GREEN BAY -- For all of his triumphs on the football field -- the national championship he won at Ohio State and the national awards that followed -- A.J. Hawk still is haunted by one day when he walked off the field with his shoulders slumped, head down and eyes watery.
It was Jack Murphy (now Qualcomm) Stadium in San Diego.
A.J. Hawk was 10 years old, and he had just lost in the national Punt, Pass and Kick competition sponsored by the National Football League.
"I shanked my kick," says Hawk, now 22 and in his first week of training camp as a rookie linebacker for the Green Bay Packers. "I did Punt Pass and Kick for awhile and it was fun. I used to get to go on the field at halftime of the Bengals’ games in Cincinnati. That was great.
"I made it to San Diego and I totally shanked my kick. It was terrible. I still haven't gotten over that. I almost won, even with a horrible kick. It still bugs me, to this day."
As Hawk relives the painful memory, his wife, Laura, smiles; it’s a smile of love and understanding, not mockery. Sitting next to her husband on a leather coach in the family room of their new home, which overlooks a golf course in a new subdivision located about a 15-minute drive from Lambeau Field, Laura finds it amusing and endearing that her hulk of a husband -- a two-time All-American, Lombardi Award winner, the fifth player taken in the first round of the National Football League Draft and a man who at the time of the interview was on the verge of signing a $37.5 million contract with the Packers -- still gets upset about an errant kick from more than a decade ago.
"That’s him," Laura says. "He doesn't like to lose."
When asked if that attitude carries over into the non-football aspects of her husband’s life, such as a friendly game of Scrabble, the vivacious Laura smiles again.
"We're really competitive, but we don't ever play board games," she says. "We play real sports. When we play basketball, it’s the most physical thing. He never lets up on me. I'm like a person he doesn't know."
With his older brother, Ryan, working out in the nearby dining room, which has been converted to an exercise area, A.J. begins to mount a half-hearted defense.
"It’s not just me," he says, his protest part husband and part little brother.
"If we had a referee, she'd get called for a lot of fouls. I always have to hit three (-pointers) in her face, because every time I drive, she tries to knock me down."
Laura’s competitive streak comes out on the golf course, too. When dusk falls on the neighborhood, she and A.J., a skilled player who carded a double eagle, sometimes venture out to play the hole that abuts their backyard.
"I'm pretty terrible at golf," Laura says. "I usually start throwing clubs and walk off after my first shot."
When the games end, the fun continues for the Hawks.
"A.J. will make a competition out of who can walk up the stairs quicker or who can get to the door first," says Laura, 23. "It’s physicality all the time with him. I don't even know we're racing half the time and he’s already, in his mind, won. That’s the way we both are. It’s kind of sad, really."
For the Packers and their rabid fans, who are a decade removed from a Super Bowl triumph and still stinging from a 4-12 record last season, that obsession with winning is hardly a sad circumstance. They expect big things from Hawk, who was the highest-rated defensive player in the draft, and they expect them quickly.
"Just watch him play," Packers head coach Mike McCarthy said the night Hawk was drafted. "I think it speaks for itself. He’s been consistent throughout his career at Ohio State. He’s a very level-headed young man. He grew up in the Midwest (Centerville, Ohio), and we just feel he’s a great fit for the Green Bay Packers."
Though he’s still finding his way around his new town, A.J. feels like Green Bay will be a good fit for him. The life-in-a-fishbowl existence that Packers players experience isn't daunting for him for two big reasons.
For starters, he and Laura don't like to go out that much.
"We're pretty much homebodies," Laura says, adding that the couple spends free time working out together or watching favorite TV shows like "Entourage," "Desperate Housewives," and -- a guilty pleasure -- the MTV show "The Hills."
The Hawk’s house, still awaiting landscaping outdoors, is uncluttered and immaculate inside (Laura says they are both compulsively tidy and A.J. even helps unload the dishwasher). It could pass for a Parade of Homes model and will definitely provide some much-needed solitude during the season.
Says A.J., "That’s pretty much why I wanted to buy this house and get settled right away. I wanted a nice place, where I could get established and feel comfortable.
"I'm lucky that I've got (Laura) here. If I was here by myself, I'd probably get pretty bored."
The other big reason A.J. isn't very worried about living in the spotlight is that he’s used to it. In many ways, Ohio State football players are as revered in Columbus as Packers players are in Green Bay.
"There is a hockey team (the NHL’s Blue Jackets) in Columbus, but Ohio State football is pretty much the biggest thing in town there," A.J. says. "The short time I've been here, I can definitely see some similarities. There are other things going on, but it’s the biggest thing in town."
