Lincoln-Way West’s Crafton balances baseball events with football preparation

Cole Crafton did not spend much time at home this summer. The senior quarterback for Lincoln-Way West was busy with a different sport: baseball.

Crafton is a star outfielder who is committed to Louisville for baseball. Between playing with a travel team and competing in various showcase events, Crafton was all over the country over the past several weeks.

“We traveled a lot,” Crafton said. “We started off in Georgia, went to Indiana, Arizona, Texas, back to Indiana then to San Diego. It was fun, but I was home for probably 10 days all summer.”

The last event, in San Diego, was the Area Code Games, a major scouting event to which the top juniors and seniors in the country are invited. Crafton competing there kept him away from football practice last week.

With that in mind, Crafton, who has started at quarterback on varsity since his sophomore year, spent some extra time working with his receivers on the side before the trip to California.

“I went out to the field with a group of receivers and threw to them,” Crafton said. “We did that for a week straight just because I knew I was going to miss those August practices.”

Lincoln-Way West coach Luke Lokanc said it is important for coaches to work with multisport athletes’ schedules and that Warriors coaches prefer kids to compete in more than one sport.

“Our philosophy, not just with the football team but the entire athletic department at West, we push for two-sport and three-sport kids,” Lokanc said. “With the size of our school, that’s how we compete in all these sports. Our coaches work with the other coaches so well, and when it comes down to it, it’s about what’s best for that kid and their future, and we want them to have as many opportunities as they can.

After a whirlwind summer, Crafton said he is relaxed and ready to go for football season.

“I thought it was going to be overwhelming, but once I got to camp, I was able to ease into it,” Crafton said. “I already know all the plays and everything. I feel 100% comfortable back there.”

Although Crafton had some time away from the football field, his throwing arm is pretty much always in action. He consistently shows it off from the outfield, where he gives runners a major reason to pause if they’re thinking about trying to take an extra base.

Crafton also has done some pitching and has a fastball that’s reached 90 mph.

“Sometimes he throws the ball a little too hard,” junior receiver Austin Rowswell said with a laugh.

Senior Jacob Bereza is making his debut as a receiver this year after playing defensive back last season. He said having Crafton as his quarterback certainly makes the transition a smoother one.

“You love a guy throwing the ball at you like that,” Bereza said. “It’s always a perfect ball. It’s right at me every single time when I turn around.”

Crafton has always had the athleticism. Lokanc has seen him grow significantly in the mental game over the past three years.

“Sophomore year, just like any sophomore quarterback on varsity, it’s a little shaky because all the reads are so much faster, the defenses are so much faster,” Lokanc said. “Just like when a high school kid goes to college. You see junior year how the game starts to slow down. It’s like, ‘Oh, these reads are easier. I’m making reads I couldn’t make last year.’

“You started seeing that from Cole in the middle of last season, and by the end of it, he was playing like a senior. Now, you can just see that he’s seeing everything so much earlier.”

Coming off a disappointing 3-6 season in 2022, the Warriors are eager for redemption.

“Everyone has their head turned on us, so now is the time for us to show them who we are,” Rowswell said. “Last year was the first time since the first year the school opened [in 2009] that we didn’t make the playoffs. It’s never going to happen again.”

Crafton plans to make sure it doesn’t happen this year.

“I think we need a lot more leaders to step up this year, including myself,” Crafton said. “I probably need to be more vocal. I was a lot quieter my sophomore year, and I got a little better with it last year, but I need to step it up more this year.

“I want to lead this team to a winning season.”