Drew Herzberg has participated in sports long enough to know when something is wrong with his body.

The Deerfield linebacker has been a gymnast and a wrestler too.

So when Herzberg and some friends gathered April 7 to play a game of two-hand touch football, the sound he heard from his left knee gave him pause.

“I was playing quarterback, and I took off running, cut back left, and there was the loudest pop I’d ever heard in my life,” he recalled. “I knew something wasn’t right, and I was in a good amount of pain, so I drove home and iced it right away.”

Herzberg’s visit to a walk-in clinic the next day temporarily put him at ease. No tears in his knee were suspected.

But after another few days, Herzberg still couldn’t fully straighten his leg, and the pain had moved behind the knee, which he correctly determined wasn’t a good sign.

His visit to the Deerfield trainer led to an MRI and a hurried consultation the next day with Dr. David Raab, an orthopedic surgeon and one of the founders of the Illinois Bone and Joint Institute. Herzberg’s worst fears were confirmed: He had torn his ACL.

“I was freaking out for an entire week, and my first thought was, ‘Can I still play, and am I going to have a senior season?’” Herzberg said. “I found out on a Friday, and my mom said I had the weekend to pout and then we’re going to tackle this.”

It wasn’t the kind of tackling Herzberg had in mind after a standout junior season in which he led the playoff-qualifying Warriors (6-4) with 68 tackles and was an all-conference pick in the Central Suburban North. Deerfield had 15 starters coming back and was making a highly anticipated move to the more competitive Central Suburban South, so there was a lot of excitement.

But major knee surgery loomed for Herzberg with less than five months until the Aug. 25 season opener against DePaul College Prep, making even a single tackle seem doubtful.

“If this lasted six or seven months, my season was done,” he said.

Herzberg embarked on an ambitious rehabilitation schedule, overseen by Bannockburn-based physical therapist Bill Love. Herzberg’s rehab began the week after his April 18 surgery, and his goal from the get-go was returning to the field during his season senior.

“Playing some of the season seemed doable,” Love said. “He definitely wants to work at the highest level possible while also making sure we don’t compromise the safety of the knee. I’ve had to pull him back at times because he’s so motivated.”

Deerfield coach Steve Winiecki understands what Herzberg is going through. Winiecki’s daughter Savanna, a four-year soccer standout at Libertyville, tore her ACL twice. Both surgeries were performed by Raab, and each recovery lasted months longer than the time frame Herzberg envisioned, partly due to less restrictive calendar constraints.

“Seeing what she went through and experiencing that as a parent has helped me guide expectations for Drew and others who have had similar injuries,” Winiecki said. “He has attacked this rehab like a monster. It’s been very inspiring to watch what he’s done.”

Indeed, Herzberg has come a long way since the worst days of his recovery. He had to wear a waist-to-ankle brace on his leg for a week following surgery. When he removed the post-surgical bandage, he said the knee looked “as big as a balloon.” For a time, it was virtually impossible for him to move from his bedroom to the bathroom to take a shower.

“I remember just lying there in bed in the middle of the day thinking that I never thought this would happen to me,” Herzberg said.

With physical and mental milestones being met almost each week, however, Herzberg is upbeat. Looking ahead, he has given plenty of thought to Deerfield’s move in the conference. Among the teams in the South Division is perennial power Maine South.

“Part of me will miss playing all of our old rivals,” he said. “Every week will be a big challenge, going up against way bigger teams. We’ll get more exposure, and I think we’re up for the challenge. We’re working our butts off.”

That same approach has served Herzberg well. He is far ahead of schedule, and if he doesn’t have any setbacks, his return at some point this season seems realistic.

Herzberg has begun wearing a helmet for the portions of practice when he’s allowed to participate, and he’s able to run through a tackling dummy but without leaving his feet.

He recently moved up an appointment with Raab to Sept. 6 and said the perfect outcome would be permission to begin cutting and then engaging in full contact.

“I’m just playing a waiting game now but still working as hard as possible,” he said.

Another date Herzberg has circled is Sept. 14. He indicated he’d love to play special teams against Rolling Meadows that night and then expand to defense for the conference game against Glenbrook North eight days later. Conference games against Glenbrook South, Evanston, Maine South and New Trier will follow.

“Anything before October is like a cherry on top,” he said.

Steve Reaven is a freelance reporter for the News-Sun.