Braun remains #RaiderStrong in comeback effort
Positive. Mental. Attitude.
The Pulaski football team has maintained that during one of its best seasons in program history.
The Red Raiders are 10-1 heading into a WIAA Division 2 state quarterfinal game at Marshfield and will be attempting to advance to the state semifinals for the first time since 1997.
It has been a memorable run thus far for Pulaski, which is led by senior Dylan Hendricks, who moved into fourth place on the state’s all-time list for rushing yards with 5,994.
While the Red Raiders have covered a lot of ground in their wins, the night of the team’s lone blemish featured some of the most important steps for the program that sum up exactly what the team, and the community it plays for, is all about.
After sustaining a tough 28-0 shutout loss to Bay Port on Sept. 14, Pulaski head coach Jerad Marsh walked off the field and cracked a huge smile.
It would have been hard not to since standing there to greet him was a longtime friend, Jeff Braun.
Although some of the crowd had started clearing out of Saputo Stadium in the fourth quarter of the lopsided loss that night, Braun stayed until the end during his first game watching on his new prosthetic leg.
“He’s a phenomenal man,” Marsh said. “I’ve known Jeff a long time. He’s a Seymour guy like me. He’s a positive-mental-attitude guy, PMA. Coach (Bill) Collar always instilled that in us when we were younger. You can see that in Jeff.”
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Braun saw the seeds being planted for the success Pulaski is ultimately enjoying under Marsh long before anybody else would.
Serving as the football team’s statistician since 2010, he had a front-row seat each Friday night to watch the program grow, including the start of Hendricks’ march towards the top of the state record books during a one-win season in 2015.
“My job was to record what happened,” Braun said. “I was taking great pride in recording all of Dylan’s yards those first three years.”
It was the Monday after Thanksgiving last year when Braun needed to have part of his right leg amputated when it was revealed bones had dissolved due to an infection and complications from diabetes.
The recovery process has been a bumpy one for the retired teacher, but Braun was cleared to be fitted for a prosthetic leg in late August and is driven to return to doing what he loves, which is coaching athletes in the throws for track and field in the spring.
“I still have a lot of work to do because my goal is to be able to coach this spring,” Braun said. “I’ve got to get ready because I’m committed to the kids. It’s up to me to get ready for them.”
Braun has been around throwing circles as an athlete or coach for 45 years.
His passion for the sport began when former Seymour athletic director Giz Herbst ordered a shot put and discus for the community’s summer recreational program.
After having an underwhelming personal-best throw of 33 feet in his first year competing as a sophomore, Braun went on to win the WIAA Class A state shot put title during his senior year in 1975. His winning mark of 63 feet, 1¼ inches still stands today as Seymour’s school record and is a Top 20 throw on the state’s all-time record board.
Braun went on to star in the shot put at the University of Wisconsin, winning seven Big Ten titles in the event. He competed in the Olympic Trials during the 1980s and was fifth in the nation by Track & Field News at one point before tearing a pectoral muscle.
“He was that legit,” said Marsh, whose brother and sister were both coached by Braun in the throws.
Braun helped coached throws at Wisconsin before ultimately transitioning to coaching at the prep level at various schools, including Lake Mills and Tomahawk. He joined the Pulaski School District in 2010.
“He honestly eats, sleeps and breathes throwing,” Pulaski track and field coach Kim Noe said. “The knowledge base that he has is next to none. He’s constantly learning more about it. The relationships that he has made with our throwers and the progress they have made with him being a part of the staff has been phenomenal.”
Braun’s support of high school sports over the years has been simply phenomenal.
If you’ve been to a Pulaski athletic event over the past decade, there’s a good chance you’ve probably ran into Braun, who helps run the scoreboard or keep the book for sports like volleyball, basketball or wrestling.
He’s always been willing to fill a role when needed.
When he was at Lake Mills and it needed a football coach, Braun was happy to give it his best shot for the school despite knowing that wasn’t his field of expertise.
“The pull of high school sports is just very strong,” Braun said. “I’ve just always been involved. I’ve just always been involved. High school sports, and sports in general, have been a big, important part of my life.”
Braun’s life was thrown a huge curveball last year when his leg started to swell up. He went to have it checked out the Wednesday before Thanksgiving and received the diagnosis of the severity of the situation.
The following months were difficult to say the least, especially when he couldn’t be there to coach the Pulaski throwers in the spring.
Braun, however, was able to make it to a few meets, including when Pulaski hosted the Fox River Classic Conference championships in May.
His smile that day shined brighter than any first-place medal ever could. He was home in his element by the throwing circles at Saputo Stadium.
“That’s been astronomical in his healing process is his end goal to coach again,” Noe said. “I cannot wait to have him back there. He can work with any kid to get them excited about the sport.”
Braun feels the appeal to the sport is pretty obvious for him.
“I just gravitate towards it,” Braun said. “I love seeing the look on a kid’s face after they throw a PR and do their best. I would always thank the athletes I worked with and say thank you for allowing me to share my passion with you.”
Braun can see Marsh shares that same passion for coaching as well.
It’s why he highly recommended Marsh to join Tomahawk’s football coaching staff when he was on a hiring committee there.
Braun later saw Marsh step down as athletic director at Pulaski to take over the head-coaching duties and fill a role that was needed for the school when it experienced four head coaches in four years.
“He brought some stability to the program,” Braun said. “The thing that Jerad did, even though we were losing at first, those kids left with a positive feeling about their experience. He’s that type of a person. Even when things are going bad, he’s going to be positive. Kids gravitate towards him just because of his personality. He makes people around him feel good.”
Despite being in graduating classes over 20 years apart, it’s obvious that Braun and Marsh both shaped their coaching styles from playing under WFCA Hall of Fame coach Bill Collar at Seymour.
They learned the most important element about being a good coach has little to do with victories and records. It’s about building relationships by showing people you care and always being there with a positive mental attitude, no matter the situation.
That’s why it’s not surprising that almost 40 years after he competed for him, Coach Collar was there to offer Braun rides when he needed them in the past year.
There have been a number of individuals from the community that have offered the same support and well wishes. It has truly touched Braun to think that so many people would care.
Pulaski is rooting for Braun to accomplish his goal this spring as he much as he has rooted for any of its teams over the years
“It’s part of the culture here,” Braun said. “It’s what makes us good. The community is just fantastic. It’s not just for me, it’s just what they do when people have needs. I’ve learned that value. Hopefully, I get in a position now where I can pay it forward for them.”