Braden Houchin to play baseball and football at Augustana College
By FRED KRONER
Sometimes, when faced with a choice, the best decision is to pass.
Mahomet-Seymour multi-sport athlete Braden Houchin found himself in that position.
As recently as last November, he was in limbo as he pondered his collegiate future and his participation in athletics at the next level.
He wanted to play baseball, but he didn’t want to give up football.
“During my senior year of football, I realized I wasn’t ready to be done and was unable to settle for giving up one or the other,” Houchin said.
The 5-foot-11, 170-pound Houchin wound up with three universities that were willing to let him be a dual-sport athlete in college.
Houchin will be heading to Augustana College, in Rock Island, as a combination football and baseball player. Augustana is an NCAA Division III school with an enrollment of approximately 2,500 students.
The path will be a demanding one, but M-S football coach Jon Adkins has confidence in Houchin.
“Being a two-sport athlete in college is not easy, but if there’s anyone that can do it, it is certainly him,” Adkins said.
Competing in college in two sports wasn’t always the goal for Houchin. He had a clearcut favorite, or so he thought.
“At the beginning, my main and about only plan was to continue playing college baseball and only baseball,” Houchin said. “That was my focus for the next level.”
When his prep career in football reached its final days, however, he had second thoughts.
“As my senior year of football was dwindling down and the last few weeks of games were coming up, I made the decision to open up my recruitment for both baseball and football,” Houchin said. “I wasn’t ready to give up either sport and wanted to continue competing at the next level through both baseball and football.”
During the time he was leaning to baseball as the sport to pursue, Houchin was thinking small.
“My plan was to attend junior college, play two years to develop my game, and try to get to the highest level I could,” he said. “I went on a few visits to junior colleges for baseball and never really felt like it was for me.”
He had scholarship offers (for baseball only) from Southeastern Iowa Community College (in Burlington, Iowa) and John Wood Community College (in Quincy).
Houchen’s desire to attend a four-year university immediately after high school came about once he committed himself to not giving up either football or baseball.
“As I decided to play both sports in college, I shifted my focus to four-year schools,” Houchin said. “My parents and I visited schools that were recruiting me like Monmouth (Ill.) College, Illinois College (in Jacksonville), and of course, Augustana College.
“All had offered for me to play both baseball and football and so it came down to what I was looking for and wanted. I created a list of pros and cons and went through each of my schools to help narrow down my choice.
“Augustana was a clear-cut standout for me. I fell in love with everything about the school. The campus, coaches, and atmosphere all checked off where I wanted to call home.”
His official signing date for his letter of intent is on Friday (April 14).
Dave Ragone, the Augustana football associate head coach, made a recruiting trip to Mahomet and Houchin took advantage of the opportunity.
“I had about an hour conversation with Coach Ragone and I decided that I wanted to take a visit,” Houchin said. “I then was in contact with the baseball staff and was able to meet with both while on my visit.
“Coach (Justin) Hauer, (an assistant) with the baseball team, had actually already seen me play during summer ball, which was very helpful for me. After my first visit, I decided to do an overnight (visit). After much prayer and processing, I made the decision to commit to Augustana to continue my academic and athletic careers.”
Overall, Houchin said the recruiting process went smoothly. He did his part to move it along.
“I reached out to a lot (of coaches) just to get my name out and build relationships,” he said.
Football and baseball are both sports that Houchin has played for more than a decade.
“For football, I started at a very young age,” he said. “My family moved down to southern Mississippi when I was 6 years old and I was able to start tackle football right away.”
He was brought up as a quarterback and still played that position when the family moved to Mahomet the summer before his eighth-grade year.
“I kept that role all the way to my freshman year at Mahomet,” Houchin said. “Sophomore year, I made the transition to the defensive side of the ball and became a safety and corner.”
Though the football roster shows a different position than where he was stationed in youth ball, Houchin said that is not necessarily the case.
“I think of myself as the quarterback of the defense,” he said.
In baseball, Houchin has always been the quintessential utility player. He started with the sport when he was old enough for T-ball and added, “I haven’t missed a single season of school or travel ball since.”
He takes pride in his versatility.
“I have played every position in baseball,” Houchin said. “For the majority of the teams I play for, I will fill whatever position is needed. Junior high, I spend the majority of my time behind the plate. In high school ball, I found my way into the starting shortstop role and have stuck with that throughout.
“I would definitely say shortstop is my favorite (position).”
At Mahomet-Seymour, Houchin has excelled in both sports.
This spring in baseball, he is batting .297 for a 12-2 team and has six stolen bases. As a junior on a 27-6 team that reached the sectional finals, Houchin hit .301 with four home runs and 19 stolen bases. One of his homers came in the regional finals against defending state champion Springfield.
