A Humbling Visit Home
May 21, 2026 | Football, Sports Extra
By: D. Scott Fritchen
As the Kansas State football van crawled down North Stratford Lane on Monday morning, the towering, red-brick St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic School affixed with a beautiful steeple topped with a spire dominated the horizon in Wichita, Kansas, offering a warm, welcome hug to Will Anciaux, who smiled as the van decelerated and finally stopped near the front doors to a place the Anciaux family has known for many years.
Anciaux was home.
Soon, Anciaux would saunter down hallways that seem smaller than years ago, and soon Anciaux would see the smiles of familiar faces belonging to caring people who aided in his development, and soon Anciaux would visit familiar classrooms and even sit in a familiar chair — the chair where he once sat and could dangle his feet below, but which today struggles to support his 6-foot-6, 257-pound frame.
The 21-year-old Anciaux has five siblings, who all attended or are currently attending St. Thomas Aquinas. There's Ella (23), Will (21), Nick (18), Adelyn (14) (who just completed seventh grade), Greta (12) (just finished fifth grade) and Grady (10) (just finished third grade). Will whispered to Adelyn that he was returning to St. Thomas Aquinas for this occasion, bringing fellow Wichita natives in K-State quarterback Avery Johnson and defensive back Wesley Fair along with him, but Will wanted to surprise Greta and Grady, whose eyes lit up at the sight of their older brother, donned in his purple K-State uniform jersey with the No. 80 across the chest, as he and Johnson and Fair walked the hallways, high-fived students, visited classrooms, crashed the second-grade field day outside, and finally participated in an award ceremony to congratulate the highest-achieving readers over the year at St. Thomas Aquinas.
"Greta and Grady were pretty pumped," Anciaux says. "Their faces lit up at the surprise of seeing me. I know their friends, too, so seeing the reactions on their friends' faces was pretty neat. The kids at that school, they see me often, especially with my siblings being their age, but I knew it'd be super cool for them to be able to see Avery and Wesley, too. I was pumped for the whole experience. It was exciting to get into those hallways and feel the school again and see my old classrooms and the hallways I'd race down.
"It was definitely a full-circle moment wearing my K-State football jersey. I grew up playing sand football out on that playground without a care in the world, just throwing the football around with my friends. To come back and wear the jersey that represents where I'm at now as a football player at K-State, it was a very humbling experience to be back at a place that helped make me where I am today and make me into the version of me that I am. I'm very grateful for my time there and all the people who poured into me to make me who I am today."
Today, Anciaux is one of three K-State players who form one of the strongest trios of tight ends in the Football Bowl Subdivision; and Anciaux is a kinesiology major on pace to graduate in December with plans to become a doctor, perhaps an orthopedic surgeon; and Anciaux is fired up for new K-State head coach Collin Klein, whose offense seems destined to produce lots of points, causing the cheers of sold-out crowds to shake Bill Snyder Family Stadium during Saturdays in the fall.
At the moment, though, Anciaux is recalling his youth, and how he loved math because "there were so many different and unique problems in front of you, and I was always curious to solve them," and how he loved science because "I loved to learn about the world around us and how things work from animals to big-level stuff and all the way down to the micro stuff — it was fascinating."
There's Mrs. Snodgrass, who Anciaux calls "one of my favorite teachers ever," and whose middle school social studies class was second to none. Similarly, there was Mrs. Lumen, whose middle school math classes really caused Anciaux to think. "I liked her classes always," Anciaux says.
And as Anciaux and Johnson and Fair step foot outside of St. Thomas Aquinas, memories flooded back, as Anciaux looked around while signing autographs for children with his teammates.
"We always played sand football on our sand volleyball court," Anciaux says. "None of us guys were into volleyball, so we played football on the sand volleyball court. That was always a big hit in grade school and middle school. Sand football and four-square and knockout was where I spent a majority of my time.
"I was one of the bigger bodies in school. I could move my way around pretty well."
Anciaux moved around plenty each year on one day in particular: field day.
"On field day, you were always super excited for summer to come around, especially at the end of fifth grade and going onto middle school and going out and having fun with your friends in field day was great," Anciaux says. "They had popsicles in the middle of the day, and you just felt the joy of being a kid. That was a fond memory.