College is supposed to prepare students for life in the "real world." College football is supposed to prepare players for the NFL, and Ohio State did a great job of that. ("I've noticed a few things at practice that were a little different than what I’m used to, some terminology and things, but it’s still football," A.J. says).
Off the field, nothing prepares you for how to act when you’re a role model and an overnight millionaire. Nothing could have prepared the Hawks for the media blitz that accompanied the public unveiling of their relationship. If you missed that episode, you obviously didn’t watch the Fiesta Bowl.
Shortly before A.J. helped the Buckeyes to a 34-20 victory over Notre Dame, the story hit the papers that he was dating Laura, whose brother, Brady, happens to be the starting quarterback for the Fighting Irish.
The relationship was mentioned in wire stories and mentioned the pregame show leading up the game, during which ABC announcer Brent Musberger talked relationship so much -- with constant cutaway shots of Laura -- that many viewers were left screaming "Enough already!"Asked about the half-and-half jersey she wore that night, Laura says: "I think it’s still at my parents’ house in Ohio."
Though A.J. sacked Brady twice in the game and his team won, there is no lingering ill will between the two. Brady Quinn, already being tabbed as a leading candidate for the Heisman Trophy and the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL draft -- spent time with the couple in Green Bay this summer and his sister noticed some similarities between her baby brother and her husband.
"A.J. and Brady get along great," says Laura, whose younger sister, Kelly, is a standout soccer player at the University of Virginia. "They're both kind of perfectionists. Every day of their lives, they're eating right, working out and doing what they need to be better for their sport. They have a focus. They're determined. They're positive a lot. That’s a good mentality to hang around."
Although they first met at a Christmas party two years ago, the Hawks didn’t start hanging around together until last fall. Laura, who was attending school in California in pursuit of a broadcasting career, bumped into A.J. following a Buckeyes game.
"We exchanged numbers that night," Laura says. "I was getting ready to go back to school in California, so I went over to his house and we watched the Florida State-Miami game." Laura says. "We just sort of knew."
A.J. said the first official date came at a Mongolian barbecue restaurant in Columbus. "She had, like, three bowls of chicken," he said. "I knew from then, we were right."
He was kidding about the gluttony, of course. Laura, who is taking classes at UW-Green Bay to prepare for a broadcasting career, likes working out so much that she made sure that her honeymoon hotel had a gym. "That was a big deal for us," she says. "Working out is something that we like to do together."
Though the couple was planning a big wedding for St. Patrick’s Day in Columbus, they decided to make it official with a civil ceremony in a lawyer’s office in Green Bay just days before A.J. signed his contract. That led to instant speculation that Laura was pregnant or that A.J. wanted her to be eligible for the NFL’s insurance and tuition reimbursement programs.
A.J.’s father, Keith, told his local newspaper it was simpler than that.
"He didn't want to be living together as boyfriend and girlfriend," Keith Hawk told the Dayton Daily News. "He wanted to be living together as man and wife. He's old school in everything he does, including this."
Keith and Judy Hawk’s three sons all played football. Matt, who is 27, was followed by Ryan, a quarterback who transferred from Miami of Ohio to Ohio University when he realized that he wasn't going to take playing time away from his roommate, Ben Roethlisberger. Ryan Hawk spent time with the Birmingham Steeldogs of AFL2, a minor league for arena football.
"Other than my parents and my high school coaches, my brothers had the biggest influence on my life," A.J.says.
Family was also a big influence on Laura, the oldest of Ty and Robin Quinn’s three kids from Dublin, Ohio. Brady, the middle child, is on pace to graduate from Notre Dame in 3 ½ years with dual degrees in finance and political science and Kelly also excels in the classroom.
"We're all different, but kind of the same," Laura says of her siblings. "Kelly is a great athlete and a strong personality, she kind of puts me in check. My brother is kind of like my dad. He’s like a father figure. My dad is a lot of fun and he’s not as pressuring as Brady seems to be. I'd say my brother and sister have had a huge influence on my life."
Outside of the obvious and quickly-resolved Ohio State -- Notre Dame conflict, the melding of the Hawk and Quinn families and friends networks has been smooth.
"A.J.’s family is awesome," Laura says. "I met them all the same day, after one of his games, and they couldn't have been nicer to me. We hit it off right away and they were very welcoming. His family is awesome."
Beginning with the Family Night scrimmage Friday night, the first regular-season game in September and throughout the next few years, A.J. and Laura will be welcomed into one of the biggest families in sports -- the one that lives, eats, sleeps and breathes Packers football.
"I think it’s going to be a good fit," A.J. says. "I can't wait to get started."
