After graduating from Iowa Falls-Alden in 2017, Logan Ward was content with the idea that his athletic career was over. 

In fact, he attended Hawkeye Community College for a year and a half. A semester away from graduating, Ward realized just how much he missed the game of football. "I just wanted to play sports without later in life thinking 'maybe I should have participated in collegiate sports,'" said Ward. "I think just not wanting to regret not playing them later in life brought me back to it."

After looking at all the possibilities, Ward landed back in his hometown (playing in the same stadium he played high school athletics) for Ellsworth Community College. Coming from IF-A, Ward was a stand out on the football and soccer fields. In three seasons on the gridiron, Ward tallied 1,789 yards and 18 touchdowns - 1,080 of those yards came his senior season. He was also one of the leaders on the third place State soccer squad. In four years, he tallied 38 goals and 35 assists. 

One major change for Ward is his position. In high school, he was a running back. However, ECC needed place kicker and the coaches asked him if he would be willing to kick - and he agreed. "I'm here for the team, I'm not here for stats or to go to the four year level. So, I'm not going to say no to them. If the team needs it, I'm going to step into that position," said Ward.

So far this season, through three games Ward is 1-2 for field goals and 1-2 for extra points. Even though his journey to collegiate football was a winding one and different than most, Ward wouldn't change any part of his path. He knew immediately that he made the right decision. "It's just a path that is different than most others and I like it. A lot of people fall into the rut of things and do what others do, I think that's kind of why I like this path so much," said Ward. "Not everyone can play a collegiate sport and being able to play, just means that much more.

For more on Ward's story, click here: http://www.timescitizen.com/sports/ward-returns-to-football-after-nearly-three-year-hiatus/article_c49ecf46-d4a8-11e9-aa1e-27e3d8a788a9.html