"It was a great world to be in, and I had great friends to make tons and tons of great memories with."
These wide-eyed students across Wichita will have memories to share forever, about Will, about Avery, and about Wesley — three smiling Wichita boys coming back to their home city, having a blast, answering questions, talking about their experience, and likely causing many students to perhaps dream a little dream about one day following in their footsteps as outstanding, caring, kind people, who happen to wear a football jersey.
In addition to visiting St. Thomas Aquinas, the trio of K-State football players also made surprise visits to Johnson's middle school and Fair's elementary school, and then they capped their Monday by visiting patients at Wesley Children's Hospital, who were also wide-eyed at the sight of the players in football uniform jerseys.
Anciaux remembers the first time he put on a football jersey, remembers it well. He was a 5-year-old kindergartner at St. Thomas Aquinas playing flag football. But football wasn't his first love — it was basketball. In the second grade, he and Avery Johnson played on the same basketball team. And they went on to play against each other several times on the gridiron in high school.
"Avery and I have known each other for a long time," Anciaux says. "You could tell when he was really young that he was going to be special with how he played and competed. It's been awesome to watch him grow into the player and leader that he is today."
It wasn't until high school that Anciaux completely fell in love with football. Although he evolved into a two-time team captain and led Kapaun Mt. Carmel High School to a pair of substate championships, Anciaux turned his passion for football into a sizzing career, ultimately ascending to the 28th-best tight end in the Class of 2023 by ESPN.
"After my sophomore season, I spoke with some of my coaches, and they said, 'We think you have a real future at this,'" Anciaux says. "They threw together a highlight reel of my sophomore season, and it got action on Twitter. I thought, 'Wow, this might work out for me.' And it did."
After redshirting his K-State true freshman season in 2023, Anciaux caught three touchdowns during the 2024 season, which tied for the second-most receiving touchdowns by a freshman tight end and ranked sixth among all tight ends in the Big 12 Conference. He also was named to the Academic All-District team by College Sports Communicators in addition to picking up Academic All-Big 12 honors.
Last season, Anciaux had six catches for 45 yards and one touchdown while playing in all 12 games with eight starts. Again, he picked up Academic All-District honors from College Sports Communicators in addition to All-Big 12 accolades.
"Man, it's been a blast," Anciaux says. "Tight end is a unique position where we get to do a whole lot of everything. I love being one of the focal points of the run game and setting an edge on the line for our running backs to make cuts and get their yards. It's also fun to sneak around in the passing game and get touchdowns. It's been a blast.
"My favorite part, honestly, has been the guys in the tight end room, which has been filled with great people and even better players at K-State. Those guys are my brothers, and I love them and I'm forever grateful that K-State has brought us together."
And Anciaux is also grateful to have his childhood friend and avid competitor, Avery Johnson, along for the ride.
"It's definitely special," Anciaux says. "Special hits it right on the head. Avery and I both came to the decision that K-State was the place for us to continue our football careers in college. Having the success that Avery's had and me being able to be a part of that, too, it's been a blast. It means a lot to both of us to represent our state and our city. It's been very special that we've both been able to do that."
But there's nothing like the feeling that Anciaux felt stepping out of the K-State van and visiting the place that has meant so much to him and his entire family for many years. Standing in his K-State unform jersey, the journey from St. Thomas Aquinas to his college home in Manhattan raced back.
Anciaux has learned much along his journey.
"Man, I think what I've learned the most is that it's always the people around you that make the place what it is," Anciaux says. "The one thing in life that stays the same is that everything is always changing. The people around you, if they're solid, then you're going to be solid, too. Growing up, I never really knew what the next step for me would be. I didn't know if it'd be basketball or football, but my parents have always supported me along the way, and they've always been that rock in my life.
"At K-State, the people there are second to none and they're the reason I chose to play at K-State and the reason I've chosen to stay there, and they're the reason I love coming to work every day and love to work out with our guys every day. I'm really grateful for the people who've made me who I am today and have provided to help me be in the position I am today."
