L-C’s Tlachac tough to bring down
Austin Tlachac is a spark plug for the Luxemburg-Casco football team.
The 5-foot-9, 165-pounder enters his third year on the varsity with a reputation for producing big plays despite often being the smallest player on the field.
Tlachac will be asked to make even more this year from a variety of positions as the Spartans take aim at a second straight North Eastern Conference title.
“He’ll be all over the place,” L-C coach Dillon Maney said.
The senior captain was just that at practice Saturday, firing on all cylinders as he encouraged teammates to keep up the intensity during the workout under the summer sun.
Tlachac is a natural leader and isn’t the type to make excuses. That mentality stems from the situation he was dealt when he was in fifth grade.
“My teacher noticed I had to use the restroom about every 15 minutes at that point,” Tlachac said. “She called my mom and said you should probably go get him checked.
“My blood sugar was way off whack, and I got diagnosed with Type 1 juvenile diabetes. The toughest part was being a kid and you want candy and all that stuff, but telling yourself you can’t have it anymore. It was hard to get the mindset that, ‘Hey, you’re diabetic now.’”
During the first year following his diagnosis, Tlachac was unable to attend sleepovers with friends as he needed time to get a grip on his condition.
There were instances where the family dog, Emma, would lick his fingers at night and sense his blood sugar levels were low. The black lab instinctively then went and woke up Tlachac’s parents, Ron and Kim.
Initially, Tlachac needed insulin shots before getting the OK to receive an insulin pump to help steady the Type 1 diabetes. It’s a condition where the pancreas produces little or no insulin, which is a hormone needed to allow sugar – glucose – to enter cells to produce energy.
There are about 1.25 million people in the U.S. with Type 1 diabetes, including about 200,000 individuals that are less than 20 years old, according to the American Diabetes Association.
Type 1 diabetes hasn’t stopped Tlachac from being a standout performer on the football field and the baseball diamond.
He takes his insulin pump off for football games to ensure it won’t get crushed in the instances where opposing defenses manage to catch up with him for a tackle. He keeps juice boxes and Skittles on the sideline in case his blood sugar levels are off.
Although he has become adept at monitoring them, Tlachac can still be susceptible to some difficult situations, like during a game his sophomore year against Marinette.
“My sugars were so out of whack that I had to go sit in the ambulance because I couldn’t calm myself down,” said Tlachac, who is considering a career as a dietician. “When I can’t calm myself down, my sugars don’t come down.”
While it’s often mispronounced on the road, Tlachac is a household name at L-C, which usually has at least one player by that last name on its football team.
Tlachac is the youngest of three boys in his family. His athletic prowess stems from competing with his brothers, Travis and Lucas, and their friends.
“I remember I used to have Thomas the Tank Engine toys,” Tlachac said. “Whenever they would come over or walk in on me, I would just chuck them at them and just beat up on my brothers’ friends.”
Tlachac made his share of big plays last year in helping the Spartans produce one of the best seasons in program history.
The signature one came in a Week 3 nonconference game at Seymour, where he returned a punt 60 yards for a touchdown to send the game to overtime as L-C came away with a 23-22 victory.
Tlachac also scored the first touchdown against Seymour in a WIAA Division 3 first-round playoff game. The score came a few days after his paternal grandfather, Ed, passed away.
“I used to sit in the van with him and park right there to watch Travis and Lucas when it was cold out because he didn’t want to go sit in the cold,” Tlachac said.
“It meant a lot. I promised him I would get one touchdown. I teared up a little bit, but after that it was go time.”
Tlachac is looking forward to getting a new season started on Aug. 18 when L-C hosts Denmark.
“I just like to get better every day,” Tlachac said. “You can’t get better if you’re not having fun. Chirping and having a good time by hooting and hollering with your buddies is one of the funnest things in the world to me. That’s why I play this game.”