For Dr. Michael Calcagno, co-owner of Olympic Chiropractic and Physical Therapy in Elmhurst, the world of athletics has taught him many lessons, such as how to take on any obstacle that comes his way – literally.
The Elmhurst native, who was a community college All American at College of DuPage and a two-year letterman at Bowling Green State University, not only worked his way through college on a football scholarship, he later tackled another collision sport – rugby – that also included a scholarship, while attending chiropractic school at Life University in Marietta, Ga.
Calcagno’s passion for sports has not gone unnoticed. In January 2009, his alma mater, Immaculate Conception High School, honored the 1987 graduate and 10 others with inductions into the school’s hall of fame. The school not only cited his college athletic experiences, but also his chiropractic and physical therapy work with area athletes.
“The Hall of Fame honor was really a true honor for me, to be a part of such a groundbreaking experience,” said the father of four, whose Italian-Irish family also includes three sisters and two brothers. “The honor goes to my family, especially my parents, who taught me to excel in life. That’s the whole thing. That’s what it’s all about.”
Calcagno’s experiences as a former linebacker on the College of DuPage Chaparral football team also empowers him to credit others for his success. During the 1989 season, he and fellow DuPagers won the Region IV title by beating archrival Harper College 37-20 for the N4C crown. The team (10-2 overall, 5-1 conference) went on to beat Waldorf College (Iowa) 20-6 at the Royal Crown Cola Bowl.
Calcagno, who was named second team All American, is not shy in expressing his opinions of such individuals as former College of DuPage head football coach Robert MacDougall, assistant coach Joe Roman, and another of the team’s part-time assistant coaches, Bill Duchon, Glenbard West High School’s celebrated football coach.
“Coaches MacDougall, Roman and Duchon,” he said. “They did a phenomenal thing for us. They taught me basic things such as responsibility and realizing your potential. I remember how Coach Roman cared so deeply for the kids. What I learned was that there are no lines to be crossed that you can’t cross. I looked at other people and learned that the saddest thing in life is wasted potential.”
Calcagno also learned of his potential to become a professional chiropractor while playing football at College of DuPage. Like many realizations that happen in life, it came quite by accident.
“I had been hurt at College of DuPage, and I had been to a couple of doctors,” he said. “I was depressed and dejected when my father suggested that I see a guy who was a chiropractor. I played football again nine days after I saw him, and I decided it was the thing to do.”
Prior to heading off to Life University to become a chiropractor, however, Calcagno discovered rugby while working in Chicago during the early 1990s.
“The great thing about rugby is that you can play at any age,” he said, explaining the differences between that sport and football. Calcagno, in fact, played rugby for 17 years, including once playing on a team in Cape Town, South Africa. In the U.S. he joined such rugby clubs as the Chicago Lions, and most recently, the Chicago Griffins, quitting only last year following the birth of his fourth child.
Nowadays, Calcagno keeps busy working with both athletes and non-athletes. Many of his patients are marathoners or half marathoners with a variety of sports injuries. But Calcagno approaches his work with the same discipline he learned as an athlete and that discipline can best be described as simple and straightforward.
“Football taught me the same thing my father and mother taught me,” he said. “Give 100 percent, be consistent and have a plan.”