Oakmont downs Ponderosa after head coach tackles COVID

Headed to a hospital bed for six days in isolation was not the way Tim Moore envisioned spending his birthday. Around the same time in 2019, Moore was leading his Oakmont High School varsity football team to its first postseason berth in 16 years after his best season patrolling the Vikings sidelines. It was a proud moment since Moore is an alum of the school. Fast-forward to 2020. Moore returned from a trip to Minnesota for a former player's wedding to find he was experiencing COVID-19 symptoms. "I couldn't taste or smell anything and I was on fire," Moore said. Even his physical education students, attending class virtually, took notice. "I couldn't say two sentences back-to-back. My students, even on Zoom, could tell I was struggling breathing." It was on Moore's Oct. 10 birthday, about four days after he tested positive for the coronavirus, that his shortness of breath became more severe. It was to the point where his then-fiancee, Julie, an ER nurse at Kaiser Roseville, suggested calling an ambulance. Moore, who's been asthmatic since he was young and has had pneumonia multiple times, said his oxygen levels dropped to below 70% by the time the paramedics arrived. But thanks to the first responders' efforts, he began to recover once he reached the hospital. "I feel very fortunate, obviously, that I got such good care from Kaiser," Moore said. "I'll tell you what, the nurses, doctors, respiratory therapists, all the techs, everybody took care of me so well." As a high school teacher and coach, Moore has grown accustomed to social interaction. Being alone in a hospital bed made for a long six days for Moore. "The hardest part about the whole thing with being in there was not having any visitors," said Moore. "That's why that Tuesday night when I perked up, (the doctors) were like, 'Holy smokes, he wants to talk.'" Once Moore was able to leave the hospital, he still had obstacles to overcome. He was on an oxygen tank for two months and experienced some short-term memory loss. "My lungs are even worse than they were. It doesn't take long for me to start breathing heavy," Moore said. "They say that there's some memory loss that people experience, more like short-term stuff. The first four days in the hospital were a total blur." But once Moore was able to return to football practice, it was like riding a bike. His assistant coaches, Phil Holmes, Chris Damoulos, Justin Holmes, Jim Shields, Sam Sherrod and Nick McGovern, held down Oakmont's conditioning sessions in Moore's absence. They continued to prepare without the certainty of knowing there would be a football season at all. When the California Department of Public Health green-lit football competition on Feb. 19 in counties with COVID infection rates at or fewer than 14 per 100,000, there was suddenly a renewed sense of normalcy within the Oakmont camp. Moore, who also coaches boys golf at Oakmont, now breaks his day up into four parts. Wake up around 6:30 a.m. to get some football prep work in. Then go teach class until he has to leave for golf practice or matches in the afternoon. Once golf is done, head to football practice from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. four days a week. "This is Wednesday, Part 4," Moore joked during a recent football practice. "I'm still pretty jacked up by the time I get home at night." Since his COVID episode, Moore has moved into a new home, and his ER fiancee, Julie, has become his wife. They had a small wedding in their new home the day after Christmas. Moore was back on the football field coaching in a game for the first time in 16 months Friday against Ponderosa as his Vikings ground out a 15-7 win. James Mintmier kicked three field goals and Hayden Abbruzzese connected with Nate Venneri on a short option route in the third quarter to take the lead for good. There are still no guarantees for a full season. Four area games within the first week were canceled or altered due to positive COVID tests among teams. With every game comes a lot of perspective and appreciation for Moore. "Don't take things for granted. That's the biggest thing I think everybody has learned," Moore said. "You would hope that maybe things will go back to normal this fall for high school sports all around, but we don't know that for sure… (It's more about) how important your friendships are, your family, people that are your support structure. That's pretty much the gist of everything."