By Grant Pepper
For the last four years, fans and community members have filled the stands at War Memorial Park on fall Friday nights, eager to watch not only their hometown team, but also one of northwest Ohio’s hidden gems.
As the air got cool and the leaves turned red, they gathered to watch one of the state’s most entertaining offenses -- one that passed the ball on nearly every down. They gathered to watch a team that consistently fought for Northwest Conference championships. And in large part, they gathered to watch the six-foot-nothing, gunslinging quarterback that led the way.
They lined the fence surrounding the stadium to watch No. 5 in purple and gold, nimble as the wind and tough as nails, move in the pocket while directing aerial traffic.
For four years, they came to watch Seth Conley, who took every snap since his freshman year (except for the last half of his sophomore season, when he broke his arm).
Conley threw for over 10,000 yards in his career as an Ada Bulldog, which ranks 10th all-time in the state record books. He threw for 101 passing touchdowns and 862 career completions, breaking Ada High School records in both categories.
And now, with four legendary years in the purple and gold behind him and the rest of his life ahead, No. 5 has made his decision.
Seth Conley will be staying in his hometown. He will be attending school and playing football for Ohio Northern University next fall.
The decision
Conley, who made his decision early last week, told the Ada Icon shortly thereafter that it was based off of many factors.
First and foremost, Ohio Northern had what Conley needed academically.
The senior wishes to pursue a degree in engineering over the next four years (he hasn’t chosen between electrical or mechanical yet) and said that ONU provided him the best opportunity to do so.
“I think that’s kind of what decided it for me right away was that, at other schools, there was like one or two engineers on the football team. You go to ONU, and I think there’s like 28,” Conley said. “So that was a very big factor.”
Although Conley said that he considered other schools like Mount Union – which boasts one of most successful football programs in NCAA history, regardless of division – they simply did not fit his academic needs.
“I visited there multiple times, actually,” Conley said of Mount Union. “But like I said, the engineering program... it just wasn’t very strong, and I just didn’t feel comfortable like I did at ONU. A few other schools called, but none that had an engineering program, so I didn’t really take visits.”
Conley said that he has always been interested in physics, calculus and other math-related subjects. And while pursuing these courses in high school, Bob Olwin, Conley’s high school coach, said that the senior has maintained a near-perfect grade point average.
Engineering runs in the family for Conley, as well. His older brother, Austin, also studied engineering at Ohio Northern. He graduated from ONU in 2014 with a degree in mechanical engineering and currently works as an engineer at AGC Automotive in Bellefontaine.
Seth still talks glowingly about his older brother’s senior capstone project at Ohio Northern, when his group famously reinvented the Kewpee hamburger slicer.
“They actually still use that,” Conley said chuckling.
Along with the prestige of ONU’s engineering program, which is ranked among the top 50 undergraduate engineering schools in the nation according to ONU’s website, Conley also noted that the college’s new building would be up by fall 2019, which would be his sophomore year.
A fit on the gridiron
In addition to the academic fit at ONU, Conley’s long-held connection to Northern’s football program also played a role in the senior’s decision.
Conley has known ONU head coach Dean Paul since the quarterback’s family moved to Ada when he was in fifth grade. Conley got to know Paul through family friends and the Ada youth football program, as Paul’s son Bryce (who also now plays football for AHS) is just two years younger than Conley. The quarterback also spent many Saturdays during his childhood on ONU’s sideline, as he helped out with the chain gang on gamedays.
With a son on the team, Paul has attended a large portion of Ada’s games over the last few years. While Paul could not comment for this story due to NCAA Div. III rules (which prohibit coaches from publicizing a student-athlete’s commitment to an institution until that student-athlete has submitted a financial deposit), Conley said that Paul had recruited him during his senior year and that ONU had always been on his radar.
“I know Coach Paul and Coach Paul knows me very well,” Conley said frankly. “You know, he was probably at every single home game. I feel very comfortable with him.”
Conley was also attracted to Ohio Northern’s offense, which is a pro-style attack that requires skillful quarterbacks and features a breadth of options at the line of scrimmage. Olwin believes that Conley should thrive in some of the run-pass option (or “RPO”) schemes that Ohio Northern implements, and that the senior’s arm strength and footwork will transfer to the next level.
ONU runs a mix of short and long passes within their offense, an approach which Conley was accustomed to for four years at Ada. The only difference, he says, is that ONU features a runner in the backfield (in next year’s case, All-American Christiaan Williams), who they use to balance the attack.
While Conley will enter his freshman season next year following a historic career at Ada, the hometown quarterback expects to play a more reserved role during his first season of college football. ONU’s quarterback competition next fall will be headlined by two proven starters – senior Will Freed and junior Anthony McFadden – among other returners.
“Clearly, next year is a learning year,” Conley said. “Just taking in as much I can, being a sponge to those older guys. And then hopefully by my junior or senior year I’ll get to lead the pack and hopefully make it to the playoffs and try to make a run. But next year I definitely want to be a sponge to those guys and learn as much as I can.”
Conley said that he wants to improve his arm strength and learn the Ohio Northern offense next year, as he will have to learn a whole new set of terminology. The senior also wants to improve his overall strength during his freshman season.
The hometown kid
When asked whether or not it was a hard decision to stay in Ada for college, Conley laughs. For a long time, he says, he would have never even considered it.
“Sophomore or junior year, I probably could’ve told you that I’d never stay in Ada or go to college in Ada, after being here so long,” Conley said.
During his college search, however, Conley said that the decision became increasingly clear.
“You kind of realize that it’s not just going to be an extension of Ada High School,” Conley said. “You’re going to get out, you’re going to meet new people.”
Along with Conley, several of his senior football teammates plan on furthering their athletic careers in college. All-conference lineman Jakob Hoschak recently signed to play at Ashland University next fall. Chase Sumner, Conley’s main receiving target over the last four years, will likely sign with a Div. I school for wrestling in the near future. And Conley also believes that Aaron Everhart, the team’s kicker, running back and slot receiver, will also choose to play football at the next level.
Conley’s decision to attend his hometown college poses many benefits, aside from the academic and athletic ones. Olwin noted that Conley’s parents will be able to easily attend all of his home games. So will the community, for that matter, who filled the bleachers for the last four years to watch No. 5 throw the deep ball.
This is the same community that saw Conley throw 52 completions against Delphos Jefferson during his freshman year, a sign of what would be expected in the years to come. They saw him scramble for his life in the pocket at least once or twice a game, avoiding would-be tacklers left and right before miraculously completing a first down pass or rushing it across the marker himself. They saw the quarterback write history at Ada High School, then rewrite it over and over again.
Now, they will get to fill the stands of ONU’s Dial-Roberson Stadium to see the next stage of Seth Conley’s journey. From a kid who loved physics to an engineer, and from a high school legend to a college quarterback.
Seth Conley is staying home. And he couldn’t be more thrilled.
Follow Grant Pepper on Twitter: @GrantPepper