It was Jack Murphy (now Qualcomm) Stadium in San Diego.
A.J. Hawk was 10 years old, and he had just lost in the national Punt, Pass and Kick competition sponsored by the National Football League.
"I shanked my kick," says Hawk, now 22 and in his first week of training camp as a rookie linebacker for the Green Bay Packers. "I did Punt Pass and Kick for awhile and it was fun. I used to get to go on the field at halftime of the Bengals’ games in Cincinnati. That was great.
"I made it to San Diego and I totally shanked my kick. It was terrible. I still haven't gotten over that. I almost won, even with a horrible kick. It still bugs me, to this day."
As Hawk relives the painful memory, his wife, Laura, smiles; it’s a smile of love and understanding, not mockery. Sitting next to her husband on a leather coach in the family room of their new home, which overlooks a golf course in a new subdivision located about a 15-minute drive from Lambeau Field, Laura finds it amusing and endearing that her hulk of a husband -- a two-time All-American, Lombardi Award winner, the fifth player taken in the first round of the National Football League Draft and a man who at the time of the interview was on the verge of signing a $37.5 million contract with the Packers -- still gets upset about an errant kick from more than a decade ago.
"That’s him," Laura says. "He doesn't like to lose."
When asked if that attitude carries over into the non-football aspects of her husband’s life, such as a friendly game of Scrabble, the vivacious Laura smiles again.
"We're really competitive, but we don't ever play board games," she says. "We play real sports. When we play basketball, it’s the most physical thing. He never lets up on me. I'm like a person he doesn't know."
With his older brother, Ryan, working out in the nearby dining room, which has been converted to an exercise area, A.J. begins to mount a half-hearted defense.
"It’s not just me," he says, his protest part husband and part little brother.
"If we had a referee, she'd get called for a lot of fouls. I always have to hit three (-pointers) in her face, because every time I drive, she tries to knock me down."
Laura’s competitive streak comes out on the golf course, too. When dusk falls on the neighborhood, she and A.J., a skilled player who carded a double eagle, sometimes venture out to play the hole that abuts their backyard.
"I'm pretty terrible at golf," Laura says. "I usually start throwing clubs and walk off after my first shot."
When the games end, the fun continues for the Hawks.
"A.J. will make a competition out of who can walk up the stairs quicker or who can get to the door first," says Laura, 23. "It’s physicality all the time with him. I don't even know we're racing half the time and he’s already, in his mind, won. That’s the way we both are. It’s kind of sad, really."
For the Packers and their rabid fans, who are a decade removed from a Super Bowl triumph and still stinging from a 4-12 record last season, that obsession with winning is hardly a sad circumstance. They expect big things from Hawk, who was the highest-rated defensive player in the draft, and they expect them quickly.
"Just watch him play," Packers head coach Mike McCarthy said the night Hawk was drafted. "I think it speaks for itself. He’s been consistent throughout his career at Ohio State. He’s a very level-headed young man. He grew up in the Midwest (Centerville, Ohio), and we just feel he’s a great fit for the Green Bay Packers."
Though he’s still finding his way around his new town, A.J. feels like Green Bay will be a good fit for him. The life-in-a-fishbowl existence that Packers players experience isn't daunting for him for two big reasons.
For starters, he and Laura don't like to go out that much.
"We're pretty much homebodies," Laura says, adding that the couple spends free time working out together or watching favorite TV shows like "Entourage," "Desperate Housewives," and -- a guilty pleasure -- the MTV show "The Hills."
Says A.J., "That’s pretty much why I wanted to buy this house and get settled right away. I wanted a nice place, where I could get established and feel comfortable.
"I'm lucky that I've got (Laura) here. If I was here by myself, I'd probably get pretty bored."
The other big reason A.J. isn't very worried about living in the spotlight is that he’s used to it. In many ways, Ohio State football players are as revered in Columbus as Packers players are in Green Bay.
"There is a hockey team (the NHL’s Blue Jackets) in Columbus, but Ohio State football is pretty much the biggest thing in town there," A.J. says. "The short time I've been here, I can definitely see some similarities. There are other things going on, but it’s the biggest thing in town."
College is supposed to prepare students for life in the "real world." College football is supposed to prepare players for the NFL, and Ohio State did a great job of that. ("I've noticed a few things at practice that were a little different than what I’m used to, some terminology and things, but it’s still football," A.J. says).
Off the field, nothing prepares you for how to act when you’re a role model and an overnight millionaire. Nothing could have prepared the Hawks for the media blitz that accompanied the public unveiling of their relationship. If you missed that episode, you obviously didn’t watch the Fiesta Bowl.
