As Gary Fiedorowicz can best remember, his son C.J. was 3 when he provided a preview of his extraordinary physical skills.

Gary was sitting in his truck at his older son Kyle’s soccer game when he heard a pinging noise. When he got out to see what it was, there was C.J. tossing rocks off one of the truck’s hubcaps. And C.J. wasn’t that close to the vehicle, he was about 20 feet away, chucking overhand.

“I was like, ‘Wow, that’s impressive,’ ” Gary said. “I couldn’t get mad about it, it was only a hubcap. He was not throwing like a little kid, he was throwing like an adult would throw with accuracy. He was just so young.”

It was like a glimpse into the future, where Fiedorowicz made a habit of making difficult athletic feats look normal, whether it was one-handed catches on a full run in football or throwing 84-mph heat off the mound or dunking in a basketball game … as an eighth grader.

Fiedorowicz, who will be 25 on Oct. 22, earned 11 varsity letters at Johnsburg High School in four sports and is one of the best athletes ever to come out of McHenry County. The Houston tight end starts his third NFL season Sunday as the Texans host the Bears at noon at NRG Stadium.

Texans home games often become Johnsburg reunions with a dozen family members and friends showing up at Fiedorowicz’s 2,500-square foot home in Missouri City, about a 20-minute drive from the stadium.

Mike Dixon, one of Fiedorowicz’s best friends since third grade, makes a couple trips each season to Houston and watches the rest of the Texans’ games on NFL Game Pass, later discussing with other former Skyhawks Cole Meyers, Dom Pascente and Tyler Chambers.

“It gives me goose bumps (to see him play in the NFL),” Dixon said. “He’s the same person we grew up with. He works hard, he hasn’t changed a bit. I’m very proud of the man he’s become on and off the field.”

Dixon had a flashback when former Texans running back Arian Foster tossed Fiedorowicz his first NFL touchdown pass two years ago.

“(C.J.) jumped out of nowhere,” Dixon said. “I loved throwing alley-oops (in basketball) to him too. You throw it up there and he’s going to catch it. I love the kid. Then he spiked the ball and it went out of the stadium.”

The Texans’ equipment staff retrieved the ball and Fiedorowicz has it at his home, not far from a picture with his high school buddies. It is still his only NFL touchdown, although Fiedorowicz is doing what he can to add to his collection.

“My offensive coordinator [George Godsey] is talking about trying to get me 40 balls this year,” said Fiedorowicz, who has started in 22 NFL games and caught 21 passes. “That’s going to take a lot of work, I have to show I’ve added to my receiving game and show them I can get open. I’m more of a blocking guy. I have to prove that I can block first and hope my share of balls will come.”

•••

Fiedorowicz, who is 6-foot-6, 265 pounds, is the youngest of Gary and LeeAnn Fiedorowicz’s three children, all of whom were gifted athletes. Although Gary and LeeAnn divorced a long time ago, they always attended high school games and still spoke to each other. The family is usually together for C.J.’s NFL games.

Kyle, a 2006 Johnsburg graduate, went on to play football at NCAA Division III power North Central College. Paige, the 2008 Northwest Herald Female Athlete of the Year, played basketball at Marquette.

C.J. likely could have gone D-I in any of four sports – football, basketball, baseball or track – but figured out in high school that football was his best path.

“He knew, since he was a little kid, he was going to be a professional ballplayer,” LeeAnn said. “I knew it too. Everybody would ask him,’What are you going to be when you grow up?’ He’d say, ‘A ballplayer.’ He never swayed from it, and he’s living the dream he’s had since he was 5 years old.”

That dream is common for sports-oriented children, but the Fiedorowicz family sensed it was not just a dream for C.J. Gary is a burly 6-6 man who works as an electrician in Richmond and resembles an NFL lineman. LeeAnn is 5-11 and played basketball.

Kyle (28) is taller, at 6-8, but was not blessed with C.J.’s speed. Paige (26) is 6-0 and graduated in 2008 as Johnsburg’s girls basketball career scoring leader.

“I would say it was very beneficial (for him) being the youngest,” Paige said. “He says it all the time. Growing up it was never like, ‘We’re going to take it easy because you’re younger.’ It was like, ‘There’s no mercy here.’ Whenever we stepped outside, there was competition in whatever it was.”

Kyle concurred.

“If I was 11, he was 7, and 7 vs. 11 is quite a bit different skill levels,” Kyle said. “He always had to play up in competition. I guess that’s something he learned, something he was used to. He was always right there, it wasn’t like he wasn’t competitive. He was with us.”

