As the Wabash football team got off to a fast start in 2005, two NFL teams with connections to the Little Giants also raced to the tops of their divisions.
Former Wabash wide receiver Chris Wiesehan ’94 joined the Tampa Bay Buccaneers coaching staff this season as an offensive assistant and quality control coach. That’s the same position that Pete Metzelaars ’82 holds with the Indianapolis Colts.
Wiesehan, an All-American at Wabash who is still fourth on the all-time receiving chart, served as an assistant coach at Purdue, Notre Dame, and Northern Arizona before heading to the NFL. He’s also the third coach with Tampa Bay with a connection to the College. Former Wabash Head Coach Stan Parrish joined the Bucs for two seasons as a quarterback coach, including Tampa Bay’s Super Bowl championship year in 2003. Tampa Bay Head Coach Jon Gruden played against the Little Giants while he was a quarterback at the University of Dayton.
Metzelaars took time out from preparing for the Colts’ first Monday night game of the season against the
St. Louis Rams to give the Wabash football team a tour of the Colts’ practice facility. The tour was part of the Little Giants’ trip to Wooster. Wabash went on to defeat the Scots 44-10, while Indianapolis handed St. Louis a 45-28 defeat.
While the Colts continued their early success, injuries handcuffed the Buccaneers after winning their first four games. But perhaps someday soon we can all watch these two former Wabash gridiron greats coaching against one another in the Super Bowl.
A Record to Remember
When Geoff Walker ’07 stood at the seven-yard-line waiting to field a punt against Oberlin in October, he had no idea he was standing in the footprints of another Little Giant player.
Fifty-nine years earlier, Frank Roman ’50 stood at the seven-yard-line waiting for a punt from the Rose Poly kicker. He grabbed the ball, raced 93 yards, and set the Wabash punt return record. Fast forward to a crisp fall afternoon in 2005, only this time insert Walker for a record-tying 93-yard return.
"I thought my record might stand forever, because I know they tell the players to let the ball bounce inside the 10 and go into the end zone," said Roman. "But you have to have guts and confidence in your abilities to make that play. Certainly Mr. Walker has that. I have been very proud to hold that record all these years, and I hope Mr. Walker will enjoy the same honor."
"It took some amazing blocking to get me free to go the distance for the touchdown," Walker said of his feat, which also broke the North Coast Athletic Conference record. "And to hear from the person I share the record with, that’s something special. I hope we can share that mark for many years to come."
Simkus Summer Adventures
Gary Simkus ’08 had a summer of experiences that would take most people years to complete. He returned to his family’s native roots, played international basketball in Lithuania, and was a participant in a Chicago Fire developmental soccer league.
The 6'6'' Simkus was contacted by a Toronto, Canada, basketball team looking for players of Lithuanian descent in early summer. He joined the team for a tournament in Detroit.
"When they found out I was young enough to play on their 20-and-under team, they asked me if I wanted to go to Lithuania," Simkus says.
Simkus’ grandfather had emigrated from Lithuania but never returned to his native land. It was a chance for Simkus to learn about his heritage.
"I got some videos about the culture and, of course, my grandpa always used to talk about it. It was cool to see the stuff he talked about. We drove past his hometown."
Simkus was in Lithuania for the country’s national games. There were international teams made up of players of Lithuanian descent. His Canadian team won the bronze medal in the three-day tournament.
"Basketball is their main sport, and it was really great to play in those old gyms," says Simkus, who averaged nearly six points and more than three rebounds a game for the Little Giants last year. "We then went sight-seeing and traveled with an under-12 team. The tournament was in the capital, Vilnius, but we made it around the country and actually swam in the Baltic Sea."
Simkus’ 20th birthday celebration on July 1 was one he’ll never forget.
"We spent that day at the Canadian Embassy because that’s their Independence Day. We got to dance to Lithuanian polka music, but you had to watch out for the old ladies who’d pinch your butt," he recalls with a laugh.
Before and after the Lithuania trip, he played in an amateur developmental soccer league sponsored by the Chicago Fire.
"It was great competition," Simkus says. "It has always been my dream to play top-level soccer and, hopefully, to be a pro some day."
Note: Simkus parlayed his experience on the soccer pitch in Chicago to the field at Mud Hollow, leading the Little Giants with eight goals in 17 games.