As the Kansas State football van crawled down North Stratford Lane on Monday morning, the towering, red-brick St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic School affixed with a beautiful steeple topped with a spire dominated the horizon in Wichita, Kansas, offering a warm, welcome hug to Will Anciaux, who smiled as the van decelerated and finally stopped near the front doors to a place the Anciaux family has known for many years.
Anciaux was home.
Soon, Anciaux would saunter down hallways that seem smaller than years ago, and soon Anciaux would see the smiles of familiar faces belonging to caring people who aided in his development, and soon Anciaux would visit familiar classrooms and even sit in a familiar chair — the chair where he once sat and could dangle his feet below, but which today struggles to support his 6-foot-6, 257-pound frame.
The 21-year-old Anciaux has five siblings, who all attended or are currently attending St. Thomas Aquinas. There's Ella (23), Will (21), Nick (18), Adelyn (14) (who just completed seventh grade), Greta (12) (just finished fifth grade) and Grady (10) (just finished third grade). Will whispered to Adelyn that he was returning to St. Thomas Aquinas for this occasion, bringing fellow Wichita natives in K-State quarterback Avery Johnson and defensive back Wesley Fair along with him, but Will wanted to surprise Greta and Grady, whose eyes lit up at the sight of their older brother, donned in his purple K-State uniform jersey with the No. 80 across the chest, as he and Johnson and Fair walked the hallways, high-fived students, visited classrooms, crashed the second-grade field day outside, and finally participated in an award ceremony to congratulate the highest-achieving readers over the year at St. Thomas Aquinas.
"Greta and Grady were pretty pumped," Anciaux says. "Their faces lit up at the surprise of seeing me. I know their friends, too, so seeing the reactions on their friends' faces was pretty neat. The kids at that school, they see me often, especially with my siblings being their age, but I knew it'd be super cool for them to be able to see Avery and Wesley, too. I was pumped for the whole experience. It was exciting to get into those hallways and feel the school again and see my old classrooms and the hallways I'd race down.
"It was definitely a full-circle moment wearing my K-State football jersey. I grew up playing sand football out on that playground without a care in the world, just throwing the football around with my friends. To come back and wear the jersey that represents where I'm at now as a football player at K-State, it was a very humbling experience to be back at a place that helped make me where I am today and make me into the version of me that I am. I'm very grateful for my time there and all the people who poured into me to make me who I am today."
Photo Courtesy: St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic School
Today, Anciaux is one of three K-State players who form one of the strongest trios of tight ends in the Football Bowl Subdivision; and Anciaux is a kinesiology major on pace to graduate in December with plans to become a doctor, perhaps an orthopedic surgeon; and Anciaux is fired up for new K-State head coach Collin Klein, whose offense seems destined to produce lots of points, causing the cheers of sold-out crowds to shake Bill Snyder Family Stadium during Saturdays in the fall.
At the moment, though, Anciaux is recalling his youth, and how he loved math because "there were so many different and unique problems in front of you, and I was always curious to solve them," and how he loved science because "I loved to learn about the world around us and how things work from animals to big-level stuff and all the way down to the micro stuff — it was fascinating."
There's Mrs. Snodgrass, who Anciaux calls "one of my favorite teachers ever," and whose middle school social studies class was second to none. Similarly, there was Mrs. Lumen, whose middle school math classes really caused Anciaux to think. "I liked her classes always," Anciaux says.
And as Anciaux and Johnson and Fair step foot outside of St. Thomas Aquinas, memories flooded back, as Anciaux looked around while signing autographs for children with his teammates.
"We always played sand football on our sand volleyball court," Anciaux says. "None of us guys were into volleyball, so we played football on the sand volleyball court. That was always a big hit in grade school and middle school. Sand football and four-square and knockout was where I spent a majority of my time.
"I was one of the bigger bodies in school. I could move my way around pretty well."
Photo Courtesy: St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic School
Anciaux moved around plenty each year on one day in particular: field day.
"On field day, you were always super excited for summer to come around, especially at the end of fifth grade and going onto middle school and going out and having fun with your friends in field day was great," Anciaux says. "They had popsicles in the middle of the day, and you just felt the joy of being a kid. That was a fond memory.
