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Monday, October 1, 2007
Families who play together, stay together
Central Kansas, KS
By: Tom Witherspoon
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Photo(s) By: Kyle Danztler/MyActionPortraits.com
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Twelve of Conway Springs’ football players are either cousins or brothers. Back row, L to R: Matt Pauly, Kayl Barkley, Douglass Winter, Trevor Tarrant, William Becker; Center: Mason Pauly, Austin Pauly, Nick Pauly, Chris Gerber; Front: Matt Pauly, Nathan Pauly, Jonathon Dalbom.
Around 75 years ago, John and Laura Pauly migrated from Atchison in northeast Kansas to the farmland around Viola, a one-street town six miles north of Conway Springs. They raised a big family, and so did their kids. In all, John and Laura became grandma and grandpa to 56 children. The roots of a Conway Springs football dynasty begun in 1997 can be traced back to that couple.
Mark Bliss, who took over the program in the fall of 1997, undoubtedly knew his X’s and O’s, but his team’s ranks were filled with the Pauly’s talented descendants. From ’97 through 2004 in which Conway lost just four games, won five state titles – including four straight – and compiled a 62-game winning streak, John and Laura Pauly’s great-grandkids helped make Bliss’ ball-control, run-first offense an unstoppable force.
“At one point, I think we had 20-25 kids from that family on the team,” estimated Lelin George, an assistant under Bliss from 2001-04 and the Conway head coach since Bliss’ departure. Of course, big families and the confusion of who’s who go hand-in-hand in Conway. “I’ve been here seven years, and I’m still just finding out who’s related to whom.”
Twelve of the players on this fall’s team are related by the Pauly family: Chris Gerber, Austin Pauly, Nick Pauly, Nathan Pauly, Jonathon Dalbom, Mason Pauly, Trevor Tarrant, Seth Tarrant, Matt Pauly, Doug Winter, William Becker and Kayl Barkley.
Every afternoon at 3:30, the boys have a family reunion on the practice field.
But do they hang out in the hallways? “Not with the little guys,” joshed Nathan Pauly, as he pushed a freshman cousin’s head down. Nathan, a junior defensive lineman and fullback, seems to be the ringleader, walking ahead of the rest, positioning himself center and front as they headed to the practice field.
Do they pack an extra punch against each other in full-contact drills? “I do against Mason. I knocked him out once,” Nathan said, pointing a finger at his brother. A knockout of Mason at any time by his older brother seems unlikely. The stout freshman has broad shoulders that disappear into his neck, and he’s got thick forearms. Mason just glared, like he wanted to crack him right then and there. Brothers will be brothers.
Over 100 people attend Pauly family get-togethers, so it’s not hard to mis-shape the family tree. “How are you related?” William Becker, a junior lineman, asked Austin Pauly. All chuckled.
Austin, a freshman with serious promise according to Coach George, happens to be the younger brother of several key figures in the legendary Conway run. Brandon Pauly, the first of Jay and Diane Pauly’s eight sons, barely missed a state title his senior year, Bliss’ first. Conway went 11-1 in ’97, Brandon’s senior year, before he continued playing football at Hutchinson Community College. He then transferred to Kansas State, where he gave up ball, but graduated from the veterinary school. An all-state lineman at Conway in high school, now he runs a clinic in town and his wife is expecting their fourth child.
Eric Pauly, the second-born has been the family’s most successful football player to date.
Publications Prep Star and Super Prep named him an All-American his senior year at Conway, in which they won the school’s first state football title. He continued on to have a stellar career at Colorado State; the linebacker was nominated a Butkus Award finalist for his senior season in 2003, but blew out a knee. The injury ended NFL hopes, but Eric has found another way to be successful. He’s scheduled to graduate from Washburn Law next spring.
After an All-American high school career, Nathan, the Pauly’s fourth boy, followed his brother’s footsteps to Colorado State. Though Eric is equal in athletic ability, elbow, thumb, and shoulder injuries have not allowed him to complete a football season in Fort Collins. Nathan might get back on the field this fall, but, no matter what, his family will be at the games to support him.
Jay, Diane and those remaining in the home – Austin, Ryan, Janelle and Janae – truck up to Fort Collins after Conway’s Friday night games for Nathan’s home games, just as they did for Eric’s. They’ll drive all night, get a hotel in the morning and head back Sunday after Saturday’s game. They braved the Colorado night and cold even with a one-year-old in tow during Eric’s playing days. “We go to almost every game – one time, four weekends in a row,” said Diane. “They always wanted to go. It’s more fun than staying home.”
Home is where chores always await. Jay and Diane reside on 1,000 acres of farmland just off K-49 in Viola; they grow wheat, corn, milo and milk 140 cows every morning and evening. “I think the boys wanted to play football so they wouldn’t have to do chores,” Diane said, infecting the room with laughter.
Nonetheless, the parents always made sure the boys got to participate. Jay even hired extra help so they would not miss practice. And on Friday nights, the milking was done a little early.
“They’re all good workers, and they stayed out of trouble because they always had something to do,” explained Diane.
“But we don’t have anybody coming back to take over,” injected Jay with a hearty guffaw.
“When they come home, they get right back into it,” Diane added with pride and admiration.
Brandon, Eric, Craig (currently at K-State vet school, following Brandon’s trail), Nathan, Matthew and Scott (a freshman at K-State, likely getting into trouble despite Craig keeping an eye on him, says Jay and Diane) come back home often.
The family is very close. When all the boys still lived at home, all of their beds were in one large open room upstairs. There was nowhere to go but to each other.
“When they went to college, they looked at their dorm rooms and said, ‘Wow, look at all this space. We get our own closet!’” said Diane.
It’s not hard for Conway coaches to preach “family” to their teams. “So many are already part of this extended family,” says the head coach, George. “Sometimes I tell a kid in the weight room, ‘You lift well,’ and he responds, ‘Well, you know who I’m related to,’ and they reel off the name of a Pauly.”
Nineteen years separate Jay and Diane’s 10 children; Brandon, their oldest, will soon have four of his own. One of them is already tackling anything he can get his arms around.
“Sports are just so much fun. And (watching them) is our reward for having so many kids,” said Diane. “That’s why we wanted to have a big family.”
Between their children and grandchildren, Jay and Diane Pauly can watch family play sports at Conway till the day they die. Just the way they planned it.
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