Kansas Profile – Now That’s Rural: Hadley Panzer, football
Dec. 20, 2023
By Ron Wilson, director of the Huck Boyd National Institute for Rural Development at Kansas State University
There is no ‘me.’ It’s all about the ‘we.’
That’s the type of selfless team spirit that one football mom in rural Kansas has observed as her son has advanced to the top level of collegiate football.
Kim and Garrett Panzer are the parents of Hadley Panzer, starting right guard on the Kansas State University football team. The Panzers have deep roots in rural Kansas.
At right: Hadley Panzer | Download this photo
Garrett Panzer grew up in Lakin. He was involved in rodeo and played football at Dodge City Community College and then Hastings College. He studied education and worked as a teacher in Kansas. Today, he teaches agriculture at Dodge City and is active in rodeo as an official.
Kim attended Panhandle State and later married Garrett. Kim is from the rural community of Montezuma, population 975 people. Now, that’s rural.
Kim Panzer also went into education. As a teacher, she experienced small town life and the ethnically diverse growth of a larger job center such as Dodge City. In fact, her first teaching position was in Dodge City.
The Panzers lived in Copeland and then Lakin, where she taught and their two sons were raised. In 2022, she became principal at Central Elementary School in Dodge City.
“We have three main languages at our school: English, Spanish, and a Guatemalan language called K’iche,” Panzer said. “It’s really a great experience for our students. It’s wonderful to learn about different cultures.”
The Panzer’s older son, Garrison, went to Oklahoma State and is active as a rodeo announcer and producer. Younger brother Hadley focused on athletics.
“(Hadley) was playing flag football in kindergarten,” Mrs. Panzer said. “In fact, he played quarterback.”
Hadley enjoyed all kinds of sports. “I think his favorite sport was whatever sport was in season at the time,” Panzer said. Hadley competed in football, shot put, wrestling, and baseball.
“He was always a husky kid,” Panzer said. It became clear from his strength and size that he had a future as a lineman in football.
By his senior season at Lakin High School, he was ranked by 247Sports as one of the nation’s top centers in the class of 2020. He was selected as a first team all-state honoree by the Topeka Capital-Journal, Wichita Eagle, and the Kansas Football Coaches Association. Panzer was selected to play in the Blue-Gray All American Bowl at AT&T Stadium in Texas.
College coaches came calling, including Chris Klieman and Conor Riley from Kansas State. Panzer chose the Wildcats. “His paternal grandmother and aunt were K-Staters, so there’s lots of K-State presence in our family,” Panzer said.
Unlike many first year players, Panzer played as a true freshman in 2021. By the following year, he moved into the full time starter position at right guard. That unit led K-State to its third-highest finish in rushing yards and second highest in offensive yards in school history.
In addition, Panzer earned First Team Academic All-Big-12 honors.
In December 2022, he was part of the team that claimed a Big 12 Championship. “It was amazing to experience that,” Kim Panzer said. “It was so exciting.”
Hadley also married his high school sweetheart, Ryan.
After that season, the entire offensive line chose to return for another year. In 2023 Panzer started every game and was part of the unit that led the Cats to an eight-win season and another bowl game.
Homegrown talent is a significant role in the team’s success. Fifty Kansans were on the K-State roster. Twenty-two Kansans played in the win over KU, for example.
“Hadley had a lot of support from the community and a great high school coach in Chris Bamberger,” Panzer said. “High school sports is such a unifying activity in small town Kansas.”
She especially appreciates the camaraderie and selfless spirit she observed between her son and his fellow offensive linemen. “That’s a bunch of hardworking guys working for each other,” Panzer said.
“There’s no ‘me,’ Kim Panzer says. “It’s all about the ‘we.’”
That’s how she described the selfless attitude demonstrated by Hadley Panzer and his teammates on the offensive line. That attitude is sure to make a difference in the future.
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