C.J. played varsity as a freshman in football, basketball and baseball.

“Once he was in high school, I figured he could get to the professional level,” said Paige, who works in sales in Arizona and co-owns the Texas house with C.J. “He had the work ethic if he wanted to make it happen. When I was in high school and he was a freshman, playing up, and seeing how well he could do at that level, it was something on the radar.”

Richmond-Burton football coach Pat Elder knew Fiedorowicz was tough to deal with on the field, but got a perspective on just how talented he was from his father, Illinois High School Football Coaches Association Hall of Famer John Elder.

“When (C.J.) was a sophomore, we beat Johnsburg 20-10 that night, and Dad’s at our house,” Elder said. “He said, ‘That’s one of the five best high school athletes I’ve ever seen. He’s going to be able to go anywhere in the country he wants to play football.’ Those old guys see stuff other people don’t. When he said that, it hit home immediately with me. I was like, ‘OK, he’s for real.’ ”

•••

After his four-year career at Iowa, Fiedorowicz was selected in the third round, 65th overall, by the Texans in the 2014 NFL Draft. He is halfway through a four-year rookie contract that earned him $3,195,166.

Fiedorowicz will make $685,000 this season and co-owns his house with Paige. LeeAnn has lived with him for almost a year. C.J. rented the house for a year and the family liked it so much that he and Paige bought it.

“He said one of his friends teased him in high school, ‘You’re a football player, you’re going to be the last one to get a house,’ ” LeeAnn said. “And he’s the first one to get a house, and paid cash for it.”

C.J. struggled with being alone his rookie season when he lived in an apartment.

“You’re by yourself, it’s your first year and you get to thinking, ‘This is tough,’ ” C.J. said. “You kind of want somebody to talk to.”

That someone turned out to be his mother. C.J. invited LeeAnn to live with him last year. She cooks, cleans house, takes care of everything while he’s away on 10-hour days for working out, practicing and watching game video until he falls asleep, usually before 10 p.m.

“I couldn’t be more thankful for what she does,” C.J. said. “When you come home from a long day, you want to be with somebody you know, you’re comfortable with. Having her down there is just awesome.”

In June, C.J. came north to Spring Grove to work out with trainer Chris Leathers at Your World Fitness. Woodstock graduate Mike Liedtke, who was in training camp with the New York Jets, was Fiedorowicz’s regular workout partner.

Meanwhile, when LeeAnn wasn’t working as a waitress and bartender at Quail Valley Golf Course, she painted the house inside, power washed the outside, cared for C.J.’s and Paige’s 2-year-old bull mastiff Winston, and cleaned the pool and pontoon boat.

“He was like, ‘Mom, why are you up there?’ Why don’t you just come down here?’ ” LeeAnn said. “I’m like, ‘Are you sure?’ I felt honored that my 23-year-old son was asking me to come down here and live with him. Before, he didn’t enjoy going home, but this is totally different.”

And not without an occasional awkward moment.

“When he has a lady friend come over, I have to go to my room,” she said. “It’s usually later at night and I have a TV in there. That’s the only thing I wasn’t planning on when I moved in with him. I don’t think anything about it, it’s the funniest thing.”

•••

The list of what Fiedorowicz has learned in two NFL seasons is extensive, starting with his offseason training. At Your World Fitness in July he said he felt the best he has heading into a training camp.

“My first year, my knee was bothering me. Last year, it was my shoulder,” he said. “I feel great, but I don’t want to overdo things. I know how I feel midway through the season. It’s a long season, I don’t want to get halfway through and feel dead tired. I know how to rest my body in my third year.”

Kyle Fiedorowicz, who works as a trainer with Leathers, has helped his little brother with training and diet ideas.

“It wasn’t where we actually sat down and talked about it, it’s just eating clean in general,” Kyle said. “If C.J. was around, I’d point something out. He would watch what I was eating and see how I progressed after eating better and he followed suit.”

The Texans especially like Fiedorowicz's blocking ability. A recent article on the website Bleacher Report listing players with underappreciated skills said Fiedorowicz graded the highest of any NFL tight end for pass blocking. Houston head coach Bill O'Brien and his staff regard him almost like having another tackle on the field. He also was one of the best run-blocking tight ends.

Fiedorowicz would like to be used more as a receiver than blocker on passing plays. He feels he is more adept at route-running and reading defenses, things that may help him get more targets from new Texans quarterback Brock Osweiler.

