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VIENNA -- Over the last four years, Mathews senior Ethan Petak has had plenty of roles wearing the red and black: Golfer, star catcher on the baseball team and starter for the Mustangs basketball team during their district championship season this past year.
But in his senior year, Petak took on another role -- quarterback for Mathews football.
Despite not playing football since sixth grade, Petak has shined thus far in his newest role under center. But what brought him back to the game?
Aside from wanting that experience of walking on the field on a Friday night, Petak had a promise to fulfill.
"Obviously I just wanted the experience of being on the field under the Friday Night Lights," he said. "Another reason was that my grandma passed away, and I promised her that she would watch me for my senior year of football. She still is. She's got a front row seat to every one of my games, so I'm really trying to make her proud."
According to coach Bill Bohren, it didn't take too much convincing.
"Last year was his junior year, and he was a basketball player and an outstanding baseball player," Bohren said. "He was the catcher on the baseball team and a really good hitter. He had played all those sports, and we just thought he'd be a really good, really good football player. We told him we'd like to have him out, and he said he'd like to play, so he came out and he certainly has done well so far."
Having been away from the game for so long, at least on the field, left Petak with a bit of an adjustment period, but it was quick. He may have stopped playing organized football, but the game never left his life.
Having leadership roles on the baseball and basketball teams didn't hurt either.
"I've always really kept with it," Petak said about the sport. "I've always been watching the Buckeyes on Saturdays, the Browns on Sundays and plus I've been playing Madden. I'm just relearning it, and I'm relearning really quick I think. It really never even left me. I've always been a type of a leader on the team during basketball and baseball, so (the other aspect of being a quarterback) was just kind of second nature to me."
Even though it's his first season of high school football, Petak is still one of the elder statesmen on the team. There are only three seniors on the Mustangs' roster and 14 total upperclassmen.
Having a reliable group of underclassmen to lead has made Petak's leadership role a lot easier as well.
"I couldn't ask for a better group of kids," he said. "Most of them are younger, but these kids are just great kids. They look up to seniors and they just do their jobs really well. They come up, they come to practice every day, they show up and work hard. That's all I can ask for."
Mathews hosts Edison on Saturday, a date that's been circled on the Mustang calendars since day one.
Petak's top goal is to go a perfect 10-0 this year. Edison is arguably the biggest obstacle to that, as the Wildcats enter the game at 3-0 as a Division V school. That being said, Petak and the Mustangs are going to be putting the work in. He knows that because he missed six years, he has a lot to catch up on.
"We've got to get better day by day," Petak said. "Especially with me missing out on six years. It's not easy. I've still got to watch film as much as I can and just really have to listen to the coaches. Trust the coaches and be the player I can be."