TRAVERSE CITY -- As the center of attention, Jon Buday probably wouldn't be very comfortable.
But as the center of the Traverse City St. Francis offensive line, he's found a comfort level after plenty of experience.
Buday, a three-year varsity lineman and a two-year starter at center, heads into the final stretch of his high school career as the Gladiators open the Division 7 playoffs today against Inland Lakes.
"It's kind of weird to think about, but I try to make every game like it's my last," Buday said.
Buday has played in over 35 varsity games. He's appeared in two state championship games, one a state title and will be looking to do it one more time.
"Jonny's a good team player," St. Francis coach Greg Vaughan said. "He starts both ways for us as a D-tackle and as a center. He's a smart kid, which at that center position you definitely have to be. And he's just been very consistent for us."
Consistent. And quiet.
"I'm kind of a shy guy," Buday said. "I try to lead by example. I try to be the first guy in line and lead by that sense. I'm not the most vocal person, I try to be but it doesn't always work out."
Buday, who lists at 6 feet, 255 pounds, was recognized by his teammates this week for his leadership when he was named one of the team's captains for the playoffs. He joins Max Bullough, Luke Popp, Marc Kanitz and Angus McClellan.
"He leads by example," Vaughan said. "It was overwhelming how many kids put him down. It's his work ethic, he doesn't complain, he does what the coaches ask and tries to do it to the best of his ability. You're not always going to have vocal guys, but he's the last one out of the locker room because he's cleaning up our bus or van or whatever else. He's a special kind of kid in that way."
After playing guard his freshman year, St. Francis coaches decided to give him a shot at the varsity level as a tackle.
"They had quite a few good guys up there already so I wasn't sure if I'd get moved up there or not," Buday said. "I looked at it as a great thing to get experience and get a chance to get in there and get some looks. There was a lot of pressure to make sure I did the right thing and do my job. When I didn't, I got yelled at."
Last season, the Gladiators moved him again to center. It was an effective move, as Buday earned All-Region first-team honors.
"Earlier, around 8th grade, I was actually a center for a play where we moved our line over one," Buday said. "I went to a lineman camp and we did some center stuff. Coach (Greg) Sherwin recognized that I was doing pretty good with that, so he recommended me for that spot for my junior year."
After working with senior quarterback Corey Williams for last year's state title run, Buday had a new partner this season as sophomore Riley Bullough took over the quarterback role.
"If we put Riley into a shotgun situation, it was very nice to know that the snap was going to be there," Vaughan said. "It was one less thing for Riley to have to worry about. I'm sure for Riley's sake, he feels pretty comfortable knowing the guy in front of him started there last year and played the year before that."
Buday said he and Bullough had worked a year ago to develop their timing.
"I got snaps with Riley last year when he was moved up for playoffs," Buday said. "It does take practice. For the seven on sevens I went there to work on it. It takes practice."
As the playoffs begin, Buday said he's seen a lot of growth in his team over the year. St. Francis finished the regular season 9-0 and won by a lopsided average of 52-4.
"I think we've progressed quite a bit from the time we met in the U.P. for our conditioning camp," Buday said. "We've got a lot of guys working hard and a lot of guys getting experience. I've seen huge improvement from our team."
That doesn't bode well for Inland Lakes, which comes in 6-3 after a third-place showing in the Ski Valley Conference.
"They've got a new coach in there that's running some different stuff than they've run in the past," Vaughan said. "It's evident that they've got a good, tall, wide receiver. They've got a good quarterback back there that can throw the ball around, and they've got another kid back there that was quarterback for part of the season. They like to at least once a game do a halfback pass, or a trans-continental or something along those lines."
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