"It was a great world to be in, and I had great friends to make tons and tons of great memories with."
These wide-eyed students across Wichita will have memories to share forever, about Will, about Avery, and about Wesley — three smiling Wichita boys coming back to their home city, having a blast, answering questions, talking about their experience, and likely causing many students to perhaps dream a little dream about one day following in their footsteps as outstanding, caring, kind people, who happen to wear a football jersey.
In addition to visiting St. Thomas Aquinas, the trio of K-State football players also made surprise visits to Johnson's middle school and Fair's elementary school, and then they capped their Monday by visiting patients at Wesley Children's Hospital, who were also wide-eyed at the sight of the players in football uniform jerseys.
Anciaux remembers the first time he put on a football jersey, remembers it well. He was a 5-year-old kindergartner at St. Thomas Aquinas playing flag football. But football wasn't his first love — it was basketball. In the second grade, he and Avery Johnson played on the same basketball team. And they went on to play against each other several times on the gridiron in high school.
"Avery and I have known each other for a long time," Anciaux says. "You could tell when he was really young that he was going to be special with how he played and competed. It's been awesome to watch him grow into the player and leader that he is today."
It wasn't until high school that Anciaux completely fell in love with football. Although he evolved into a two-time team captain and led Kapaun Mt. Carmel High School to a pair of substate championships, Anciaux turned his passion for football into a sizzing career, ultimately ascending to the 28th-best tight end in the Class of 2023 by ESPN.
"After my sophomore season, I spoke with some of my coaches, and they said, 'We think you have a real future at this,'" Anciaux says. "They threw together a highlight reel of my sophomore season, and it got action on Twitter. I thought, 'Wow, this might work out for me.' And it did."
After redshirting his K-State true freshman season in 2023, Anciaux caught three touchdowns during the 2024 season, which tied for the second-most receiving touchdowns by a freshman tight end and ranked sixth among all tight ends in the Big 12 Conference. He also was named to the Academic All-District team by College Sports Communicators in addition to picking up Academic All-Big 12 honors.
Last season, Anciaux had six catches for 45 yards and one touchdown while playing in all 12 games with eight starts. Again, he picked up Academic All-District honors from College Sports Communicators in addition to All-Big 12 accolades.
"Man, it's been a blast," Anciaux says. "Tight end is a unique position where we get to do a whole lot of everything. I love being one of the focal points of the run game and setting an edge on the line for our running backs to make cuts and get their yards. It's also fun to sneak around in the passing game and get touchdowns. It's been a blast.
"My favorite part, honestly, has been the guys in the tight end room, which has been filled with great people and even better players at K-State. Those guys are my brothers, and I love them and I'm forever grateful that K-State has brought us together."
And Anciaux is also grateful to have his childhood friend and avid competitor, Avery Johnson, along for the ride.
"It's definitely special," Anciaux says. "Special hits it right on the head. Avery and I both came to the decision that K-State was the place for us to continue our football careers in college. Having the success that Avery's had and me being able to be a part of that, too, it's been a blast. It means a lot to both of us to represent our state and our city. It's been very special that we've both been able to do that."
Photo Courtesy: St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic School
But there's nothing like the feeling that Anciaux felt stepping out of the K-State van and visiting the place that has meant so much to him and his entire family for many years. Standing in his K-State unform jersey, the journey from St. Thomas Aquinas to his college home in Manhattan raced back.
Anciaux has learned much along his journey.
"Man, I think what I've learned the most is that it's always the people around you that make the place what it is," Anciaux says. "The one thing in life that stays the same is that everything is always changing. The people around you, if they're solid, then you're going to be solid, too. Growing up, I never really knew what the next step for me would be. I didn't know if it'd be basketball or football, but my parents have always supported me along the way, and they've always been that rock in my life.
"At K-State, the people there are second to none and they're the reason I chose to play at K-State and the reason I've chosen to stay there, and they're the reason I love coming to work every day and love to work out with our guys every day. I'm really grateful for the people who've made me who I am today and have provided to help me be in the position I am today."
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