Wichita twins headed to KU, but for different sports

LAWRENCE (KSNT) - The Thengvall twins are getting ready to live out their dreams in Lawrence, but those dreams didn't fully come true until early May.

Will and Nate Thengvall, a set of twins from Wichita, have both been Jayhawk fans for quite some time. Both being avid athletes in their younger years and through high school, playing sports in college, maybe even at KU, was the goal. Except, they didn't want to separate for undergrad.

"As their senior year started, reality started to sink in," Emily Thengvall, Will and Nate's mother said.

Nate committed to KU track and field in the summer of 2023, while Will was considering other options for basketball. The thought of going to college without his twin brother was enough for Will to think about attending KU as just a student, and giving up basketball.

That, of course, was until about two months ago, when Will got a call from Coach Bill Self. The twins were out mowing their grandparents yard when the call came through.

"I got a call from a Lawrence number and I was like, 'Oh, this is probably him,'" Will said. "So I stopped mowing and I took the call."

"I just like was going back and forth and he was on the other side and I see him pacing back and forth on the phone," Nate said. "It was pretty funny, he was basically shaking."

With summer workouts underway, Will's already on campus with KU men's basketball. Nate, however, is still home in Wichita, so the pair is playing the long-distance game until August. Their mom says there have been some hard moments this summer, but the two are very intentional about how they spend their time when they are together.

Emily added her boys are each other's best friend, but they'd also say they're each other's biggest rival.

"Since we were super young, we've done the same things, played on the same teams," Will said. "We've fought for spots together, so we're super competitive. Even in the driveway at home we're super competitive."

Their older brother Henry, who plays basketball at Wichita State, and their father, Andrew, would get in on the driveway games too.

Now, as they both get ready for their first year in Lawrence, the Thengvall twins are planning on bringing that same energy with them, not just as competitors, but as cheerleaders.

"Definitely cheering each other on," Nate said of how he and his brother will handle competing at KU. "Always will be the twin rivalry and stuff like that to see who will succeed and not succeed and all the highs and lows and stuff like that. It'll be fun to watch."