Dream comes true for small-town Bucs’ tackle Tristan Wirfs

Tampa Bay Buccaneers rookie right tackle Tristan Wirfs arrived at the virtual podium Thursday in a team track jacket, the Super Bowl LV emblem embroidered on his chest.

A humble, boyish grin stretched across his face, with an affable sense of appreciation for where he’s been and where he’s going.

Before this season, he hadn’t much ventured beyond what he termed the 30-mile “bubble” that enveloped his hometown of Mount Vernon, Iowa, and the University of Iowa’s campus, where he blossomed into the No. 13 pick in last April’s draft.

“At first I was a little nervous,” he said, “but once I settled in, I was alright.”

Alright, indeed. Perhaps even better than ever.

Wirfs is at ease ahead of the most consequential game of his football career. It’s a career that began in the tiny town of 4,451. In his first NFL season, he’s stabilized the right side of Tampa Bay’s offense line and emerged as one of the best tackles in football — ranking 11th among 80 by Pro Football Focus.

He’s everything Buccaneers coach Bruce Arians had hoped he would be — and then some, with the 68-year-old admitting as much during his final press conference before Super Bowl LV.

“He’s been nothing but a dream come true for us,” Arians said. “An extremely mature young man. A great athlete. And just took the bull by the horns and done a great job blocking just about everybody in front of him.”

Humble beginnings

Wirfs was raised by a single mother, Sarah, in her hometown of Mount Vernon, where her family and friends played a pivotal role in his upbringing. He was all of 5 when he told her he wanted to play pro football. It was a lofty goal that turned out to be a premonition.

But he dabbled in baseball, wrestling and track and field, and amassed an ardent local following as the best athlete in the state.

It was under the tutelage of Mount Vernon football coach Lance Pederson that Wirfs became a bona fide Division I prospect with legitimate professional aspirations.

Wirfs’ mother says Pederson was largely responsible for her son’s recruitment. But he humbly credited Wirfs’ enthusiastic approach to sports and football. Pederson said he’s one of the most unique players he’s been around in 29 years of coaching.

“He was able to excel in basically anything he did,” Pederson said. “The guy is just an amazing athlete. There’s time you have big kids, you have strong kids, you have good kids. … He really put it all together. He took advantage of it by working even harder.”

Wirfs won state championships as a heavyweight wrestler and shot put and discus thrower. But his future was in football and he accepted a scholarship at nearby Iowa. He started as a freshman, thrived as a sophomore and emerged during his junior season as one of the best offensive linemen in the country.

“All of a sudden, people were sending me mock drafts that were coming out, and they had Tristan in the top 20,” said Wirfs’ mother, who recently resigned from her job at Target after 29 years of employment. “Most things in his life kind of happen like that, all of a sudden. … But he settled in really quick. He doesn’t get worked up about things, at all.”

Blocking for Brady

Arians called Wirfs on draft day and asked him if he was ready to block for Tom Brady, the six-time Super Bowl champion widely regarded as the greatest quarterback to play the game.

“I was like ‘Not right now,’” Wirfs admitted, only half-joking. “It was just a lot being thrown on me … I was like ‘I’ll get ready as fast as I can.’”

Wirfs also revealed that Brady contacted him through Instagram that night, but that he didn’t reply until the next morning because of the overwhelming number of messages he received after the draft. He met Brady for the first time at Tampa Bay’s headquarters ahead of training camp.

An excited call to Wirfs’ mother recounting the encounter followed.

If he wasn’t ready to block for Brady in April, he certainly is now, having played 100 percent of the Tampa Bay’s offensive snaps and yielding only one sack.

“The support and rally around him is unmatchable,” Sarah Wirfs said. “(Our town) is so happy for him. So happy for us. It’s been really fun. … When all this is over, there’s probably going to be some big celebrations.”

Contact reporter Sam Gordon at sgordon@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BySamGordon on Twitter.