Kevin Lynch Finding Gridiron Success in Poland

Kevin Lynch leading the Warsaw Eagles. Photo Courtesy of Kevin Lynch.

Medfield High graduate Kevin Lynch put together a stellar rookie season for the Warsaw Eagles in the Polish League Football Americansky on the heels of a record-breaking three years at Southern Connecticut State University. The former Warriors quarterback led the Eagles to the PFLA championship game and threw for nearly 30 touchdowns in his first season in Europe.

Lynch, who became the starting quarterback at Medfield High in his sophomore season, was not a top college quarterback prospect when he left the Warriors after a 9-2 season in 2005, despite being named Tri-Valley League MVP for his performances under center and as the team’s starting middle linebacker. Instead of heading right to the collegiate level, Lynch took a year of prep school at New Hampton. He credits that year for “paving the way” to the success he found at Southern Connecticut.

“The year of prep school really enabled me to learn the game more but also allowed me to focus on my studies. All in all it was a great experience for me,” said Lynch by email from Poland. As great as his prep school experience was, Lynch was forced to make another jump when he arrived in college, “The schemes of the plays are much more complex and it is really like a full time job when you play in college. I learned a lot in prep school but really learned a lot about the game once I got on campus my freshman year of college.”

Lynch set numerous records in his time at Southern Connecticut State.
Photos courtesy of SCSU Athletics.

His former coach at Medfield High, Mike Slason raved about Lynch’s technique, intelligence, and attitude, although there was a wry chuckle when describing his athleticism, “I was skeptical at first. He doesn’t have great speed, but we ran the option with him and he was so mechanically sound. Our fullback was tackled so many times because of his fakes. He ran everything to a T.”

In three seasons at Southern Connecticut, Lynch became a star. His 42 touchdown passes rank fifth in the program’s history, and he is third overall in career pass completions, attempts, and yardage. This past season he led the Owls to a 7-3 record and was given an invitation to the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) Senior Bowl in South Carolina. Lynch was named MVP of the Division II versus NAIA Senior Bowl.

It was in South Carolina that the 6-foot-3, 200-pound Lynch was first introduced to the general manager of the Warsaw Eagles, Jacek Sledzinski. Prior to that meeting, Lynch says that he had given no thoughts to playing past college.

Although Europe has grown as a destination for aspiring basketball players that just miss out on the NBA and is considered the pinnacle for those pursuing a career in soccer, it is rare for a football player to seek out an opportunity overseas. In the PFLA, four American players are allowed on the roster, but only two can be on the field at one time. The hope is that by limiting the amount of Americans there will be an increase in interest from local Polish players.

With a contract offer on the table from the Eagles, Lynch spent hours with his family and friends to decide if this was the right move. “To be honest there was some hesitation about playing in Europe, it took me a couple of days of talking to my family and people I respect to realize that this was a once in a lifetime opportunity that I couldn’t pass up.”

The guarantee of a starting spot at quarterback helped to convince Lynch that moving to Warsaw would be the right option for his career. It also helped to know that his family could follow his success on the field through the Warsaw Eagles Facebook page and website (www.warsaweagles.com), which offered live streaming of all of the team’s games.

It is rare for a local high school quarterback to make it to the professional level, but Slason is not surprised that Lynch has succeeded, “No one has the passion for football that he does. There was never a day that he didn’t want to play. He is a true student of the game.”

Lynch led Eagles to the championship game in the Polish League.

The Eagles, led by Lynch’s 26 regular season touchdown passes, finished 8-2 and qualified for the postseason. The Eagles beat the Wroclaw Devils 37-20 in the semifinals, but at Warsaw’s National Stadium on July 15th, Lynch and the Eagles fell to the Gydnia Seahawks 52-37.

Despite the loss in the championship game, Lynch is enjoying his time in Poland and the opportunities to explore Europe. One of the surprisingly fun aspects of playing in Warsaw has been the enthusiasm of the fans, “They are truly passionate about the game of football and I cannot say enough about the support that we get from them. They are like our 12th man out on the field.”

It is a road less traveled that has brought Lynch to his current success. He may not be thinking about next year quite yet and has no illusions about where his career path may end, but he knows that it was only through determination and hard work on and off the field that he has achieved this rare chance:

“I would say to anyone that is interested in playing football at any level is to just give it your best shot, don’t settle for anything. If your goal is to play in college, than you must work for it because there are a lot of other athletes that have the same goal. You must be willing to put in the extra time in the gym and the field when nobody else is around because that will truly make the difference in your ability.”