Shortly before A.J. helped the Buckeyes to a 34-20 victory over Notre Dame, the story hit the papers that he was dating Laura, whose brother, Brady, happens to be the starting quarterback for the Fighting Irish.
The relationship was mentioned in wire stories and mentioned the pregame show leading up the game, during which ABC announcer Brent Musberger talked relationship so much -- with constant cutaway shots of Laura -- that many viewers were left screaming "Enough already!"Asked about the half-and-half jersey she wore that night, Laura says: "I think it’s still at my parents’ house in Ohio."
Though A.J. sacked Brady twice in the game and his team won, there is no lingering ill will between the two. Brady Quinn, already being tabbed as a leading candidate for the Heisman Trophy and the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL draft -- spent time with the couple in Green Bay this summer and his sister noticed some similarities between her baby brother and her husband.
"A.J. and Brady get along great," says Laura, whose younger sister, Kelly, is a standout soccer player at the University of Virginia. "They're both kind of perfectionists. Every day of their lives, they're eating right, working out and doing what they need to be better for their sport. They have a focus. They're determined. They're positive a lot. That’s a good mentality to hang around."
Although they first met at a Christmas party two years ago, the Hawks didn’t start hanging around together until last fall. Laura, who was attending school in California in pursuit of a broadcasting career, bumped into A.J. following a Buckeyes game.
"We exchanged numbers that night," Laura says. "I was getting ready to go back to school in California, so I went over to his house and we watched the Florida State-Miami game." Laura says. "We just sort of knew."
A.J. said the first official date came at a Mongolian barbecue restaurant in Columbus. "She had, like, three bowls of chicken," he said. "I knew from then, we were right."
He was kidding about the gluttony, of course. Laura, who is taking classes at UW-Green Bay to prepare for a broadcasting career, likes working out so much that she made sure that her honeymoon hotel had a gym. "That was a big deal for us," she says. "Working out is something that we like to do together."
Though the couple was planning a big wedding for St. Patrick’s Day in Columbus, they decided to make it official with a civil ceremony in a lawyer’s office in Green Bay just days before A.J. signed his contract. That led to instant speculation that Laura was pregnant or that A.J. wanted her to be eligible for the NFL’s insurance and tuition reimbursement programs.
A.J.’s father, Keith, told his local newspaper it was simpler than that.
"He didn't want to be living together as boyfriend and girlfriend," Keith Hawk told the Dayton Daily News. "He wanted to be living together as man and wife. He's old school in everything he does, including this."
Keith and Judy Hawk’s three sons all played football. Matt, who is 27, was followed by Ryan, a quarterback who transferred from Miami of Ohio to Ohio University when he realized that he wasn't going to take playing time away from his roommate, Ben Roethlisberger. Ryan Hawk spent time with the Birmingham Steeldogs of AFL2, a minor league for arena football.
"Other than my parents and my high school coaches, my brothers had the biggest influence on my life," A.J.says.
Family was also a big influence on Laura, the oldest of Ty and Robin Quinn’s three kids from Dublin, Ohio. Brady, the middle child, is on pace to graduate from Notre Dame in 3 ½ years with dual degrees in finance and political science and Kelly also excels in the classroom.
"We're all different, but kind of the same," Laura says of her siblings. "Kelly is a great athlete and a strong personality, she kind of puts me in check. My brother is kind of like my dad. He’s like a father figure. My dad is a lot of fun and he’s not as pressuring as Brady seems to be. I'd say my brother and sister have had a huge influence on my life."
Outside of the obvious and quickly-resolved Ohio State -- Notre Dame conflict, the melding of the Hawk and Quinn families and friends networks has been smooth.
"A.J.’s family is awesome," Laura says. "I met them all the same day, after one of his games, and they couldn't have been nicer to me. We hit it off right away and they were very welcoming. His family is awesome."
Beginning with the Family Night scrimmage Friday night, the first regular-season game in September and throughout the next few years, A.J. and Laura will be welcomed into one of the biggest families in sports -- the one that lives, eats, sleeps and breathes Packers football.
"I think it’s going to be a good fit," A.J. says. "I can't wait to get started."
Host of “The Drew Olson Show,” which airs 1-3 p.m. weekdays on The Big 902. Sidekick on “The Mike Heller Show,” airing weekdays on The Big 920 and a statewide network including stations in Madison, Appleton and Wausau. Co-author of Bill Schroeder’s “If These Walls Could Talk: Milwaukee Brewers” on Triumph Books. Co-host of “Big 12 Sports Saturday,” which airs Saturdays during football season on WISN-12. Former senior editor at OnMilwaukee.com. Former reporter at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
