By: Taylor Kauffman
Former Kickapoo Chief Tristan Stevens had Tommy John surgery his first year playing junior college ball. From there, he transferred to Texas as a redshirt freshman. The Longhorns went to the College World Series that year in 2018, and while Stevens didn’t get to play back then, he got his chance just last week.
“The first time you step out there and you get to look at the crowd and the kids is, you know something kids dream of,” Stevens said.
This was a moment where a dream became reality.
“I grew up going to Rosenblatt, which was the old stadium, and so to be able to step on that new field—and kind of soak it in for the first time—it’s like, ‘Man, you know we really made it,'” said Stevens.
The whole thing was a fairytale. Kickapoo grad Tristan Stevens was pitching in the College World Series; and he was playing for his dream school.
“It was the 2006 Rose Bowl with Vince Young running for that touchdown on fourth and five. That’s my first big memory of being a UT fan,” Stevens said. “I was screaming in the living room waking my parents up because I couldn’t believe that I just watched them win the national championship. And then from there you know, it just grew.”
The Longhorns fell short in that World Series game to Mississippi State, missing out on the finals. But instead of thinking about what he lost, Tristan realized how much he gained.
“I would get these text messages from my parents and friends, like, ‘Hey we saw you on TV back in Springfield,’ and I was like, ‘What? Springfield? What are they doing covering Texas up there?’ and they’re like, ‘Oh yeah, your local TV stations have been talking about you,’ and I was like, ‘Wow,’ you know, it’s definitely cool to know I had that local support when I was going through this process,” Stevens said.
He’s still painting his baseball diamond dreamscape hoping it includes being selected in the MLB draft that starts on Sunday. But the way Tristan sees it, he’s in a win-win situation.
“To say that I can either go play pro-ball or go back to my dream school at Texas, it’s a great situation to be in. Yeah, it’s a little stressful, but at the same time when you work hard and get yourself to get these opportunities you know you have to be grateful for it,” said Stevens, “Either way, however it turns out you know I’m happy to be where I’m at.”
