In Game 5 of the 1997 NBA Finals, with the series tied 2-2 against the Utah Jazz, Michael Jordan played one of the most famous games in sports history.

In the legendary flu game, he put up 38 points and led the Chicago Bulls to a win despite suffering from illness. He almost passed out, but he did what he had to do for the team.

Long before that, when Jordan was a freshman in high school, Minooka had its own version of the flu game. In 1977, senior cross country runner Tom Clennon had the flu on the day of the state meet. He powered through a 103-degree fever to place 11th in the state and received all-state honors for the second year in a row in cross country (he had placed 3rd at the state meet the year prior). 

His 11th-place finish with the flu helped Minooka earn its only trophy ever in boys cross country. The team finished third that year.

For his career as an athlete, Clennon is being inducted into the MCHS Athletic Hall of Fame this year. Clennon, a member of the Class of 1978, is given the honor for his impressive career in the early days of Minooka cross country and track. He set the standard for Minooka distance runners for years to come.

“When I first started here in Minooka back in 1999, that was the first name when I started taking a deep dive into the history of this team that popped up,” cross country head coach Kevin Gummerson said. “In the late ’70s, Minooka cross country teams were state trophy winners, state powerhouses.”

Clennon was the type of teammate who elevated those around him. He wasn’t just the team’s fastest runner, he was also a great team player.

“Talking to some of his teammates – I never had the honor of meeting Tom – but talking to some of his teammates there’s something that popped up,” Gummerson said. “He would drag them out of bed in the morning to go run eight or nine miles. They didn’t want to do it, but he would drag them out of bed. What I found out was Tom made them better, but by making them better, he made himself better.”

Clennon was no stranger to adversity. He was a guy the team could rely on no matter what. Under circumstances where others would give up, he fought the odds.

“The other thing I learned about Tom was that he was one who dealt with adversity time and time again,” Gummerson said. “I found numerous articles talking about how he ran with the flu, how he ran with severe blisters down at the state track meet. He was just a gutsy, gutsy performer.”

Clennon was also a winner on the track. In 1977, he was the 1A state champion in both the 1-mile and 2-mile races. 

When Minooka moved up to 2A the next year, he still found success. He came 4th at state in the 1-mile run and 3rd in the 880-yard run in his senior season. He was also part of a group that came in 6th in the 2-mile relay at the 1A state finals in 1976.

Clennon was a champion in cross country as well. He was the conference and district (regional) champion in back-to-back years, 1976 and 1977. He won the sectional meet in 1976.

He led distance running to dominance in his time and they weren’t the same when he left. The Minooka cross country and track teams didn’t see an era quite as successful as Clennon’s until the 2010s, about 30 years later.

Clennon was also known to be a great individual with a good sense of humor and a beloved member of the community. Unfortunately, he passed away in 1999. Even in death, he continues to inspire at MCHS.

“The legend of Tom is something I tell the team every single year so the athletes know the greats that came before them,” Gummerson said. “I’m happy to see Tom inducted into the Hall of Fame, it’s a well-deserved honor, and Minooka cross country is definitely better because of Tom Clennon’s performances in the 1970s.”

Clennon will be recognized before the varsity football game on Sept. 27. Other Hall of Fame inductees who will be recognized then include Cyndi Kiper (athlete), Jenna Hall (athlete), Russ Weil (athlete), Wayne Greenbeck (coach), Ron Lehman (special merit), and the 1962 baseball team.