Michael Schofield had no interest in football growing up in Orland Park.
His sport of choice was baseball, and he was pretty darn good at it.
"Michael was a good first baseman," said Mike Schofield, his father and acting fire chief at the Orland Fire Protection District. "He hit left-handed. He was a very good player."
It wasn't until a fateful trip in sixth grade that a love affair with football would begin.
"Michael's younger brother Andrew played for the (Orland Park) Pioneers," Mike Schofield said, referring to the popular youth football program. "We went to pick up Andrew's equipment before the season started. Michael just happened to come for a ride with us. The coaches got to talking with him and that's when he decided to give football a try. Before that, he wanted no part of it."
Thirteen years later, Michael Schofield, 25, finds himself on football's biggest stage, starting on the offensive line for the Denver Broncos Sunday in Super Bowl 50 at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California.
The 6-foot-6, 301-pound Schofield will line up at right tackle for the Broncos as they take on the Carolina Panthers.
"It is surreal," said Kathy Schofield, Michael's mother. "To think how far Michael has come. I couldn't be more excited for him."
Michael Schofield will have one heck of a cheering section. Mike, Kathy and siblings Nicole, Stephanie, Kathleen, Jacqueline and Andrew, along with Michael's girlfriend Kendall Coyne, all will be in attendance. Yes, that's the same Kendall Coyne who played on the U.S. Women's Hockey Team in the 2014 Olympics.
Michael and Kendall are graduates of Sandburg, though they didn't begin dating until college.
How's that for a love story?
"She's a great girl," Mike Schofield said.
And, yes, in case you're wondering, Michael Schofield is picking up the entire tab for his family's trip to the Super Bowl. Not only is he talented, he's also generous.
"My wife and I are staying in the same hotel as the players," Mike Schofield said. "Our kids and Kendall are staying in a different hotel. It should be very exciting and a lot of fun."
Just think. If not for that ride-a-long to pick up Andrew's football gear, Michael Schofield might not have ever played football and this incredible family experience never would have occurred.
"That's what I always tell him," said Andrew Schofield, a 2010 Sandburg graduate who went on to play football at the University of South Dakota. "All this happened because of me (big laugh). He didn't know anything about football. He was terrible his first year with the Pioneers. He had no idea what he was doing. I'd say in eighth grade it started to click for him."
When Michael Schofield arrived at Sandburg his freshman year, he played tight end and on the defensive line.
His sophomore season, the coaching staff approached him about moving to offensive tackle.
"We had to talk him into switching positions," said Sandburg coach Dave Wierzal, who resigned in December 2015. "He wanted to play tight end and we had a need at tackle. Once he committed to it, he was something else."
By the time Michael Schofield completed his sophomore season, college scholarship offers began pouring in. He would eventually commit to Michigan, but not before developing into an all-state offensive lineman at Sandburg.
He was a man among boys at the high school level, a gentle giant with exceptional footwork and blocking technique.
"Michael never gave up a sack on offense and he made 75 solo tackles on defense his senior year," Wierzal said.
Michael Schofield went on to enjoy a superb career at Michigan, playing in all 52 possible games in four years.
The Broncos took notice and selected him in the third round, 95th overall, in the 2014 NFL draft.
The quiet kid from Orland Park, who at one time preferred batting baseballs to blocking defenders, had made it to the pinnacle of football.