“In college, I was just kind of running around, not really knowing what to look at pre-snap,” he said. “I’m looking at the safety and linebacker, they disguise so many coverages. If you don’t have an idea what coverage is coming, you can get totally messed up, floating around an area that messes up the quarterback.”

Fiedorowicz wants to apply that knowledge to get himself open more often.

“If you can’t win man-to-man coverage on third down, you’re not going to be out there,” he said. “It’s a huge down for ‘man’ coverage. If you can’t get open, you’re not going to get your fair share of balls. Your third year is where you make huge strides. It can be your make-or-break year, going into your second contract. I feel like it will decide how long my career is going to be.”

•••

As Johnsburg principal Kevin Shelton supervised in the school during football games, he noticed something different from opposing teams.

“During the sophomore game, they’d hang around hoping to get a glimpse of him, see him up close,” Shelton said. I thought, ‘Wow!’ That’s pretty serious respect coming from opponents. I’d never seen that before.”

Shelton knew when recruiting guru Tom Lemming was paying more attention to Fiedorowicz, sometime around his junior year, things were getting serious. It was then Shelton started thinking that Johnsburg could have an NFL player.

Like Dixon, though, Shelton says he sees the same Fiedorowicz who used to walk the halls of the high school.

“I always appreciated that he’s so down to earth,” Shelton said. “He’s such a kind person and has time for everyone, especially the kids. His senior year is something I’ll remember forever. It didn’t matter what game it was, there was always somebody wanting to get close to him, to see him, and he always had time.”

Shelton recalled that after Fiedorowicz’s final high school game, a playoff loss to Richmond-Burton, he hung around talking to people, taking pictures and signing autographs.

“He’s a special person to be in that situation because of the generosity with his time,” Shelton said. “You look at what he does when he comes back. He visits our junior high, he helps out with kids’ camps. I told him a long time ago, ‘You have a future in this sport, but if you ever wanted to be a teacher or a coach, you’d be excellent at it because of your demeanor.’ ”

Currently, Fiedorowicz wants to push the Texans toward the AFC playoffs, with hopes of doing that with his blocking and his receiving skills.

“It’s definitely surreal,” Paige said. “It’s fun to watch. What I enjoy most is being able to create memories with family and friends and go to the game and be at the house together. I’m really proud of him. He’s grown up a ton, he kind of had to, it’s a business. He’s handled it very well for that kind of pressure at his age.”

As Gary Fiedorowicz can best remember, his son C.J. was 3 when he provided a preview of his extraordinary physical skills.

Gary was sitting in his truck at his older son Kyle’s soccer game when he heard a pinging noise. When he got out to see what it was, there was C.J. tossing rocks off one of the truck’s hubcaps. And C.J. wasn’t that close to the vehicle, he was about 20 feet away, chucking overhand.

“I was like, ‘Wow, that’s impressive,’ ” Gary said. “I couldn’t get mad about it, it was only a hubcap. He was not throwing like a little kid, he was throwing like an adult would throw with accuracy. He was just so young.”

It was like a glimpse into the future, where Fiedorowicz made a habit of making difficult athletic feats look normal, whether it was one-handed catches on a full run in football or throwing 84-mph heat off the mound or dunking in a basketball game … as an eighth grader.

Fiedorowicz, who will be 25 on Oct. 22, earned 11 varsity letters at Johnsburg High School in four sports and is one of the best athletes ever to come out of McHenry County. The Houston tight end starts his third NFL season Sunday as the Texans host the Bears at noon at NRG Stadium.

Texans home games often become Johnsburg reunions with a dozen family members and friends showing up at Fiedorowicz’s 2,500-square foot home in Missouri City, about a 20-minute drive from the stadium.

Mike Dixon, one of Fiedorowicz’s best friends since third grade, makes a couple trips each season to Houston and watches the rest of the Texans’ games on NFL Game Pass, later discussing with other former Skyhawks Cole Meyers, Dom Pascente and Tyler Chambers.

“It gives me goose bumps (to see him play in the NFL),” Dixon said. “He’s the same person we grew up with. He works hard, he hasn’t changed a bit. I’m very proud of the man he’s become on and off the field.”

Dixon had a flashback when former Texans running back Arian Foster tossed Fiedorowicz his first NFL touchdown pass two years ago.

“(C.J.) jumped out of nowhere,” Dixon said. “I loved throwing alley-oops (in basketball) to him too. You throw it up there and he’s going to catch it. I love the kid. Then he spiked the ball and it went out of the stadium.”

The Texans’ equipment staff retrieved the ball and Fiedorowicz has it at his home, not far from a picture with his high school buddies. It is still his only NFL touchdown, although Fiedorowicz is doing what he can to add to his collection.

