to get faster. He also seeks to shore up another area.
“Open-field tackling is something I need to work on. I’ll get better at it,” he said of a tackle he missed against Lake Central in a game he led the team with six tackles, one behind the line, batted down a pass on a critical play and showed serious strength in forcing a fumble. Using his left arm to wrap the ballcarrier for the tackle, Westerlund punched the ball loose so that Lucas Anderson could return it 94 yards for a touchdown, his third defensive TD of the season.
Kellogg, have a strong senior season, his first as a starter, said he thinks Westerlund’s contributions have grown loud enough to gain him postseason recognition.
“He’s a great football player,” Kellogg said. “He’s got speed. He’s hard-hitting. He can blitz off the edge, and he can cover. I’d say whatever award Carlos (Leon) got he’s on the way to getting that. He’s having a phenomenal season for us and it’s great to have him on defense.”
Kellogg was talking about the junior class all-state honors Leon earned last season.
Westerlund showcases big-time leaping ability in the spring, playing for the volleyball team. He played freshman basketball but gave up the sport to play club volleyball and to spend more time in the weight room, where he has developed into one of strength and conditioning coach Matt Wagner’s favorite pupils.
Wagner spent 10 years working in the athletic department at Division II UIndy, so he knows what a college athlete looks like and knows how to give high school athletes a road map to give themselves the best shot at maximizing their potential.
“His strength levels took off about last December, January, and now he’s a monster in there and he’s starting to realize it,” Wagner said. “His acceleration is something I can’t wait to work on with him in the offseason. Oh, it’s going to be a lot of fun to be able to work with that kid. He is a special kid. He is so good. He has so much upside. He’s just starting to reach what he could possibly do in the weight room. It’s fun to work with him because he works his butt off.”
Westerlund’s weight class is first thing in the morning, which is a better fit than in the period heading into lunch.
Westerlund said he was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes, “right when COVID started, when I was in fifth grade.”
“Modern technology is great. I have so many devices on me that it keeps me regulated. It measures me, gives me insulin,” he said.
He keeps them attached to his abdomen when playing football. Even back right before he was diagnosed with diabetes, Westerlund said the idea of giving up sports never crossed his mind.
“I lost a lot of muscle, and I was really weak, but I never wanted to stop my sports because I’ve played sports my whole life,” he said. “I’m going to try to play as long as possible.”
The Trojans (5-2, 4-1 in the DAC) take a four-game winning streak into Friday night’s home game vs. Crown Point (7-0, 5-0), which is gunning to extend its winning streak in conference games to 20 games.
The season has gone better for the Trojans than a season-opening 20-3 loss at Hobart hinted it might. Westerlund’s development playing the defense’s strongest position the same position played by hard-hitting seniors Anderson and Roberto Stabolito, from whom Stabolito said he has learned a lot.
“Robert’s a good leader,” Westerlund said. “He corrals everybody, gets everybody going, gets everybody behind him because he’s always there for you. He’s a good guy.”
That’s not all he has learned from Stabolito.
“People are scared of him just because he hits them so hard,” Westerlund said. “He and Lucas, there are times when it’s almost like, ‘How did you do that?’”
The season has gone better than most would have predicted after a season-opening, 20-3 loss at Hobart.
“I think we’re doing great,” Westerlund said. “I’m having a lot of fun. That’s how I measure how the team’s doing, and I’m having a lot of fun, so I think we’re doing great. Winning’s fun. Winning’s fun.”