Early impression nets Tanner scholarship at Northwest

MARYVILLE, Mo. — One second, Cody Tanner was awash in embarrassment.

The next, he was swarmed by teammates congratulating him.

The freshman walk-on center on the Northwest Missouri State University football team was finishing practice on Saturday, Aug. 26, when some odd things began to happen, in his mind.

It was Family Day in Bearcat Stadium, so it wasn’t unusual for parents to be milling around. But, then offensive coordinator Charlie Flohr announced that Cody’s parents, Robbie and Roger, were coming down to the field early for a picture with head coach Rich Wright, because they had to leave.

The 6-foot-2, 285-pound freshman felt about 2 feet tall. He wanted to hide behind a rock.

“I thought, WHAT are they doing, and why are they doing this?” Tanner said. “Then my mom came up and said, ‘Congratulations, you got a scholarship.’ Then everybody went crazy. Coach Wright announced it to everybody and talked a little bit about it.”

Mike Cunningham, the Bearcats’ offensive line coach, said Tanner was surprised to hear he was no longer walk-on status after only a few weeks of fall practice. He had bypassed a 90 percent scholarship offer from Grand View University to join fellow Creston class of 2017 standouts Chase Shiltz and Kadon Hulett on the Bearcats team. Shiltz and Hulett signed scholarship offers.

“Coach Flohr blew his whistle and said Cody’s mom had to leave and asked her to come on down for a picture with coach Wright,” Cunningham said. “Cody was kind of hiding. He was embarrassed. Then his mom told him congratulations in getting a scholarship. Everybody erupted. Coach Wright talked about how he passed up an original offer (at Northwest) to take more time in making a decision. Then he gave up another scholarship chance after we didn’t have any (scholarship) money left. He showed his loyalty to this program by coming down as a walk-on, then worked hard and showed he deserved it.”

After the Bearcats shut out Emporia State 34-0 in the season opener Aug. 31, Tanner talked about his opening weeks in the program. He is one of five offensive linemen on the team who have worked extensively at the center position. Three are upperclassmen and Tanner is one of two freshmen.

All three Creston freshmen are redshirting this season and will have four years of eligibility beginning in the fall of 2018.

“The offense is pretty similar,” Tanner said. “It’s just a matter of learning the different calls and stuff for the different fronts, and the new plays. I’m excited about this team and I look forward to being on the field someday.”

Tanner’s high school teammates on the Bearcats were happy for him.

Proud teammates

“I was running over on the sidelines just getting some conditioning in,” said Hulett, who had to sit out several practices with complications resulting from a concussion early in training camp. “They called Robbie down and I started getting a sniff of what was going on. Then everyone went crazy and I almost immediately got goosebumps. I honestly almost teared up, because I knew the choice he made and the reason he made it. He wanted to be a part of the culture we have here. He ultimately came down here and I’m obviously happy he made that decision.”

Shiltz experienced similar emotions.

“I was super proud of him and super happy to hear it,” Shiltz said. “He came here with no scholarship and he earned one within the first month we were here. I think he opened a lot of people’s eyes when he got here and I still think he has a lot of potential.”