Football a family affair in Peabody

PEABODY?It was Thanksgiving Day last year and the Peabody High football team was hosting Northeastern Conference rival Saugus up at Coley Lee Field. Not only did the Tanners pull off a win to finish the year above .500 (6-5), but head coach Scott Wlasuk experienced a more personal achievement. It was the first time his two sons, Sean and Cody, both players in the Tanner program, were on the field with him.”It was very special,” Coach Wlasuk said. “I reflected that at one point in time, at camp years ago with (former coach Ed Nizwantowski) and my wife was working full-time out of the house – she works part-time out and part-time in (the house) now – one of my boys was in a Pack-and-Play, the other was waddling around on the field, I was changing diapers, and I reflected on how fast time had gone by.”It really made me feel special as a parent. It was a big Thanksgiving Day win and both my boys were out there. I had never been with them on Thanksgiving mornings, I was always coming home late, 2:30, 3, sometimes later in the afternoon. It was nice to be able to share that.”This year, Sean Wlasuk is a senior captain, and Cody Wlasuk is a sophomore. Sean is the team kicker and is also penciled in at safety, cornerback, backup quarterback and “a little slot back,” his father said, while Cody, who has mostly JV experience, is a quarterback/safety. Peabody sports fans might also remember Cody from his Little League World Series days two years ago with Peabody West.”I was watching the (2011) Little League World Series team from California,” Coach Wlasuk said, referring to the eventual champs from Huntington Beach. “Two years ago we lost to the eventual world champs, Chula Vista, California. I was watching the games on TV, where the VIP (section is), where they keep the parents, things the parents were doing. It was certainly a very special time for us. We got support back home from (Peabody High athletic director) Phil Sheridan and the coaching staff.”Coach Wlasuk said he “(has) to take credit” for his sons taking up football, although, he hastens to add, “I never really pressured them into it.”Sean Wlasuk played Pop Warner in his first year of eligibility, but in his second year, he did not want to, and his father recalled, “I didn’t pressure him. He’s got to do it because he wants to. He came back after that (year) and played.”Football is so mentally and physically demanding. You can’t force someone to commit if he does not have it in his heart. You have to commit.”Fast-forward to four years ago, when Scott Wlasuk was named head coach of his alma mater and Sean was a freshman.”I was overseeing the freshman program,” Coach Wlasuk said, “but I let the freshman coach run things.”In Sean’s sophomore season, he moved up to the JVs and the varsity.”It is challenging at times, being an assistant coach and probably tenfold more as a head coach, to separate yourself from the parent-on-the-sidelines bit,” Coach Wlasuk said.He recalled one moment last season, when the Tanners had the ball with 10 seconds remaining in the first half against Winthrop.”Two of my captains were over at the sidelines and Sean was holding the kicking tee,” the coach said. “My parent side kicked in: ‘Oh my God, am I going to put him into a pressure situation? My wife is going to yell at me!’ But my wife has been wonderful, and my captains said, ‘Coach, he can do it.’ I went back into coach mode: He is a player on a team.”So, Coach Wlasuk brought his son in to kick, and Sean ended up connecting on a 35-yard field goal.”He hit it so good, it would have been good from 50,” the coach marveled.Sean Wlasuk’s college considerations include what his father described as “small state schools, Endicott College, Merrimack. We’ll probably look at Curry ? we’re hoping he’ll have a good year kicking for us.”And one year of varsity football with his brother as his teammate, and their father as coach.”I separate from a parent and focus on being a coach,” Scott Wlasuk said. “Both know th