Shaun Hill San Fancisco 49ers
Shaun Hill is the starting quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers. Based on how the media portrays professional athletes, the logical conclusion is that Hill leads a flamboyant lifestyle filled with glitz, glamour and bling. As a permanent resident of the Lake of the Ozarks, the assumption could be that Hill owns a multi-million dollar home with a fancyschmancy boat parked out front.
Hill is a most unpretentious professional athlete in an over-zealous system. His favorite place to hang out at the Lake? The Elks Lodge on Hwy. 54 in Osage Beach. His home is a modest lakefront house on the Glaize Arm of the Lake. It is a work in progress as he and his girlfriend Ashton oversee renovations. His boat? A bass boat, and a recently acquired 26-foot Cobalt. His car? A 2004 Chevy Silverado with 130,000 miles.
Even his path to the professional ranks is non-descript. “I didn’t have the best high school (football) career,” he said modestly during a mid-summer interview while on hiatus from summer camp with the 49ers.
He wasn’t highly sought after in the NFL draft, either.
Yet, there were seeds of promise at an early age. As a youth, he watched football and basketball practice every day after school. Sports seemed to dominate his life.
“Sports was my babysitter,” Hill smiled.
Despite a modest start to his football career, Hill was a three-year starter at quarterback at Parsons (KS) High School and a two-year starter at free safety. He was a two-time All-Southeast Kansas League first team selection and an honorable mention all-stater as a senior.
Sports were a huge part of Hill’s youth since his dad was a high school coach and teacher. When Hill was a senior, his father Ted was the assistant principal, the offensive line football coach and the head basketball coach. His dad was one of the top high school coaches in Kansas during the 1980s and ’90s. His mom Trudy drove him to various sports practices.
With his command of the gridiron today, it’s ironic that his favorite sports in high school were anything but football. He lettered in basketball, baseball and track at Parsons High School and was a three-time all conference standout in basketball. As a team captain in hoops, he earned all-state honors three years and guided the team to the state tournament as a sophomore and senior. He also qualified for the state track meet as a senior.
“I started to enjoy football at 17 or 18” Hill recalled. “Because of the physicality of the sport, I felt a guy my size and with my athletic ability should pursue football. I felt I had a better chance at football.”
Hill wasn’t highly recruited out of high school, though he got some attention from Pittsburgh (KS) State University and Washburn University in Topeka, KS. Instead, he attended Hutchison (KS) Community College two years. His accomplishments at Hutchison garnered him some attention from Southern Missouri State in Springfield (now Missouri State University), the University of Maryland and Hofstra University in New York. He chose Maryland and led the Terrapins to their first Atlantic Coast Conference title since 1985 as a senior in 2001.
Hill has been called a country boy.
Matt Barrows, who blogs for the San Francisco Bee, tagged Hill with that appropriate observation during the 2009 preseason. Hill and Alex Smith, the 49ers’ former top draft pick, had a skeet-shooting duel, which Hill won. That light-hearted competition evolved into a friendship of sorts as Smith and his wife visited Hill for some bass fishing and possibly some camping at the Lake.
Hill was born and raised in Parsons, KS, a town of about 12,000. The relatively rural upbringing in a conservative part of a conservative state helped create Hill’s propensity for the quiet life.
“I was kind of a good kid, actually,” Hill recalled. “Sports took up a lot of my time, and I worked the same job at a fireworks stand.”
Pretty typical for a Midwestern boy. So is his work ethic on the football field. So are his priorities.
“I never really felt I had the talent per se, but I loved playing football. I never have a problem doing extra work,” Hill said. “I enjoy putting in the hard work.”
The fear of failure has become another motivator for Hill, who admits to being apprehensive before a game.
“I’m actually afraid to fail, afraid to get hurt,” Hill said. “Facing and overcoming fear is a challenge. But, there’s nothing like overcoming those fears and winning.”
As a rookie with Minnesota in 2002, he didn’t buy a car or blow his money on frivolous things like so many young players do.
“I bought furniture,” he laughed. “I guess as nice as those things can be, I try to plan for the future.”
His objective today, aside from leading the 49ers into the playoffs, is to remain focused on his future off the field.
“When I started in the game, I knew I wanted to set up roots someplace, to have some concrete plans to have some place that was mine, someplace to get away from football,” Hill said.
He came here with some friends over the Fourth of July holiday in his rookie year, 2002. What better location to set up home than the Lake of the Ozarks, he decided. He liked what he saw, and he liked what he felt as he searched for some nice Lake frontage with a nice view. He found it with a picturesque view of the Grand Glaize Bridge in one direction and the State Park the other.
“I liked the town of Osage Beach,” he recalled. “It’s amazing how many different things there are to do here. Osage Beach and the Lake have so many amenities of a city but in a small town.”
He also has a small 26-acre place for hunting not far from the Lake where they have float trips, shoot clay pigeons, and have fish fries and barbecues with friends and family. Yes, truly a country boy.
Hill was clad in shorts and a T-shirt as he took time from cleaning up after a summer weekend of visitors. Sitting on a screened-in porch, he spoke of how he enjoys the simple life offered by the Lake. His neighbor is a member of the Elks Lodge and was instrumental in getting Hill to join.
“I’m the youngest member of the Lodge,” he explained. “When we’re in town, we go up there to hang out. There are a lot of good people there.”
Coming from a rural area, Hill fully understands the importance of supporting local businesses and events. He bought a pair of cowboy boots from JP’s Custom Handmade Boots in Camdenton, MO; Dave’s Rod Shop on D Road in Kaiser, MO, is renovating his 1970 Ford Bronco; he frequents Dog Days, The Topsider, Michael’s 939, Wobbly Boots, Shorty Pants and Comedy Night at The Blue Room.
“I want to get more involved here, more involved in the community through the Elks,” Hill offered. “It’s so hard to get involved because of my schedule, but I enjoy doing things that help the community.” Helping children is especially important to him, and his involvement with the Special Olympics Polar Plunge at the Lake each winter is evidence. He also has supported Children’s Fund Events and the Muscular Dystrophy Association.
After his recent interview, Hill was headed to Parsons, KS, for a fundraiser golf tournament. Money raised over the three-day event would be used to support youth athletics.
“I tell kids interested in sports to figure out what they love to do and overcome the obstacles, and they’ll be successful,” Hill offered.
That’s good advice for life as well.”
http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/players/6169
Category: Cover Stories, Featured
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