By Marisa Dawson, Photos by Blair Molacek

For Zach Molacek, being inducted into the Wayne State Athletic Hall of Fame was more than a recognition of what he accomplished on the football field. It was a chance to return to a place that had been a second home for much of his young adulthood, reconnect with former teammates and coaches, and share the experience with his own family.

Molacek, a Bennington resident and Stanton native, was one of five individuals inducted into the 2026 Wayne State Athletic Hall of Fame during a ceremony September 12 at the Kanter Student Center on the Wayne State College campus. The inductees were also recognized at halftime of Wayne State’s home football game against Minnesota Duluth.

“It was a pretty special honor,” Molacek said. “I’d spent the better part of six years there, a chunk of my late teens and early 20s adulthood were spent at Wayne State.”

That six-year chapter ultimately produced one of the most accomplished rushing careers in Wayne State football history. Molacek led the Wildcats in rushing in each of his four seasons from 2003-06 and earned First Team All-NSIC honors three times. He finished his career with 3,391 rushing yards, second-most in school history, and 31 touchdowns, which ranks fourth all-time.

He is one of only three running backs in Wayne State history to record more than 1,000 rushing yards in two different seasons. He accomplished the feat in 2004 and again in 2006, including a career-best 1,155 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns as a senior. His sophomore season was also a standout, with 1,041 rushing yards on 5.3 yards per carry and seven touchdowns, along with 27 receptions for 270 yards.

Molacek was particularly effective as a pass-catching running back. He finished his four-year career with 79 receptions for 1,038 yards and six touchdowns, making him the only running back in Wayne State history to surpass both 2,000 career rushing yards and 1,000 receiving yards. Despite those numbers, Molacek said personal statistics were never the primary reason he played.

“After a couple years when some of these numbers started to add up, it was kind of always in the back of my mind, but it wasn’t what drove me to play,” he said. “Just being around teammates and some lifelong friends that I’ve built and trying to accumulate wins more than anything else was my biggest goal.”

Molacek’s path to Wayne State was far from certain. As a senior at Stanton High School, he played only two games after suffering a broken leg. He suited up for the season opener and then returned for the final game. With his senior season cut short, Molacek wasn’t sure what his future in football would look like. He eventually reached out to Wayne State to see if he could walk on.

“I didn’t know if I was going to be able to play anywhere, but I knew I wanted to,” he said.

His high school experience had also taught him that succeeding in football required more than physical preparation.

“There’s a lot more to football than just lifting weights and working out,” Molacek said. “There’s a lot more of the mental side that goes into it.”

That mindset followed him to Wayne State, where he developed into a three-time First Team All-NSIC selection and one of the school’s all-time rushing leaders.

Molacek said the lessons he learned through athletics have continued to influence his life beyond football.

“I just think sports in general… It prepares you so well for life. The things you learn, the preparation you have to give to whatever you’re doing, and the time and the dedication you have to pour into that to get better or smarter or whatever you need to do for your sport,” he said. “It only prepares you for whatever avenue you may choose after that.”

For Molacek, some of his most meaningful memories from Wayne State aren’t found in the record books. One of them was the opportunity to play alongside his younger brothers.

“I had the opportunity to play football with each of my younger brothers,” he said. “Two of them, I was out of high school before they were there. So having suited up the same year and on the same field as those two for one year was pretty special.”

Family was also part of the Hall of Fame weekend. Molacek’s wife, Blair, had been there throughout his college career, attending many of his games alongside his parents. His children weren’t around for his playing days, but they were able to return to campus with him for the induction.

“It was special,” Molacek said. “I mean, my kids weren’t around when all this happened, but my wife Blair, was through it all, and she went to most of my games with my parents, who were always there. I could always lean on them in good times and bad. And to have it all come full circle with my kids now being there and seeing where I spent a good chunk of my life, it was pretty cool.”

The weekend also gave Molacek an opportunity to reconnect with former teammates and coaches.

“Being there on that weekend with the head coach who I played with, and a lot of the guys that I played with, it was pretty special,” he said.

He pointed to his coaches, including Coach Dan McLaughlin, as important mentors during his time at Wayne State. The relationships he built with coaches and teammates over six years, he said, helped shape him.

Although Molacek’s name is now permanently connected to Wayne State’s athletic history, he said he hopes people remember more than his statistics.

“I’m a northeast Nebraska kid and I wanted to stay close to home, and Wayne was like a second home for me for six years,” he said. He said he hopes everyone remembers that “I gave it my all. I tried not to leave any regrets behind, and what happened as a result happened.”

That same philosophy is one Molacek hopes to pass along to young athletes, including his son Lane (pictured below), who is now playing varsity football at Bennington High School.

His advice is simple: work hard, enjoy the experience and don’t give up.

“Have fun, work hard, and know that at the end of the day, if you work hard and have fun, anything’s possible,” he said.

And for young athletes who may be wondering whether they have what it takes to continue playing beyond high school, Molacek encourages them to give themselves the opportunity.

“Just give yourself a chance,” he said. “Don’t ever quit.”

Molacek knows firsthand why that matters.

“I played two games my senior year,” he said. “I had no idea what I was going to do, where I was going to go. But if you just set a goal, pick out a dream and just work towards that, you never know what’s going to happen.”