“My offensive coordinator [George Godsey] is talking about trying to get me 40 balls this year,” said Fiedorowicz, who has started in 22 NFL games and caught 21 passes. “That’s going to take a lot of work, I have to show I’ve added to my receiving game and show them I can get open. I’m more of a blocking guy. I have to prove that I can block first and hope my share of balls will come.”

•••

Fiedorowicz, who is 6-foot-6, 265 pounds, is the youngest of Gary and LeeAnn Fiedorowicz’s three children, all of whom were gifted athletes. Although Gary and LeeAnn divorced a long time ago, they always attended high school games and still spoke to each other. The family is usually together for C.J.’s NFL games.

Kyle, a 2006 Johnsburg graduate, went on to play football at NCAA Division III power North Central College. Paige, the 2008 Northwest Herald Female Athlete of the Year, played basketball at Marquette.

C.J. likely could have gone D-I in any of four sports – football, basketball, baseball or track – but figured out in high school that football was his best path.

“He knew, since he was a little kid, he was going to be a professional ballplayer,” LeeAnn said. “I knew it too. Everybody would ask him,’What are you going to be when you grow up?’ He’d say, ‘A ballplayer.’ He never swayed from it, and he’s living the dream he’s had since he was 5 years old.”

That dream is common for sports-oriented children, but the Fiedorowicz family sensed it was not just a dream for C.J. Gary is a burly 6-6 man who works as an electrician in Richmond and resembles an NFL lineman. LeeAnn is 5-11 and played basketball.

Kyle (28) is taller, at 6-8, but was not blessed with C.J.’s speed. Paige (26) is 6-0 and graduated in 2008 as Johnsburg’s girls basketball career scoring leader.

“I would say it was very beneficial (for him) being the youngest,” Paige said. “He says it all the time. Growing up it was never like, ‘We’re going to take it easy because you’re younger.’ It was like, ‘There’s no mercy here.’ Whenever we stepped outside, there was competition in whatever it was.”

Kyle concurred.

“If I was 11, he was 7, and 7 vs. 11 is quite a bit different skill levels,” Kyle said. “He always had to play up in competition. I guess that’s something he learned, something he was used to. He was always right there, it wasn’t like he wasn’t competitive. He was with us.”

C.J. played varsity as a freshman in football, basketball and baseball.

“Once he was in high school, I figured he could get to the professional level,” said Paige, who works in sales in Arizona and co-owns the Texas house with C.J. “He had the work ethic if he wanted to make it happen. When I was in high school and he was a freshman, playing up, and seeing how well he could do at that level, it was something on the radar.”

Richmond-Burton football coach Pat Elder knew Fiedorowicz was tough to deal with on the field, but got a perspective on just how talented he was from his father, Illinois High School Football Coaches Association Hall of Famer John Elder.

“When (C.J.) was a sophomore, we beat Johnsburg 20-10 that night, and Dad’s at our house,” Elder said. “He said, ‘That’s one of the five best high school athletes I’ve ever seen. He’s going to be able to go anywhere in the country he wants to play football.’ Those old guys see stuff other people don’t. When he said that, it hit home immediately with me. I was like, ‘OK, he’s for real.’ ”

•••

After his four-year career at Iowa, Fiedorowicz was selected in the third round, 65th overall, by the Texans in the 2014 NFL Draft. He is halfway through a four-year rookie contract that earned him $3,195,166.

Fiedorowicz will make $685,000 this season and co-owns his house with Paige. LeeAnn has lived with him for almost a year. C.J. rented the house for a year and the family liked it so much that he and Paige bought it.

“He said one of his friends teased him in high school, ‘You’re a football player, you’re going to be the last one to get a house,’ ” LeeAnn said. “And he’s the first one to get a house, and paid cash for it.”

C.J. struggled with being alone his rookie season when he lived in an apartment.

“You’re by yourself, it’s your first year and you get to thinking, ‘This is tough,’ ” C.J. said. “You kind of want somebody to talk to.”

That someone turned out to be his mother. C.J. invited LeeAnn to live with him last year. She cooks, cleans house, takes care of everything while he’s away on 10-hour days for working out, practicing and watching game video until he falls asleep, usually before 10 p.m.

“I couldn’t be more thankful for what she does,” C.J. said. “When you come home from a long day, you want to be with somebody you know, you’re comfortable with. Having her down there is just awesome.”

In June, C.J. came north to Spring Grove to work out with trainer Chris Leathers at Your World Fitness. Woodstock graduate Mike Liedtke, who was in training camp with the New York Jets, was Fiedorowicz’s regular workout partner.