In football as a senior on an 11-1 team, Houchin was the only unanimous all-Apollo Conference selection in the defensive backfield. He was fourth on the M-S team in tackling (44) and had a career-high nine stops in his final game in the state quarterfinals.
He intercepted three passes, one for a touchdown, and returned three kickoffs, one of which went for a TD in a playoff game against Metamora just after the Redbirds had scored to take the lead. Houchin reached the end zone a third time as a senior, on one of his three rushing carries.
As a junior, also on an 11-1 team, Houchin intercepted two passes, and also scored one TD on offense even though he carried the ball just three times.
Houchin’s father (Brad) and older brother (Clayton) were instrumental in his introduction to sports.
“Having my Dad and older brother guide me in the proper ways through my sports grew my love for both games even more,” Braden Houchin said.
Though the sports are different, Houchin’s mindset is the same no matter what jersey he is wearing.
“In both sports, when I am playing, I feel the most free,” he said. “When I step between the lines my head is completely clear and focused solely on the task at hand.
“The thing I appreciate about both sports is how you as an individual are able to work to perfect your craft to use as an entire team. You have a bunch of guys doing what they are great at as one to succeed.”
In both football and baseball, Houchin was chosen as a team captain.
“Braden might just be one of the all-time favorite players I’ve ever coached,” Adkins said. “An absolute leader for our secondary and program as a whole, and was a joy to be around every day.”
Houchin doesn’t take the leadership roles for granted.
“I have worked hard to earn the respect of my teammates and coaches and take pride in leading them every day,” he said. “I feel one of my biggest strengths is how I am able to lead while on and off the field.”
Houchin is willing to do what’s necessary to put himself in line for playing time at Augustana.
“I’m extremely excited about getting to the new challenge of college sports,” he said. “Especially playing two sports, it’s going to be extremely crucial I get myself into a daily routine to maintain everything.
“I feel I will be able to improve in both sports at a great level because I will solely be working on my sports while in college with no other things to do. I feel confident and ready to prove myself again and work my way to where I am needed and belong.
“It won’t be an easy road, but I am more than ready for the challenge.”
He is optimistic that he can contribute for the Vikings. The baseball team is off to a 19-6 start this spring. The football team finished 5-5 last fall.
“Within baseball, I’ve had good conversations with my recruiting coach in where he sees me,” Houchin said. “Obviously everything is earned and nothing is given, but he sees me potentially being able to work my way into a starting role at shortstop as an underclassmen.
“We both agree I have some work and improvement to do on my offensive game and fine-tuning my swing. Football sees me filling a role of cornerback as they are having some seniors graduate when I am moving in.
“They are excited about my length and speed that I will be bringing in with me. I also take pride in my knowledge of the game even on the defensive side.”
He said there have been many people who have contributed to his success in sports.
“Obviously all of my coaches have been huge in my development, but I owe all glory to God for the gifts and abilities he has given me,” Houchin said. “I would be nowhere without him and his guidance for me through my years in sports.
“My parents (Brad and Teresa Houchin) have always been a huge supporter of mine, no matter what I’m doing.”
Houchin plans on majoring in business administration/management, but doesn’t have a concrete path for his long-term endeavors.
“Not positive about what I want to do as my future career, but one that I have been considering is getting into insurance as a claims adjuster,” Houchin said. “My uncle (Matt Gardner) currently does that and it is a field that interests me.”
Houchin anticipates a transition as he relocates approximately 180 miles from home when he enrolls in college in August.
“Me and my family are extremely close,” he said. “We are all very supportive and encouraging to each other
“It is definitely going to be a change for me. I am the middle child of five kids. I feel it will be a little easier for me as I was able to watch my older brother (Clayton) go off and play college sports (baseball at Olivet Nazarene University).
“I was able to see how much my parents and other family members still watch all of the games on TV when they aren’t able to make it in person and just to know how much they care will help me while I’m away. Our household is definitely getting smaller as I am going to the third one out of the house.”
Houchin will see one familiar face when he moves onto campus.
“I am rooming with a former teammate that I was able to play travel ball with for two summers,” he said. “I am extremely excited about the opportunity to get to know him even more and become family with him and the rest of my teammates while we are away from ours.”
Adkins regards Houchin – who shared the 2022 Bulldog Award in football with Valient Walsh – as a high-character individual.
“There are not two more deserving kids than these two,” Adkins said. “The comment I used to describe Braden was, ‘this is absolutely the kid that you would let date your daughter.’”
When he realized how that might sound, Adkins added a quick qualifier.
“Well not mine, because she’s only 4, but he’s that tremendous of a kid,” Adkins said. “It is absolutely going to be tough to not have this kid around next year.
“I know that he will be in good hands with Coach (Steve) Bell (Augustana football head coach).”
