For Beau Shay, growing up, the templates for athletic success sat right across the dinner table. He was the kid brother to older siblings Jason and Zach, both of whom starred at Galesburg High School and went on to play Division I sports.
Oldest brother Jason starred in basketball and football for the Silver Streaks, then made it as a walk-on to Dr. Tom Davis’s Iowa basketball teams, and then became a successful college coach. Second-oldest brother, Zach, played football at Iowa for coach Hayden Fry.
Not to be outdone, after a successful Silver Streaks career that included a trip to the 1998 Class 2A state basketball championship game, Beau went on to walk on at Clemson. He didn’t play much – just 20 games over four seasons – but said it was an experience “I wouldn’t trade for anything.”
He likely won’t trade the experience of Nov. 29, either. That’s the night Shay and six others will be inducted into the Galesburg Athletic Hall of Fame Class of 2025. He will join his brothers in the hall.
“Growing up and going to Galesburg, you just couldn’t have asked for more as a student, as an athlete,” said Beau, who is now a podiatrist in the Quad Cities. “Being ignorant to other schools, I didn’t know that other schools didn’t have what we had. We had two radio stations cover us, every single game. This was for basketball, football, girls basketball, baseball, you name it. The support we had from people in town was unbelievable. We had 3,000 fans for basketball every game. The community support we had, really, was unrivaled.”
Beau Shay was a sophomore on the ’98 Streaks team that came within five points of a state title against Chicago Whitney Young. While his junior and senior seasons didn’t have as much team success, Beau got some looks from colleges, including Iowa, where his brothers went. But, having felt like, “I spent most of my childhood in Iowa City watching my brothers play”, Beau wanted something different.
So, he went down south and walked on to Clemson starting in 2001, averaging 0.6 points per game.
“I definitely didn’t play much,” he said with a laugh, “but I was one of the guys. I got to experience everything everybody else did on the team, except play much. But I think I contributed as a practice player.”
Beau Shay can’t wait to come back in late November and walk the floor of Thiel Gym again, and, hopefully, be joined by his older brothers.
“What an honor and a privilege to be named,” he said.
Along with Beau, Galesburg will induct Ardith Johnson (Class of 2001), Ethan Meeker (2016), Rodney Bunch (1958), Ron Spring (Friends of Athletics) and the 1999 boys track and field team – of which Beau Shay was a member.
This article originally appeared on Galesburg Register-Mail: Beau Shay followed brothers’ success at Galesburg High, then found his own road
Reporting by Adrian Dater / Galesburg Register-Mail
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
