not my first plan

Wabash wasn't where I saw myself, but looking back on it, there is nowhere else I'd rather be.

No two people are the same, no two paths are the same, and no two stories are the same. Through ups and downs, everyone has their own distinct path to who they become, and Wabash was a very unexpected step in my path. 

Coming out of high school I had one plan, one goal, and one path. I was going to Greenville University to continue my education and football career. Football was my first love, and I had worked as hard as possible to play at the next level.

My Signing Day in 2024

But God had a different plan. On July 6th 2024, my family and I sat down and had the worst conversation of my life. “Max, I don’t think that we can make this work.” I will never forget hearing my mom say them. Financially Greenville was just too expensive even with scholarships and financial aid.

I had to pivot. I was lost. I talked to family, and I told everyone what had happened. I was more embarrassed than anything, telling people I couldn’t play football that next year after having a big signing and commitment. I couldn’t believe it. That next week I did a lot of thinking, What am I going to do these next four years? 

Then, out of the blue, I got an email from Kyle Peach asking if I wanted to check out the program, to see if I wanted to join everyone at News Channel 15. I haven’t told Kyle this yet, but I mostly went to get a day off work and golf with my dad. But, when I got there, Kyle and Eli Grimes were standing at the door waiting to give me a tour of the station. Right there and then I knew this is where I wanted to go. We took the tour, and then I instantly told Kyle this was the right place for me.

We instantly went and got signed up for classes, and there was a sense of relief that I hadn’t felt in a while. Thank God for that email. 

Me and Jericho doing PA for local football game

I got to class for my first day at Wabash and did a quick scan around the room looking for people who were “chill”. Instantly I saw this goofy looking fella with glasses and a beard in the back, a baseball player wearing a Toronto Blue Jays hat, a lanky kid with a middle part who I sat by, and someone with dreadlocks going all the way down to his mid back in the coolest Kobe shirt I have ever seen. Little did I know these people would be some of my best friends around campus, and one of them would be the best man at my wedding (if I ever get married).

We got through classes and we had to sign up for our first games of the year. Not thinking, I signed up for my required games to work the camera. When the schedule got sent out, I was signed up to announce all of those games. There has to be a mistake right? Why would Kyle do this? I went into his office to ask him what was going on

“I didn’t ask you to come here to work the camera, you're announcing.”

Unsure of what I was doing, I went to announce my first volleyball game with Jericho. We instantly clicked and became friends. Jericho also, fun fact, was a high level volleyball player as a kid, and came from a long line of high level volleyball players. He carried me through those games, but man was I hooked. 

We got to basketball season, and I signed up for every Wabash and Mt. Carmel game I could. I said football was my first love, but that was not the whole truth. From when I was born to about 15, my Dad coached basketball. Because of that I was a junky and still am. I want to know everything I can, and as a kid I had one dream: to be a basketball coach. 

Russ Gerlach(My Dad) drawing up a play this last year in his return to coaching.

Announcing these games is actually where I met Riley Angel. Riley is an amazing announcer who I attribute so much of where I am now. He made everything so easy because he was a pro doing high school games. To this day, there is not much I love more than announcing basketball. 

Second semester started and I was still announcing, but I was about to meet my best friend. Aiden Karcher is something else, someone who I clicked with and actually sat by from day one. We had a couple of mutual friends and talked a little bit during our first semester. But, one day after class I asked Aiden if we wanted to grab some Taco Bell. 

Me and Aiden, with our friend Keith on Halloween

We did and it was raps from there. He is still one of my best friends, and the onnection will last long after Wabash. 

That same semester I started my weight loss journey which is something I am still on, and I have lost over 65 pounds. 

My second semester came to a close where I covered my first baseball games, which was another sport that I knew basically nothing about. I grew to enjoy it and got to announce it with my good friend Ethan Houston. He helped teach me a lot about baseball, and I have now become a huge baseball fan. 

I started my second year at Wabash, and my bonds with the people in the program grew. I also took the Interpersonal Communications class. Taking that class is something that I think everyone should do. People from all walks of life came together and learned a lot about who we are. 

My Amazing Family

I announced more basketball, lived more life, even went to a Halloween party with Aiden that should be a blog in itself. Wabash has been nothing but a blessing, I never thought this would be my path, my story, or who I was going to become. None of this was my first plan, but it ended up being the best thing to ever happen to me. Life isn’t all about who you become, or who you are. Maybe, instead, it's all about the memories and the friends you made along the way. And, I tell you what, I'm thankful for these people and these memories.