A bittersweet finale for St. Francis football’s Will Huston

Friday night may have been the end of the season for St. Francis High’s Golden Knights football team, but for senior Will Huston it was the end of something much more significant.

A running back who got much of his playing time on special teams, Huston watched last week’s playoff game in La Cañada against Whittier’s La Serna High School unfold from the sidelines. Clad in his No. 27 jersey, he did all he could to support his teammates but was saddened not to be able to join them on the gridiron for what would be their final game together.

After four years of football, the 17-year-old Huston had to end the season early last month when cystic fibrosis, a lung condition he was diagnosed with as a baby, caused complications that forced him to stop playing.

He’d made it all the way up to St. Francis’ Senior Night game Oct. 30 against St. Paul — after being hospitalized and taking four-times-a-day treatments that had him rushing to and from school — but was less than halfway into the game when he realized he could go no further.

“The St. Paul game was really hard to play in,” Huston recalled. “My lungs were on fire, just from kicking and trying to punt. It was hurting a lot.”

St. Francis Coach Jim Bonds had known for years about the running back’s condition, had accommodated the hospitalizations and treatments and rallied the team in support. But it wasn’t until the Senior Night game, when Huston turned down a chance to play, that Bonds knew something was wrong.

“I told him, ‘Are you good to go?’ and he shook his head no,” Bonds said. “He’s usually so eager to get on the field. (So) when he shook his head no, I realized the severity of where he was. It was really an eye opener. My heart just broke for the kid.”

Cystic Fibrosis is a genetic condition that causes a build-up of mucous in the lungs, pancreas and other organs. It can lead to coughing and wheezing, shortness of breath, nasal polyps, digestion problems and life-threatening lung infections.

For years, Huston has received treatment at Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles, where doctors and staff have helped him live as normal a life as possible. But in November, when the contact point of a PICC line, an intravenous catheter installed to deliver antibiotics, became infected and caused a blood clot in Huston’s arm, the risk of playing football became too great.

Not being able to engage in the sport he’d discovered as a freshman and immediately fallen in love with was a heartbreaking prospect, especially when St. Francis advanced into the playoffs. Huston recalled his feelings right before a Nov. 20 home game against Burbank’s Burroughs High.

“I was just standing outside the locker room, looking across the fields toward the bleachers,” he said. “That’s when it hit me I was never going to get a chance to play here again.”

Beth Huston said Monday her son has taken the recent series of events in good stride, adding that while it’s been difficult, he’s forged lifelong friendships with his coaches and teammates.

“It was sad, but the camaraderie was still there, and that was really important,” she said. “I think (the team) gives him a really good support system.”

Bonds echoed the sentiment, praising the running back for being an inspiration to those around him.

“We try to teach our players about life and about football and all the things that go along with being a member of a team. But I think I’ll learn more from the things Will has shown us,” Bonds said. “He’s just been such an inspiration to all of us about how to go about your business.”

Despite football’s bittersweet finale, Huston has many more things on his proverbial plate. With a 4.45 cumulative GPA, he’s waiting to hear back on his early application to the University of Notre Dame. He’s also been cleared by doctors to continue his four-year tenure on the baseball team; the first day of winter baseball practice took place Tuesday.

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Sara Cardine, sara.cardine@latimes.com

Twitter: @SaraCardine