When Weston Polk isn't hunting down opposing offenses as the unquestioned leader of his Coppell Cowboys defense, he's hunting game for sport in his spare time.

“I’ve liked it since I was little,” Polk said. “Going out into the woods with friends and family and just hanging out. It slows everything down, it slows life down.”

For Polk, football, hunting and fishing, his other love, operate in perfect harmony.

The fast pace of Friday nights is canceled out by the patience and escape that both hunting and fishing provide. 

“You have football, which is a huge adrenaline rush. Everything goes fast, get up early, working out,” Polk said. “When you get an off day, you just get to escape, go out into nature, hang out.”

But just as there is a balance between football, hunting and fishing for Polk, there is a common element that he sees in the three activities: relationships.

Polk played safety as a sophomore at Coppell, where the position room would often have dinners with Coppell head coach Antonio Wiley and defensive coordinator Keenan Kitchens.

The dinners gave the players and coaches not only more time to talk football, but also a way to connect on a more personal level. But Polk saw an opportunity to connect with them in a way he’s familiar with–fishing.

As his sophomore season progressed, Polk and some of his teammates would go to Kitchens’ neighborhood to fish and just be in each other’s company. 

“We went out a few times. There’s a golf course by my house, so we went out, got away from it all, did a little fishing,” Kitchens said. “Everybody has their outlet, and I think that’s one thing me and Weston had in common was we like to hunt and fish.”

Polk and his defensive coordinator remained close since his sophomore season, but when recruitment started to pick up for the Coppell linebacker, he had to, once again, lean on how he knew to connect with people best.

Luckily for Polk, he found a school where he was able to find all of his loves and values while playing football at a high level.

On April 29, Polk made his commitment to Kansas State. He was the second recruit to commit to the Wildcats’ Class of 2025.

“At the end of the day, they recruited me the best, and they showed me everything that really matters in a program,” Polk said.  “There was nothing I had questions about. When I went on my visits, they let me see whatever I want, talk to whoever I want to. It was like the whole coaching staff wanted me there.”

Polk saw what the football program can provide at Kansas State, and he sees the championships he can potentially win there. 

However, what separated Kansas State from other schools was the peace he can still have off the field. 

Manhattan, Kansas is a quaint, country town that loves Kansas State football. And while Polk loves being a part of that, he’s also been on the lookout for places he can hunt, fish, and be in nature.

Fortunately for Polk, he’s not the only one on the Wildcats’ roster that looks for that same peace off the field.

“I’ve asked some players about it, [I’ve] been looking at some places I can hunt,” Polk said. “There’s a lot of guys on the team that hunt, too. So I’ll be hunting with them a lot.”

Between the high level football, the opportunities to hunt and fish, and the quality relationships he has with the coaching staff, Kansas State was the perfect fit for Polk.

But until he gets to Manhattan, the main task at hand for Polk is getting Coppell to a state championship, and ending his high school career on the highest note possible. The Cowboys are currently 9-0 and ranked in the Top 10 of the DCTF Official State Rankings.

“He’s a great kid. It’s been fun to watch him grow the three years that we’ve been here,” Kitchens said. “Getting to know him and go through the process of us trying to get it going around here has been a lot of fun.”