Meanwhile, when LeeAnn wasn’t working as a waitress and bartender at Quail Valley Golf Course, she painted the house inside, power washed the outside, cared for C.J.’s and Paige’s 2-year-old bull mastiff Winston, and cleaned the pool and pontoon boat.

“He was like, ‘Mom, why are you up there?’ Why don’t you just come down here?’ ” LeeAnn said. “I’m like, ‘Are you sure?’ I felt honored that my 23-year-old son was asking me to come down here and live with him. Before, he didn’t enjoy going home, but this is totally different.”

And not without an occasional awkward moment.

“When he has a lady friend come over, I have to go to my room,” she said. “It’s usually later at night and I have a TV in there. That’s the only thing I wasn’t planning on when I moved in with him. I don’t think anything about it, it’s the funniest thing.”

•••

The list of what Fiedorowicz has learned in two NFL seasons is extensive, starting with his offseason training. At Your World Fitness in July he said he felt the best he has heading into a training camp.

“My first year, my knee was bothering me. Last year, it was my shoulder,” he said. “I feel great, but I don’t want to overdo things. I know how I feel midway through the season. It’s a long season, I don’t want to get halfway through and feel dead tired. I know how to rest my body in my third year.”

Kyle Fiedorowicz, who works as a trainer with Leathers, has helped his little brother with training and diet ideas.

“It wasn’t where we actually sat down and talked about it, it’s just eating clean in general,” Kyle said. “If C.J. was around, I’d point something out. He would watch what I was eating and see how I progressed after eating better and he followed suit.”

The Texans especially like Fiedorowicz's blocking ability. A recent article on the website Bleacher Report listing players with underappreciated skills said Fiedorowicz graded the highest of any NFL tight end for pass blocking. Houston head coach Bill O'Brien and his staff regard him almost like having another tackle on the field. He also was one of the best run-blocking tight ends.

Fiedorowicz would like to be used more as a receiver than blocker on passing plays. He feels he is more adept at route-running and reading defenses, things that may help him get more targets from new Texans quarterback Brock Osweiler.

“In college, I was just kind of running around, not really knowing what to look at pre-snap,” he said. “I’m looking at the safety and linebacker, they disguise so many coverages. If you don’t have an idea what coverage is coming, you can get totally messed up, floating around an area that messes up the quarterback.”

Fiedorowicz wants to apply that knowledge to get himself open more often.

“If you can’t win man-to-man coverage on third down, you’re not going to be out there,” he said. “It’s a huge down for ‘man’ coverage. If you can’t get open, you’re not going to get your fair share of balls. Your third year is where you make huge strides. It can be your make-or-break year, going into your second contract. I feel like it will decide how long my career is going to be.”

•••

As Johnsburg principal Kevin Shelton supervised in the school during football games, he noticed something different from opposing teams.

“During the sophomore game, they’d hang around hoping to get a glimpse of him, see him up close,” Shelton said. I thought, ‘Wow!’ That’s pretty serious respect coming from opponents. I’d never seen that before.”

Shelton knew when recruiting guru Tom Lemming was paying more attention to Fiedorowicz, sometime around his junior year, things were getting serious. It was then Shelton started thinking that Johnsburg could have an NFL player.

Like Dixon, though, Shelton says he sees the same Fiedorowicz who used to walk the halls of the high school.

“I always appreciated that he’s so down to earth,” Shelton said. “He’s such a kind person and has time for everyone, especially the kids. His senior year is something I’ll remember forever. It didn’t matter what game it was, there was always somebody wanting to get close to him, to see him, and he always had time.”

Shelton recalled that after Fiedorowicz’s final high school game, a playoff loss to Richmond-Burton, he hung around talking to people, taking pictures and signing autographs.

“He’s a special person to be in that situation because of the generosity with his time,” Shelton said. “You look at what he does when he comes back. He visits our junior high, he helps out with kids’ camps. I told him a long time ago, ‘You have a future in this sport, but if you ever wanted to be a teacher or a coach, you’d be excellent at it because of your demeanor.’ ”

Currently, Fiedorowicz wants to push the Texans toward the AFC playoffs, with hopes of doing that with his blocking and his receiving skills.

“It’s definitely surreal,” Paige said. “It’s fun to watch. What I enjoy most is being able to create memories with family and friends and go to the game and be at the house together. I’m really proud of him. He’s grown up a ton, he kind of had to, it’s a business. He’s handled it very well for that kind of pressure at his age.”